Successful start in Bucharest of the COTANCE-IndustriAll project
“Objective 2025! – A future for European Leatherâ€
Over 35 stakeholders of the European leather industry, including the sector’s leading trade press, gathered on 24th April 2015 in Bucharest for the first Seminar of the four that build up the backbone of the project of the EU Social Partners. Representatives of big brands, downstream sector associations, think tanks and research and educational organisations joined the representatives of both sides of the industry to this first event where focus was put on industrial challenges and opportunities looking ahead into the next decade. Other seminars on societal issues, on trade issues and on environmental issues will follow throughout 2015.
Dr Luminita Albu, director of APPBR, the Romanian social partner on the employers’ side, acting as local hosts of the event, opened the meeting with warm welcoming words and good wishes for a productive day.
COTANCE and IndustriAll-European Trade Union introduced an outstanding panel of speakers with
- Mike Redwood, reputed leather industry expert, University professor and founder of the sector’s Think Tank Leather Naturally!
- Paul Pearson, Secretary of the International Council of Tanners, and
- Guido Nelissen, Economic Advisor with IndustriAll-European Trade Union in charge of industrial policy, macroeconomic policy, international trade and sectors such as automobile.
The speakers outlined global trends that will shape the future of the leather industry in Europe. Mike Redwood embarked the audience into a trip into the future with regard to urbanisation, demographics and technology and how these will affect life and consequently production and consumption patterns. Paul Pearson provided an exhaustive account of global production and trade trends in leather highlighting the outlook for the trade and industry in the areas of raw materials, the allocation of resources, hide prices, leather authenticity labelling and CSR. Guido Nelissen concluded the day with a detailed picture of the vision of the largest EU industry trade union with regard to industrial policy in the EU presenting the intelligence and the recommendations collected in the organisation’s Manifesto to put industry back to work.
The debate allowed participants to deepen their understanding on the factors that need to be integrated in the business strategies of European operators so they remain competitive on the global market in the future.
30 April 2015