Assocalzaturifici, the national association of Italian footwear manufacturers, aims to promote the manufacturing communities, the regions, and the expertise of “Made in Italy” footwear.
For this reason, on the Feast of Saints Crispin and Crispinian—the patron saints of shoemakers and footwear manufacturers—the Italian footwear sector seeks to celebrate its heritage of traditions, knowledge, and manufacturing expertise.
From now on, to reinforce the significance of this celebration, Assocalzaturifici will promote Italian manufacturing and pay tribute to the communities that have contributed to the international prestige of “Made in Italy” through generations of master artisans, entrepreneurs, and workers.
“The Feast of Saints Crispin and Crispinian is an opportunity to highlight the identity of our sector, which is built on a legacy of people and skills passed down through the ages,” stated Giovanna Ceolini, president of Assocalzaturifici and the Committee for the Promotion of Italian Footwear Artistry.
“The value of ‘Made in Italy’ stems from a manufacturing culture rooted in local communities and nurtured by dialogue across generations. Celebrating this occasion means preserving our know-how and passing it on to future generations,” she added.
The celebrations will involve various communities across the country, with initiatives that will focus on tradition, training, and recognition of professional know-how in the sector.
San Mauro Pascoli, a town near Forlì and Cesena that is home to a major footwear manufacturing district and to CERCAL—the International Footwear Research and Training Center, will host discussions and an awards ceremony for young students for the day.
The event will also feature a series of initiatives involving institutions, businesses, academia, and the education and training sectors, along with students and the local community, including the upcoming edition of the “Un Talento per la Scarpa” contest.
Other events are scheduled in Stra and Vigevano, two other cities known for the significant contribution they have always made to the history and vitality of the sector.
Italian footwear, in fact, is an expression of a multifaceted world that encompasses not only shoe factories but also other businesses specializing in leather processing and the production of components and accessories such as soles, insoles, heels, footbeds, to name a few.
October 24 thus becomes a moment of collective recognition for all the entities that contribute to the excellence of Italian footwear—from companies to skilled workers, from schools to local communities—in the spirit of a tradition that continues to renew itself.
Assocalzaturifici, together with CERCAL, Politecnico University of Milan, and Musei Impresa, has also launched an initiative to propose the nomination of Italian shoemaking as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.
The Promoting Committee, chaired by Giovanna Ceolini, is supported by government institutions such as MIMIT and by a Supporters’ Committee chaired by Giovanni Bozzetti, president, Fondazione Fiera Milano. The Promoting Committee engages local areas and communities of practitioners with the goal of recognizing this cultural heritage, protecting the Italian art of shoemaking, and establishing a preservation plan to guarantee its continuity in the years to come.