"The principal aim was to present India as a source not only of leathers and shoe uppers, but also of shoes and we have succeeded in that," said PS Kathiresan, executive director of CLE. The `Think Shoes Think India' campaign, supported by eloquent display boards, video presentations and fashion shows, has done the magic. "It is a long-term investment. The commerce ministry had sanctioned close to Rs 2 crore for the promotion and it is expected to be beneficial in the long-run. The entry of India into the highly fashionable and fast changing European shoe market was in a big way, thanks to the `partner nation' status offered bythe fair authorities to the country."

CLE together with the Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), National Leather Development Programme, National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Indo-German Export Promotion Project and the Indo-German Chamber of Commerce (IGCC) had worked hard to make the participation of 55 Indian companies on about 1700 square metre area effective and meaningful. Footwear and footwear components were on show.

Exact details of the outcome of the fair, in terms of new contacts established and new business generated is yet to be made available. However, participants feel that there was only a limited success in terms of immediate business.

The four-day run of GDS, according to Messe Duesseldorf authorities, "drew to a close with positive results for exhibitors and visitors alike". In all 1,895 exhibitors from 51 countries (compared to the last autumn GDS with 1,707) occupied 11 halls and 87,607 square metres of net exhibition space, registering an increase of about 13,000square compared to the 86th GDS.

The blue summer skies and a new colour boldness in footwear fashion for the first summer of the new millennium combined to inspire the crowd of some 50,000 trade visitors. Dusseldorf once again became the rendezvous for shoe buyers from all over the world. Nearly 70 per cent of visitors were from other countries, other than Germany, and 54.5 per cent were from Europe. Over 15.3 per cent visitors were from Asia, mainly from India, China, Hong Kong and Japan, and the rest were from Australia and New Zealand.

At 31.9 per cent, nearly one third of all pre-orders for spring and summer 2000 were said to be placed at GDS. This flurry of orders was much in evidence among the international retail trade, which at 34.4 per cent this year has once again topped pre-order activity in Duesseldorf. The new fashion trends were well received by German footwear retailers, who booked 26.7 per cent of their entire budget for the next season.

All the major forms of retail distribution chooseGDS as their key information and order forum. In addition to specialty footwear retailers, who have stabilised their market share of 59.2 per cent, there was strong interest among vertically-structured companies and new trade outlets. Coordinating shoe fashion with the latest overall fashion trends has become an absolute must for innovative specialty retailers. At 21.9 per cent, an increasing number of retailers (compared to last year's 17.7 per cent) are integrating clothing into their range and opting for a strong line-up of international brand names.

Trend setters include shoe brands of well-known clothing manufacturers, particularly those offering wellness and lifestyle themes. With the presentation of this outfit philosophy made complete by a full range of accessories such as handbags, bodybags and others, this concept appears set to shape the future of the footwear industry.

Fashion shows and the trend islands, staged by the German shoe institute-DSI-showcased bold new ideas for coordinating shoefashion with the outerwear. Staged to complement the wide variety of international footwear on show, they further enhanced the significance of GDS as an information forum none in the industry can afford to miss. In addition to providing an ideal setting for business in all areas of footwear, GDS also offered an ancillary programme featuring a variety of well-received attractions representing the extra service commensurate with a global No 1 fair. One of the highlights was the presentation of the European Footwear Marketing Award (EFMA), which this year went to the Belgian shoe retailer Van Loock. The GDS was also the venue for presenting the German leather goods award. Attracting a large number of participants (both men and women) was a sales clinic, at which over 700 participants experienced an informative and exciting trade fair on Sunday.

The 4th Leather & Components, staged parallel to GDS in hall 14 from September 10 to 12, provided the world of international footwear with an opportunity forinformation gathering and in-depth dialogue with their materials suppliers. The event attracted a total of 5,000 trade visitors. Over 90 per cent of all these experts responsible for production and purchasing visited GDS to find out about the latest trends and gain an overview of the footwear market.

At Leather & Components, the focus was on the future seasons. Nearly one in five trade visitors (19.1 per cent) were first-timers to Dusseldorf for Leather & Components. This further underscores Dusseldorf's significance as trade fair venue serving the entire product innovation cycle of the footwear industry. The 89th GDS will be staged from March 9 to 12, 2000.