The global footwear industry once again turns its attention to Milan as MICAM Milano 101, the leading international event for the footwear industry, opens at Fiera Milano Rho, where it will run until 24 February. More than a trade fair, the world’s premier footwear exhibition continues to evolve into a dynamic platform where business, creativity and technology converge — reinforcing its role as a strategic hub for the global market.
The event officially began this morning with the joint inauguration of MICAM 101 and MIPEL, held at 10:30 AM in MICAM NEXT (Hall 3), centred on the theme “Education and businesses for the future of Made in Italy.” The opening moment highlighted the industry’s shared commitment to nurturing talent, strengthening craftsmanship and ensuring the long-term competitiveness of Italian manufacturing on the global stage.
This edition confirms MICAM’s expanding influence, welcoming 795 brands, including 402 international and 393 Italian companies. The figures underline not only the event’s scale but also its central position within an increasingly interconnected footwear landscape. Building on previous success, MICAM strengthens its identity as a market-driven ecosystem designed to respond directly to industry needs while supporting export development and international expansion.
A key factor behind this growth is the continued support of MAECI and ICE, whose contribution has enabled a remarkable achievement: the number of hosted buyers has doubled compared to earlier editions. The result is a more global audience, stronger commercial opportunities and a platform capable of generating meaningful business relationships.
A New Exhibition Experience
MICAM’s transformation is visible from the moment visitors enter the fairgrounds. Guided by an industrial development plan created in collaboration with KPMG, the exhibition layout has been redesigned to deliver a fluid, contemporary and highly engaging visitor journey.
The fair unfolds through curated thematic areas celebrating excellence across the sector, culminating in Pavilion 3 — the beating heart of innovation. Here, MICAM Next Square showcases the future of retail through technologies reshaping how footwear is designed, sold and experienced.
Among the highlights, SizeWise introduces artificial intelligence capable of optimising size recommendations and reducing product returns, while WEEV integrates digital twins, ESG data management and AI-powered research tools into a single SaaS platform. Meanwhile, Solaya demonstrates how brands can produce professional photographic content directly from smartphones, dramatically cutting production time and costs.
Together, these solutions signal a retail environment increasingly defined by efficiency, sustainability and digital intelligence.
Where Craft Meets Creativity
Innovation at MICAM extends beyond technology into education and craftsmanship. One of the most anticipated novelties of the edition is M&M – The Hub, located in Pavilion 5, a space dedicated to learning, experimentation and creative exchange.
Developed in synergy with MIPEL, the project brings the MICAM Academy to life as a working artisan laboratory. Students from specialised schools collaborate with Arsutoria’s master craftsmen and artists from the comic-book world to explore the Art of Footwear through hands-on workshops.
The initiative culminates in the creation of 100 exclusive prototype pairs, featuring technical one-piece uppers crafted with advanced orthopaedic materials, “barefoot” soles supplied by Vibram, embroidered Micam Milano branding and an NFC tag that anticipates the future digital product passport — allowing the entire production process to be accessed via smartphone.
The project reflects a broader industry shift: preserving heritage skills while embracing new technologies and new generations of designers.
Startups Driving the Next Wave
Pavilion 5 also hosts the Italian Startup area, spotlighting emerging companies redefining sustainability and innovation within the footwear ecosystem.
Zerow focuses on circular economy solutions that recover and enhance production waste. EZ Lab advances blockchain-based traceability and Digital Product Passport technologies, while Gait Tech introduces an invisible insole-integrated device designed to improve comfort in high-heeled footwear.
These startups embody the industry’s growing commitment to responsible production, transparency and performance-driven design.
The Era of “Primordial Renaissance”
Digital intelligence plays a central role in this edition’s theme, Primordial Renaissance, explored through an AI-driven Trend Guide developed in collaboration with Livetrend. By analysing millions of data points drawn from online platforms and social media, the guide identifies four macro-trends expected to influence next season’s purchasing decisions:
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Bucolic Slumber
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Lavish Subversion
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Primal Futurism
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Dark History
The forecasting tool provides buyers and brands with a strategic lens through which creativity and commercial strategy intersect, transforming data into actionable insight.
Milan at the Centre of the Fashion System
Completing the MICAM 101 experience is Fashion Link Milano, a joint initiative uniting MIPEL, Milano Fashion & Jewels, TheOneMilano and Sì Sposaitalia Collezioni. The collaboration offers international buyers a cohesive vision of the entire fashion supply chain, positioning Milan as a global reference point where accessories, footwear, jewellery and apparel meet within a single integrated ecosystem.
More than an exhibition, MICAM 101 confirms itself as a cultural and economic observatory of the footwear world — a place where tradition meets experimentation, craftsmanship meets technology and local excellence meets global ambition.
As the industry navigates transformation, MICAM continues to demonstrate that the future of footwear is not defined by a single trend, but by the ability to connect innovation, creativity and international dialogue under one roof.
