Even as Guangdong is one of the nation's key shoemaking bases, trade executives said that the province's shoemakers should focus on brand building.

"Guangdong, particularly its Pearl River Delta region, has a very well-developed industrial chain for the shoe industry and has both the technological solutions as well as technique for upscale shoe making," said Xu Yong, chairman of China Leather Industrial Association, at a seminar during the 5th China Shoes and China Shoetec. "It's a pity that the province has very few, if not none, of the global shoe brand names."

He said that the booming shoe industry is one of the most important reasons why Messe Dusseldorf China Ltd and Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd have joined hands with Guangdong Modern Convention and Exhibition Management Co Ltd to hold the China Shoes and China Shoetec, one of the biggest and most important professional footwear events in Asia, in the Pearl River Delta city of Dongguan.

"For one thing, local shoe makers need a platform to showcase their latest products. For another, the booming industry creates a huge market for related technological solutions and equipment," he explained.

Xu said that the local exhibitors' active participation and the wide range of shoe designs and products could reflect the booming industry and the huge presence of overseas visitors reflected the local shoes' popularity in the global market.

More than 22,000 visitors including foreigners attended the three-day event, which ended last Friday.

"Local shoe suppliers will definitely make much greater profit if their products are brand names."

He suggested that the shoemakers should invest more on marketing and promotional campaigns and in diversifying overseas marketing and sales channels by setting up franchised stores to build up brands instead of involving themselves totally in the OEM business for the marginal processing charge.

According to Chen Jiawen, chairman of Guangdong Shoe Manufacturers' Association, Guangdong yields over 3 billion pairs of shoes annually, accounting for about 60 percent of the nation's total.

A majority of the over 10,000 shoe enterprises are also involved in the OEM business for foreign brands.

The shoemaking factories are located in the Pearl River Delta cities of Dongguan, Foshan, Zhongshan, Huizhou, Jiangmen and Shenzhen.

Editor: Yan