AI adoption in footwear and leather goods has accelerated sharply over the past two years, with OECD company uptake tripling from six per cent in 2020 to 20 per cent in 2025. The World Footwear report, alongside verified case studies from Portugal and Italy, points to measurable reductions in production cycle times and operating costs, and robotics research in Milan is addressing the last major bottleneck in factory automation.
- In Portugal, AI-assisted planning developed by Olifel has cut working cycles from eight hours to one, raising production schedule accuracy from 50 per cent to 98.5 per cent.
- ISI expects to reduce planning time by 90 per cent, and MIND has shortened its concept-to-sample cycle by three quarters through advanced 3D modelling.
- Companies in Monsummano Terme investing in digitalisation and automation have recorded productivity increases of up to 30 per cent alongside a 15 per cent reduction in operating costs.
- Paolo Rocco at the Politecnico di Milano is developing soft handling, a robotics method using tactile sensors, computer vision and machine learning to manipulate deformable materials such as fabrics, cables and uppers.
- Expo Riva Schuh and Gardabags runs from 13 to 16 June 2026 in Riva del Garda, with innovation confirmed as a central theme of the summer edition.
THE TENTH EDITION: The June 2026 edition of Expo Riva Schuh and Gardabags marks the tenth iteration of the Innovation Village Retail and Start-up Competition, a milestone reached across five years and 17 countries. Two confirmed programme additions extend the agenda beyond the start-up showcase itself.
- The tenth Innovation Village Retail and Start-up Competition has engaged nearly 90 start-ups across ten editions in five years, making it one of the most sustained start-up programmes in the footwear and leather goods sector.
- As part of Market Focus Europe, APICCAPS will present results from the FAIST project, a Portuguese consortium worth €50 million focused on bringing AI and advanced technologies from pilot phases into industrial production.
- The FAIST project has been described as a valuable reference point for the entire industry, extending the fair's relevance beyond its exhibitor base to the wider footwear and leather goods sector.
- Expo Riva Schuh and Gardabags has announced an undisclosed initiative combining communication and innovation, in which a curated selection of exhibitor products will be presented in a completely new way.
FOUR LEVELS OF AI:Alberto Mattiello, futurist and member of the Scientific Committee of Expo Riva Schuh and Gardabags, has identified four levels of artificial intelligence already coexisting and reshaping footwear and leather goods retail. Presented at the NSRA – National Shoe Retailers Association conference in Orlando, his framework points to a sector where AI is no longer a single technology but a layered operating environment with distinct commercial implications.
- Horizontal AI has moved beyond chatbots to autonomous agents capable of navigating the web, completing forms and ordering samples without human input, as SEO gives way to GEO — content optimised not for search engines but for AI systems making decisions on behalf of users.
- Vertical AI encompasses tens of thousands of specialised tools covering specific tasks, from contracts and pricing to photo shoots generated without a physical studio.
- Vibe Coding enables anyone to instruct a machine to build software to their specification without writing a single line of code.
- Embedded AI is present in physical products, from appliances that understand natural language to sports equipment capable of replicating the playing style of professional athletes.
- Digital assistants are beginning to understand individual preferences, habits and wardrobe choices, with Mastercard and Visa having developed infrastructures enabling AI agents to complete transactions and McKinsey estimating the agentic web could generate five trillion dollars in value within three years.
- Companies in the sector can now move from idea to digital prototype in minutes, and Mattiello has noted that every AI tool in use today is, by definition, the least advanced it will ever be, with 1.3 billion people already using AI daily and five billion projected by 2030.
FIVE INNOVATION AREAS: This year's start-up cohort at Innovation Village Retail reflects five discrete innovation areas shaping the future of footwear and leather goods. Alongside the start-up programme, data from Retail Hub, innovation partner of the Riva del Garda fair, confirms that artificial intelligence and digital technologies have become strategic priorities across global fashion brands and start-up communities alike.
- Three start-ups are working in 3D: Voxelo (UK) transforms smartphone videos into digital twins, Threedium (Spain) generates intelligent digital twins across the full product lifecycle, and Ustyle (Italy) enhances product discovery through personalised recommendations.
- On fit technology, Sooley (Germany) turns an iPhone into a 3D foot scanner, while Shoefitr (Netherlands) matches foot scans with finished shoes to reduce returns.
- Mass customisation brings three entrants: Tailoor (Italy) enables on-demand production reducing stock, PlatformE (Portugal) digitises the full journey from product creation to distribution, and Estyl Like Magic (Italy) delivers hyper-realistic virtual try-on and automated styling into the digital fitting room.
- HALA (Italy) and Circular Solution (South Korea) are addressing Digital Product Passport compliance, helping companies prepare for upcoming EU regulations and turning compliance into a growth driver.
- The fifth cluster spans returns reduction and after-sales innovation, covering recommerce and verified recycling. The Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2025 puts the broader context in numbers: AI and sustainability are key drivers across more than 350 ecosystems globally, with over 12,000 start-ups registered in Italy alone.
