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A Recovery Is Underway and Trade Fairs are Contributing, but Businesses are Worn Out From Marmomacc to Micam Shoevent, from VicenzaOro First to Macef, from Pitti Immagine to Immagine Italia & Co., professional, international exhibitions in Italy are recording an increase in exhibitors and buyers. Signs of recovery in Italian manufacturing do exist, although causes for concern are not lacking. Many businesses are worn out, having weathered the storm through great sacrifice in terms of profit and employment, as well as making superior efforts both in inventiveness and entrepreneurialism. The main trade fair businesses, too, have done their part, by means of courageous restructurings (will they be enough?) and by facing difficulties and employee demands in different ways, but working in Italy has become extremely difficult and many entrepreneurs have given up on the battle to change the situation. This battle must begin with their associations, where administrative and legislative chaos has run riot, pressing entrepreneurs to register and to make use of the pay services on offer. Many entrepreneurs have taken the route that has seemed to them most practicable: moving production abroad or becoming exclusively importers. But if valid alternatives are not found, what this results in is an impoverishment of the nation and here, even the professional, international trade fairs we are so justifiably proud of will have few prospects before them. To complicate matters further, drastic price increases are being imposed on raw materials, which could knock our businesses out of the game completely. | ||||||
