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MARIKINA CITY, Sept. 02 (PIA) – The shoe capital of the Philippines, Marikina City, recently brought its Shoe Trade Fair in Davao City.
Acting Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte and Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro led the opening of the shoe trade fair during the celebration of Kadayawan Festival held last August 23, 2019.
High quality shoes are now available at the Pasalubong Center in Davao City that showcases various handcrafted shoes made by local designers and shoemakers from Marikina City.
“These shoes are a labor of love, handmade and crafted with care. Each pair of shoes has a story — the story of its maker, how it was made, why it was made and who it was made for,” Teodoro during the trade fair opening.
According to Teodoro, reintroducing Marikina-made shoes in the rest of the country is an important step in keeping the shoe industry alive.
Acting Davao City Mayor Baste Duterte commended the efforts being taken by the local government of Marikina City to strengthen the shoe industry in the country.
“I salute the people of Marikina for doing a good job in preserving the shoe industry. Let me tell you the reason why. It’s because of what your mayor told me about the cultivation of local ingenuity. It’s about craftsmanship. This is what we need in the country now,” said the acting mayor.
Davao City's acting mayor said he wanted Davao City to be known not only for its fruits and flowers but also for its other products like clothing and bags that inspire the beauty and culture of the city.
He urged other local government units to imitate the efforts of Marikina City in promoting local products and empowering homegrown entrepreneurs saying that local Filipino products can compete in international markets.
“I truly believe that Filipinos can really compete in the national and international arenas. So, sana, sa tulungan natin ma-improve pa natin at mapalakas ang mga ginagawa natin as Filipinos,” Duterte added.
In June 2018, the two cities signed a sisterhood agreement that continually paved the way for tourism, culture, education, social welfare, trade, and commerce.
According to Teodoro, this is just the first of many shoe trades and collaborations that will happen across the Philippines.
Teodoro was accompanied by other Marikina City Government officials, members of the Philippine Footwear Federation, Inc. (PFFI) and the 71-year old Orlando “Tatay Orly” Santos, a Marikeño who made the shoes worn by President Rodrigo Duterte in his State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Teodoro gave the presidential son a pair of Marikina-made black leather shoes as a token of appreciation. (PIA InfoComm/PIO Marikina)
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