MILAN—The 51st edition of Mido begins on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023 at Fiera Milano Rho in Milan, Italy and will run through Monday, Feb. 6. President Giovanni Vitaloni said, “Mido returns to the first days of February, a position we can confirm for editions through 2026. This worked in our favor, eliciting a massive response by companies—including the return of industry giants, Asian brands and the debut of small, independent businesses that have made Mido their market entry of choice.

"The first weeks of February are strategic for companies and buyers to operate in a timely manner, getting an early look at the new collections in order to realize a return on investment in the first quarter of the year,” Vitaloni said.

With its robust international orientation, Italy’s eyewear industry is made up of 830 companies and 18,250 employees, Mido reports. Organizers said, “Based on a preliminary 2022 forecast by ANFAO, Italy’s eyewear production in 2022 totaled €5.17 billion, up 24 percent from 2021. Exports of frames, sunglasses and lenses (representing about 90 percent of industry production), grew 22.5 percent over 2021, to reach approx. €5 billion.

"The United States, traditionally the eyewear industry’s primary export market, with a more than 30 percent share, increased 20.2 percent compared to 2021. Prevailing concerns for the first half of 2023 are cost increases—in energy, raw materials, shipping, services, logistics, packaging, etc.—estimated to have doubled, on average, compared to the pre-pandemic period.”

This year, the international trade show is anticipating:

  • Just over 1,000 exhibitors.
  • More than 150 countries represented.
  • 6 pavilions.
  • 8 exhibit areas.
  • 3 international prizes awarded to opticians and exhibitors.
  • More than 30 scheduled activities including 3 days of conferences, meetings, roundtables and events.
  • More than 250 accredited journalists from around the globe.
  • 7 social channels for sharing videos, photos and posts about the show.
  • 1 official TV channel with interviews and in-depth features from the Mido pavilions.
  • 1 B2B digital platform for exploring news, contacts and some of the exhibitors’ collections.
 
 
Kick-off for the show will be on Saturday with welcome addresses by president Giovanni Vitaloni, along with CEO and managing director of ITA Roberto Luongo, City of Milan municipal councilor Alessia Cappello and CEO and managing director of Fiera Milano Luca Palermo. The calendar of events continues throughout the three days of the show with business meetings, conferences and events. Among these is the presentation of the ANFAO Empowering Optical Women Leadership project in support of women on a leadership career path in the eyewear industry.

This year’s three international awards are: the BeStore Award, for optical shops that offer an outstanding shopping experience and customer service; the Stand Up For Green award, which is in its 2nd edition and assigned to the stand most focused on environmental stewardship; and, for the first time, the CSE (Certified Sustainable Eyewear) Award. Established by Mido, in partnership with ANFAO and Certottica, this new award honors sustainability in the global eyewear industry. Mido president Vitaloni and fashion and lifestyle journalist Chiara Tronville will host the ceremony.

Vitaloni said, “The topic of sustainability is extremely important. We want Mido to be an opportunity to share experiences with those who are already accomplished in this area. For some time now, many eyewear companies have been active in sustainability projects and we decided to dedicate an award specifically to them. We will present the CSE Award at a special ceremony on Sunday, February 5.

"At the same time, we know how great an impact large-scale events like Mido can have and therefore at the recent editions, we have endeavored to reduce not only its environmental, but also its social impact. Among the first results achieved is ISO 20121:2012 Sustainability Certification, obtained at the 2022 edition, certifying the sustainable management of large events. In February we will be evaluated for this year’s edition.”

As part of this sustainable push, Mido has worked to make public transportation to the show more accessible. This year, train stations in Turin and Naples joined Rome, Bologna, Florence and Venice, with stops at Padua, Vicenza and Verona, to further facilitate the arrival of visitors from across Italy and promote the use of public transportation. A partnership with ITA Airways also means discounts on flights were available to those arriving from abroad and, for the first time, special flight packages for those traveling from the U.S.