What made FXPO 2026 in Ha Long Bay feel different was that it did not begin with people walking cold into a conference room. It began a day earlier, with a golf gathering that gave guests a more relaxed way to meet before the main event officially opened.
That early setting mattered. By the time the conference and exhibition started, some of the formality had already dropped away. People were no longer entering the room as strangers alone. They were arriving with a first impression, a familiar face, or at least the beginning of a conversation.
More than one format, more than one kind of exchange
FXPO made clear that it was not trying to rely on a single type of event experience. Across the two-day agenda were keynote-style talks, XTalk sessions, XLaunch presentations, XPitch, panels, and a dedicated 1-on-1 business matchmaking block. That mix gave the event a more layered rhythm than a standard conference schedule.
That structure also helped the event feel less linear. Some ideas were introduced on stage, others in smaller conversations, and some returned later in a more practical or more candid form. The result was not just content delivery, but a setting where ideas could move between formats and gain clarity as they went.
A strong thread of digital creation and workflow thinking
One of the clearest themes running through the event was digital product creation and the broader question of how workflow, simulation, and collaboration are changing footwear.
That thread was shaped by voices such as Yazan Malkosh, Beth Jackson, Russell Koonce, Lauren Thomas, and Soomin Kang, whose presence across the program and speaker lineup gave this area of the event real continuity. Rather than treating digital creation as a standalone trend, the program positioned it as part of a larger operational shift, one tied to how teams work, how products are visualized, and how decisions are made earlier and more effectively.
What made that significant was not just the subject matter itself, but the fact that it sat alongside discussions on materials, manufacturing, sustainability, and supply chain intelligence. It suggested that digital product creation is no longer a niche conversation. It is increasingly part of how the broader industry is trying to work better.
Other sessions widened the lens
If digital workflow was one major thread, it was far from the only one.
That breadth was visible in the people shaping the program, too. Alongside discussions on materials, digital systems, and supply chain intelligence, voices such as Jacques Slade brought in the cultural and consumer-facing side of footwear, reminding the room that the industry is not only built through processes, but also through stories, identity, and community.
Across the program, other speakers brought focus to different parts of the industry’s current challenges. Antonio León de la Barra Rocha addressed AI-powered supply chain intelligence. Meizi Yan explored how digital twins can turn design into business growth. Alan Lugo pushed sustainability beyond carbon accounting and toward brand purpose before returning to moderate a panel with Anna Baird, Megan Beck, and Austin Davidsen on the co-creation of sustainable footwear. Anson Bailey also appeared in the Day 1 program with a session on consumer reset, omnichannel thinking, and digital transformation.
Together, these conversations helped broaden the event’s perspective. The program did not reduce innovation to one topic or one department. It moved between business strategy, materials, digital systems, retail, product development, and sustainability without forcing them into the same language.
XPitch and XLaunch brought momentum of their own
Two of the most distinct parts of the program were XPitch and XLaunch.
XPitch gave the event a more entrepreneurial edge. It created room for founders to present ideas that were still taking shape and put them in front of people able to evaluate not only the concept itself, but also its potential to move further. That changed the energy in the room. It was not simply about a polished presentation. It was about visibility, response, and the possibility that the right audience could help an idea advance.
XLaunch, meanwhile, grounded the event in more immediate applications. Sessions by Charlie Smith, Karl Olson, Bruce Chang, and Dennis Zheng brought forward perspectives on studio building, midsole materials, and AI-enabled supply chain intelligence. Later, Meizi Yan and Alan Lugo carried the afternoon further into digital growth, sustainability, and product strategy. It was a useful reminder that innovation rarely arrives in one form. Sometimes it looks like a new material. Sometimes it looks like a better process. Sometimes it looks like a clearer way of connecting technical capability with business need.
Why the smaller conversations mattered
The 1-on-1 format played a more private but important role in the overall experience.
Its value was not in sheer volume, but in giving people a place to continue conversations in a more focused setting. A discussion that started after a session or near a booth could become more direct once people sat down face-to-face.
In that sense, the format worked less as a meeting machine and more as a useful next step. It allowed some of the broader discussions happening across the event to narrow into something more specific, more practical, and more honest. The Day 2 agenda gave that process dedicated space rather than leaving it to chance.
What felt different in Ha Long Bay
For a first edition, what FXPO did best may have been its sense of progression.
The event did not feel like a stack of isolated sessions. It felt like a gathering where things had time to develop. A conversation could begin casually, sharpen during a presentation, and return later in a more concrete form. That kind of pacing is hard to manufacture, and it is often what makes the difference between an event people attend and one they actually remember.
That is what FXPO brought to Ha Long Bay, and to the footwear innovation world. Not one grand statement about where the industry is going, but a setting where different people, priorities, and ideas could spend real time together. And for an industry that often works in fragments, that already feels like a meaningful start.
Vietcetera is proud to be the media partner accompanying the event.
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