MICAM: crisis did not spare Italian shoe sector

Today, when macroeconomic indicators indicate an improvement in the financial situation in the world, industrialists and businessmen are still not completely sure of stability and continue to make purchases with extreme caution and prudence. With this statement, he began his speech at the opening of the September MICAM shoe exhibition, held twice a year in Milan, the president of the Italian Footwear Manufacturers Association (ANCI) Vito Artioli.

According to ANCI, the economic recovery, which everyone else is talking about, has not yet affected the Italian shoe industry. Half of the operators surveyed by the association expect the industry to stabilize in the second half of 2009, while 40% of respondents expect a deterioration both in foreign markets and domestically. But MICAM ShoEvent continues to be a foothold for the entire footwear sector; the numbers speak for themselves: 1601 exhibitors on 71 square meters. "

“Despite the fact that things are not developing in the best way for both companies and workers, we try not to think about the worst scenarios of the crisis,” said ANCI President Vito Artioli. “We know that this crisis does not depend on our personal skills or the quality of our products. Our competitiveness remains the same. What is happening in the world now is a crisis born in the financial sector. We are not responsible for this economic downturn, but we are ready to seize the opportunity and invest in old markets and explore new ones. "

In the domestic Italian market, the situation seems less worrisome than in foreign markets. In the first half of the 2009 year, families reduced their costs for the purchase of shoes by 0,4% in volume and by 1,1% in cash. The average cost of shoes purchased by Italians fell by 0,7%. These indicators are caused not so much by the crisis as by the uncertainty of people in the future.

“Until now, the domestic Italian market has been quite stable, but the next few months will make us worried,” continued the president of ANCI. - Our association closely followed the dynamics of political discussions caused by the introduction of Law No. 99. It obliges Italian brands to indicate the country of origin. The law entered into force on 15 in August, but now there are rumors about its possible freezing. It is extremely important for the consumer to know where the product is made, and not where the brand comes from. And, of course, it is necessary to achieve equalization of the conditions in which Italian and foreign companies operate, first of all, this concerns the expansion of labeling obligations. We must be sure that Law No. 99 is a fair way to manage a made in label that can protect consumers from pseudo-Italian products. ”

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At the international level, the situation is more complicated. For Italian shoe makers several markets collapsed at once: the USA (-29,3% in value terms), Russia (-25%) and Ukraine (-34,6%), which gives the crisis new trump cards. The positive dynamics are maintained by Greece (+ 7,7% in value terms) and Spain (+ 0,7% in terms of sales, but -9,4% in terms of value).

In general, the figures on the EU market have not changed much: -12,1% in sales and -9,7% in value. This is largely due to steady sales in France (-2,2% in volumes and -1,3% in value), which is the main market for Italian shoes, and in Germany, where there is a decrease in 9,7% of sales. “Sales of Italian shoes in foreign markets outside the European Union in April and May fell by more than 20%,” said Vito Artioli. - During the first five months of 2009, demand fell by 14,6% in value and by 16% in volume. These, it would seem, not at all optimistic figures looked quite inspiring against the background of all Italian exports, which decreased from January to May by 25%. The indicators of clothing manufacturers remain close to ours (-14,1% in volumes), while losses of the textile industry inspire more concern (-27,4%). It turns out that the shoe industry is one of the most stable sectors of the Italian economy. ”

Imports also decreased markedly in volumes: in the first five months of the 2009 year, almost 28 million pairs of shoes were imported into Italy than in the same period of the 2008 year. This reduction is 15,5%. However, in terms of value, the indicators increased by 5,5% compared to the previous year, due to a significant increase in the average price for a pair of shoes (+ 24,9%).

“The increase in average import prices is due to a significant reduction in imports from China, whose average price for a pair of shoes is 4,37 euros, which is about 1 / 3 of the average cost of products imported to Italy from other countries,” said the president of ANCI. “Our current figures demonstrate the effectiveness of anti-dumping measures, and at the same time, you need to be more careful about importing shoes from third countries.”

The current economic situation has affected employment. The ANCI Research Department confirms that 1839 people lost their jobs in the footwear sector in Q1 2009. The number of jobs decreased by 2,1%. At the same time, 143 shoe manufacturing companies closed.