After several years of growth, the negative trend in sales of German shoes, both within Germany and in foreign markets, returned in 2019, according to a report by the Federal Association of the German Footwear and Leather Goods Industry (HDS / L)), which was presented at a press conference at the Gallery Shoes shoe show in Dusseldorf, writes Worldfootwear.com.
In 2019, Germany's total footwear sales reached 2.89 billion euros, a decrease of 2,7% compared to the result of 2018. Sales in the German domestic market decreased by 1,8%, while the decrease in sales of German shoes in foreign markets amounted to 6,8%.
It is noted that the drop in sales is not associated with a decrease in employees in the shoe industry, on the contrary, the number of employees continues to grow, its growth in 2019 was about 2%. At the end of 2019, the number of employees in the German shoe industry was 15708 people.
The report states that the most serious problems that the German shoe industry is experiencing today are the growing importance of online trading, the active spread of discount programs, the slowdown in the frequency of purchases in traditional retail and the almost complete absence of winter.
In addition, HDS / L notes that the new coronavirus may also have a negative impact on the development of the shoe industry. Its impact on the textile and footwear industry, especially due to possible delays or lack of supply of raw materials and related materials, is now difficult to assess. However, due to the great uncertainty in world markets, the German economy is already having a weak start to the year. "The federal government should provide economic impulses as quickly as possible to stimulate growth," said HDS / L officials.
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