81M
In 2023, Portugal produced 81 million pairs of shoes. Excellent service, production quality and responsiveness are the main competitive arguments of an industry that has grown by 8% in the last decade. In fact, Portugal was the only European country to increase its production.
2.2M
Exports of the footwear cluster reached 2,222 million euros in 2023. This represents a growth of 17.4% in a decade.
174
Portuguese footwear was sold in 174 countries last year. Exports currently account for 90% of production. Belize is the last stamp on the passport of Portuguese footwear exports.
87%
The Portuguese footwear industry specialises in exporting leather-made footwear. These currently account for 87% of foreign trade. In fact, Portugal is the world’s 10th largest exporter.
600M
The footwear cluster presented its Strategic Plan for the next decade, with the challenge of becoming “an international benchmark in the development of sustainable solutions”. To this end, it intends to invest 600 million euros by 2030. Two major investments are already underway, an 89-million-euro investment in sustainability (Bioshoes4ll project) and a 60-million-euro investment in automation and digitalisation (FAIST project).
Photo: Pedro Afonso
Model: Rita Santos (Karacter)
Boots: Valuni
