Italian Footwear Industry Experiences ‘Sharp Slowdown’ in Q1, Turnaround Not Expected Until At Least 2025

Italian footwear sales were down 10.1 percent in the first quarter of 2024.

The Italian footwear industry experienced a sharp slowdown in the first quarter of 2024, according to the latest data from Confindustria Moda Research Centre for Assocalzaturifici, the national association representing Italian shoemakers.

In the first quarter of the year, the country’s shoe sector saw a 10.1 percent decline in sales compared to the same period in 2023. Declines were also seen with a 9.7 percent drop in total value of footwear exports and a 10.3 percent decrease in pairs exported in the quarter.

Giovanna Ceolini, president of Assocalzaturifici, said in the report that the slowdown began in the second half of last year and has now become “even more marked,” with a strong reduction in orders and production activity. The executive noted that production was down 20.5 percent in the first three months of 2024, according to the latest ISTAT (Italian National Institute of Statistics) index.

“The customary survey conducted in May among our associates showed a drop in sales for 68 percent of the sample, with 18 percent of associates reporting a contraction of even more than 20 percent,” Ceolini said. “Moreover, the sentiment of entrepreneurs does not show confidence: only 11 percent trust in an improvement in the economic trend in the second quarter, which is expected by the interviewees to close with a drop in sales of around 7.4 percent in April-June. More than 80 percent expect a turnaround no earlier than 2025.”

A closer look at the report revealed that in the first three months of the year, Italian footwear exports stood at 51.9 million pairs, 6 million fewer than in the same last year, worth 3.17 billion euros.

Among the top export destinations, the European Union (EU) markets showed less unfavorable trends, down only 4.1 percent in value, than non-EU markets, which were down 15 percent overall.

In the EU, France and Spain, despite falling in quantity, grew in value (up 1.7 percent and 8.5 percent, respectively) in the first quarter. France confirmed its position as the top destination in the EU, both in terms of value and volume, Assocalzaturifici noted. Exports to Germany fell by more than 10 percent and to Belgium by a 20 percent drop in value and a 37.6 percent decline in quantity.

Outside the EU, Switzerland dropped to fourth place in value destinations. The country, which has traditionally served as a logistic and distribution hub for fashion companies, saw the drop in export value because most of the transit in the Swiss hubs has been replaced by direct shipments to end markets, the organization said. This resulted in a 53.4 percent decline in export value to the country and a 36.7 percent decline in export volume.

As for North America, the report noted the United States saw an 8.8 percent decline in export value in the quarter, while Canada reported a 7.2 percent decrease in value. The United Kingdom saw similar results, with a 6.1 percent drop in export value in Q1. In the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates grew by 34.4 percent in export value, while losing 4.5 percent in volume.

On the other hand, an encouraging performance was recorded in the Far East, which grew 4.3 percent overall in export value in the first quarter due to the strong presence of designer labels. This could be seen in China, which reported a 10.8 percent increase in export value and a 17.8 percent rise in quantity in Q1. Hong Kong also saw a 26 percent increase in value, with a 4.9 percent rise in volume. Japan held steady with a 0.9 percent decline in value but a 3.1 percent increase in quantity.