1. 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. Italy, for example, its main competitor, fell back by 26.7% since 2013, producing 148 million pairs of shoes last year.
2. Exports of the footwear cluster reached 2,222 million euros in 2023. This represents a growth of 17.4% in a decade.
3. In 2023, the Portuguese footwear industry exported 66 million pairs of shoes, worth 1,839 million euros.
4. 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.
5. In terms of international trade, the reference markets for Portuguese footwear are Germany, France, and the Netherlands, in that very order. The industry concentrates around 80% of its foreign trade in Europe.
6. In 2023, Portugal exported 101 million euros worth of footwear to the United States. The US is the market where Portuguese footwear has shown the best indicators in the recent past: 274% growth in the last decade.
7. The average price of Portuguese footwear was 27.70 euros at the end of 2023, according to the World Footwear Yearbook.
8. 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.
9. The footwear sector contributes 1,103 million euros annually to the Portuguese trade balance.
10. 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).
