International brands produce again in Argentina
Due to the economic policies applied in the 2016-2019 period, the Argentine footwear industry suffered a pronounced setback, where 35,000 jobs were lost and more than 1,000 factories closed, some permanently. The production, which in 2015 reached 125 million pairs, decreased in 2020 to 56 million. These are figures from the CIC -Chamber of the Footwear Industry of Buenos Aires-.
The arrival of the pandemic aggravated the situation in 2020 due to the new living conditions during the quarantine, with a drop of 30.9% in production, 29.4% in imports and 30.6% in consumption, compared to 2019.
The arrival of a second wave of infections, in the first half of 2021, increased the number of infected, which is currently trying to control via vaccination and restrictions on contacts and circulation.
Even so, within this panorama, marked by intermittent evolution, footwear consumption and production have shown promising recovery, especially in the range of household comfort and sports products. Without reaching pre-pandemic levels yet.
To meet this demand, many factories reconverted their productions, others were reborn, and new ones emerged. Obviously, the national production was not enough to cover the consumer public of large international brands, which saw their stocks decrease because they did not have the necessary flow of imports.
Faced with this situation and in order not to lose presence and sales in the market, brands such as NIKE, ADIDAS, PUMA, UNDER ARMOUR, UMBRO, SALOMON, NEW BALANCE, DIADORA and TOPPER, among others, reconfigured their plans and returned to invest and produce in the country, according to each strategy.
It is not yet known if the current Argentine manufacturing structure is sufficient to meet this demand, but consultations and projects in this regard have been activated in the sector.
Data from CAME -Argentine Confederation of Medium Enterprise-
RETAIL SALES
They increased 35.4% in the first semester 2021, compared to the same period of 2020.
SME INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION -IPIP-
It increased 52.1% in May 2021, compared to April 2021.
Production in May 2021 was 83.1% higher compared to May 2020, although it still remains 28.6% below the same month of 2019.
It is estimated that the utilization of installed capacity in May 2021 was higher than 67%.
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