Latin American Footwear: Is It Time for Nearshoring?
Among the various topics discussed at the recent forum of Latin American footwear chambers in Mexico, the strategy of nearshoring was addressed tangentially. This approach involves relocating production to countries geographically closer to the final consumer markets. It encourages the search for partners and industries within the same region, in contrast to offshoring, which transfers operations to distant locations such as Asia. The main objective is to reduce dependence on extreme globalization and establish a more agile, locally based manufacturing model.
Among the key benefits of this system are shorter delivery times, better supply chain and production management, and lower logistics costs. Regional nearshoring would strengthen the region’s internal value chains. In the footwear industry, this would mean relying less on Asian inputs and promoting the supply of leather, synthetic materials, and components within Latin America.
This phenomenon has emerged as a direct response to disruptions in global supply chainsm -such as those seen during the pandemic- geopolitical tensions (U.S. vs. China), and the need for companies to reduce risks and increase agility.
In summary, nearshoring represents a major opportunity for Latin American countries to capitalize on their geographic position and manufacturing expertise, transforming historical dependence into a modern, flexible, high-quality regional footwear production platform.
This was one of the ideas discussed in Mexico, and it could mark an important step toward greater integration and unity within the Latin American footwear industry.
The Editor