Gianni Gallucci, president of Young Entrepreneurs of Confindustria Fermo and general manager Gallucci: "Unjustified increases in the bill do not help to make forecasts for 2023, the prices of raw materials are still rising, due to some cunning, and there is no certainty that orders will maintain a positive trend". [Gallucci (Giovani Confindustria Fermo): "Per calzature Italia leader tra produttori fascia alta e lusso"- Adnkronos]
"Making a reflection on the 2022 budget of the footwear sector in Italy we can say that Italy is still the first footwear producer in the European Union and the thirteenth for number of pairs in the world and undisputed leader among high-end and luxury manufacturers, with a high fashion content, all this despite a downsizing that has lasted for several years". This was stated to Adnkronos / Labitalia by Gianni Gallucci, president of the Young Entrepreneurs of Confindustria Fermo and general manager of Gallucci, a company that has its roots in a family tradition that began almost a hundred years ago and that since 1959 has been the reference point for the production of high quality footwear for children and later for men and women.
The company, with an orange color, which has its factory in the Marche region and the showroom for international buyers in Milan in Piazza San Babila, is one of the companies of handmade leather footwear and accessories and totally Made in Italy preferred by royal families such as the Swedish and the Belgian, characters of the star system such as Madonna, Jennifer Lopez and Sarah Jessica Parker and the world of sport such as Lebron James, Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
"We must not forget - he observes - that Italy in 2022 was the eighth exporting country in the world and the second in value, behind China, with reference only to shoes with leather uppers: 3 shoes out of 5 produced have this characteristic. Currently the sector is driven by about 4,000 companies and 70,000 employees after the hard blow of the collapse of 2020 when about 1/4 of the total turnover was lost (amounted to 10.72 billion euros) strong were the reductions both in trade and in the consumption of Italian families. The footwear sector immediately had to cope with the consequences of the tragic war that involved Russia and Ukraine among the first countries as importers of footwear made in Italy, which led to inevitable cancellations and loss of turnover".
"For the footwear sector - he says - unjustified increases in the bill certainly do not help to make forecasts for 2023, the prices of raw materials are still rising, due to some cunning, and there is no certainty that orders will maintain a positive trend".
"We are still waiting - he underlines - for the timely pre-election interventions promised in September, the times of politics are unfortunately always too slow. President Meloni during the press conference at the end of the year declared that this is a 'business-friendly government' in a country where the productive force is the driving force, where attention must be paid to industrial strategies, internationalization policy and the protection of Made in Italy".
"The footwear sector - he points out - which now speaks only the language of fashion, is giving a very important signal, after the great return of the brands from relocation, almost all companies are looking for young people, even without experience but with a great desire to get involved, to be included and transformed into specialized footwear technicians, with salaries now to be envied even by professionals".
"So - he warns - particular attention to training in companies, with which we could save our workers who are so envied and that allow us to recognize the true value of Made in Italy in the world by keeping the spotlight on the good ones focused on our country".
"2023 - he assures - will be a year to be faced with great seriousness and it is inevitable to put in place new strategies, our corporate attention is always directed to the US market in third place in the world ranking as consumers of shoes after China and India, and for this reason we are implementing a new platform, just created, for online sales dedicated to this market with new specific products".
