Nicaragua boosts footwear manufacturing in 2011

March 1, 2012 - PRLog -- The Nicaraguan Chamber of Leather Footwear (CACUNIC, for its acronym in Spanish) recently announced that the footwear industry in the country tripled its production during the last seven years, increasing from one million pairs of shoes in 2004 to three million in 2011.

According to the chamber’s estimates, the sector generates approximately US$36 million in annual sales, with each pair of shoes costing an average of US$12. Out of the three million pairs manufactured in the country, 2.5 million are sold in the national market, while half a million are exported mainly to Central American markets.

Alejandro Delgado, President of CACUNIC, highlighted that footwear manufactured in the country has greatly increased its quality, offering a higher quality than those imported into the country and at a lower price.

Nicaragua has also begun manufacturing footwear for prestigious foreign companies that have decided to invest and begin operations in the country.

SCA Footwear Nicaragua S.A., a women's footwear manufacturing company, officially inaugurated its facility in the country in 2011, with a total investment of US$12.5 million and the generation of nearly 4,000 job opportunities since its establishment.

Prestigious Brazilian shoe manufacturer ANIGER, through its subsidary in Nicaragua Tecshoes, S.A., also began operations in the country by July of 2011. The company, which is operating under the free zone regime, has invested US$6 million and has plans to create a total of 1,200 jobs in a period of 12 to 18 months, producing up to 10,000 pairs of shoes a day.

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PRONicaragua is the Nicaraguan Investment Promotion Agency, established in 2002. It is a non-profit, public-private institution whose mission is to generate economic growth and job creation in Nicaragua by attracting high-quality foreign direct investment. The agency provides complimentary support services to qualified investors seeking investment opportunities in our country.