In Turkey, which has been engaged in strenuous efforts in the building and the development of its own industry, shoe production has somewhat lagged behind many other sectors The fact that this sector was not adequately subsidized by the government,  has resulted in the backwardness of the production technology, and has also caused the production volume to remain at a limited level. 

The transformation from hand-made production to industrial production in 1980’s,  was accompanied by an increase in export sales. It can be asserted that during this period,  access to the foreign markets has also begun, concurrent with the increase in the capacity and the volume of production in the shoes sector.  As a result of certain important endeavors realized in the private sector, shoe production has formed 2.5% of the current recorded exports, and taking into consideration the “shuttle trade”, shoe exports began to have a share of about 10% in the total exports. One of the main reasons underlying the relatively low figures of export in the official documents is that, a substantial portion of this sector is exported in the form of “shuttle trade”. 

Although the level of development of the sector from the standpoint of exports remains at an inadequate level, the potential for demand is at a level that can compete particularly with countries such as Spain or Portugal.  However, this potential is not known enough throughout the world. In order to ensure that the shoe industry in Turkey fully benefits from the export potential, a priority must be given to activities such as promotion of the Turkish products in the foreign markets and the development of standardization in design and production. 

The selection of particularly the former Eastern Block countries in shoe exports due to geographical proximity, have increased the vulnerability of the shoe industry to the developments that occur in such countries. While 50% of the shoe exports were made to Russia until 1998, the outbreak of the economic crisis experienced in the Russian markets in  1998, have obliged the Turkish shoe manufacturers to seek new markets for their products.  In the aftermath of the crises, while the shares of the former Eastern block countries such as Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Hungary have declined; an increase was marked in the shares of other countries such as Israel, Libya and Saudi Arabia.

When examined on the basis of export items, it is marked that shoes made of leather has the highest share among all the shoes exported, at 50.4%. The Russian demand for cheap shoes, has resulted in a gradual increase in the exportation of shoes made of materials other than leather. Particularly the economic crises experienced in the Asian countries in 1977,  and in Russia in  1998, have compelled the shoe manufacturers to manufacture shoes from cheap raw materials other than leather.  In this type of production, the safeguarding of the existing foreign markets against the Asian countries, who have gained a competitive edge as the result of the devaluation, and the lack of superior quality shoe models and designs,  have played an important role in the emergence of the trend for  the production of  cheap shoes.

Source: Associate Prof. Dr. Ahmet ULUSOY/Karadeniz Technical University  İİBF School  of Finance