Costa Rica’s loss is Nicaragua’s gain
23/09/2015
Alejandro Delgado, president of a small businesses’ association, has said that from a small base of between 250,000 and 300,000 pairs of leather shoes per year in 2005, Nicaraguan manufacturers have grown the sector at a steady rate of 8%-10% to make 5 million pairs in 2014.
Mr Delgado also insisted that footwear production in Nicaragua has become more diverse in the last few years, moving from making mostly children’s shoes to producing, in addition footwear ranging from fashion shoes for women to safety boots. “And we have begun to export these products,” he insisted. He said the neighbouring Central American countries of Costa Rica, Panama, Honduras and Guatemala are the main markets.
“If you take the example of Costa Rica,” he added, “its domestic footwear market collapsed in the years from 2005 onwards and buyers from Costa Rica are now sourcing in Nicaragua.”
He said the industry in Nicaragua is confident of further growth because, in spite of good supply chain relations among packer firms, tanneries and footwear manufacturers, the footwear sector is currently consuming only around 30% of the available raw material. Within five years, Mr Delgado said Nicaragua could reach production levels of around 12 million pairs per year, volumes not seen in the Central American country since the 1980s.
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