Vietnam’s footwear industry has set a target of exporting 410 million pairs of shoes by 2005 and 640 million pairs by 2010.
In the past seven years the footwear industry has seen a production increase from 206 million pairs of shoes to 303 million. The country is currently capable of producing approximately 400 million pairs and its total export value reaches $1.5 billion annually. The EU accounts for 65% of Vietnam’s export market, followed by the USA, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan.
Despite these promising statistics, once it joins WTO, Vietnam will face harsh competition against China and the dwindling activity in the industry that accounts for falling process. China, the biggest competitor in the market, has an annual output of six billion pairs. It produces cheaper and more diverse footwear, faces smaller costs and has inexpensive materials. Some Vietnamese businesses have already moved their operations to China to utilise the most-favoured nation status granted to WTO members.
Yet, despite little contact with the final customer, inadequate promotion and marketing programmes and Vietnam’s dependence on imported materials, around 80 % of Vietnamese businesses have recently won contracts with big foreign corporations.
Five measures have, therefore, been placed in Vietnam to achieve the $4.7 billion exports target by 2010. They include better use of human resources, industrialising and modernising production lines, developing a master plan for footwear material and design training, increasing direct exports and purchasing markets abroad, particularly the USA.
