The industry is coming home - how after 3 centuries shoe production has come full circle

The shoe industry has reinvented itself over the last 3 centuries. The production process of shoe making started with tailor-made pairs, with shoemakers producing shoes by hand until the early 19th century. Almost a century later, the production process had become less customised and almost completely automated. In the 20th century, the production process became even faster by using new techniques like, for instance, injection moulding. In the 1990’s, most Northern European production had been outsourced to southern Europe and Asia to decrease labour costs. Nowadays, the introduction of speed factories, in-store production, renewed interest in craftsmanship and the biotech revolution, which is just around the corner, enables shoe production to return to Northern Europe and America once again.