Life, death and rebirth of the Marche footwear district
Have you ever heard of it? The Marche region no longer pays attention to it, but it always makes you smile to hear about this region and some areas in particular, such as the “Shoes Valley”, the territory where shoes are a monument to the productivity of an entire community.
But how did this story come about, which is also mine and that of my family? How has it changed over time? What developments can it have in the future?
I'll tell you about it in this article.
What is an industrial district?
Before starting, a necessary clarification. An industrial district is an agglomeration of companies located in a limited area and specialized in one or more phases of a production process.
Just as happens in the Marche region, where an entire supply chain is located that from the production of soles to those of heels, passing through the hemming, leads to the finished shoe.
The Marche is just one of the Italian districts, which are actually many and located in different regions.
Districts have dominant features, as the dense network of relationships of an economic and social nature, collective identity and a sense of belonging to the territory and the district itself. The model is based on the close interconnection that is established between the industrial and city fabric, closely but harmoniously linked.
The origin of the Marche footwear districts
Where does this tradition come from, which has permanently shaped the economy of an entire region?
The origins of the Marche districts date back a long, long time ago; some attestations even date back to the 14th century, indicating the existence of small shops that produced classic shoes.
To talk about real industry we will have to wait until the first decades of the 19th century: in the municipalities of Montegranaro, Monte Urano, Monte San Giusto and Sant'Elpidio a Mare, the production of Chiochiere, the slippers made of fabric or leather, without heel, with a light leather sole.
In 1870 the pedal machine for sewing uppers was introduced, which would allow to increase production and replace that sort of slippers with cheaper men's and women's shoes.
The phenomenon of the districts had its maximum splendor after World War II, with the reconstruction and the arrival of investments from overseas, which led to an entrepreneurial spring never seen before.
It is in these years that the area dedicated to the production of footwear in the Marche extends, covering almost the entire current province of Fermo and part of that of Macerata. Each area found its own specialization, characteristics that, in some ways, we can still find today:
- around Porto Sant'Elpidio more women's shoes were produced;
- “Man” production was concentrated near Montegranaro;
- in the area of Monte Urano, on the other hand, "child" production was concentrated
The development of industrial districts therefore grew dramatically in the 1950s, stimulated by income growth and the consequent increase in demand for consumer goods, which continued to grow and differed in the 1970s and 1980s.
The Marche shoe factories begin to outsource many operations, they make their appearance "Subcontractors", highly specialized. That is how small and medium-sized enterprises are born, specialized in every step of the supply chain.
The birth of my family's company
It was in the 1970s that my parents' company was born. At the beginning they had their own brand, they attended trade fairs and sold products designed and made for them and by them.
Then they became subcontractors to diversify the business, like so many others here in the Marche region, especially when the big brands began to peep out to grab the best artisans.
But who is the "subcontractor"? It is those who create on behalf of third parties, or for another brand, often much better known. The name of my parents, along with that of many other craftsmen, did not appear anywhere: we were the silent guarantors of quality.
The 90s were quite peaceful for our company and for our family. The company had about 30 employees. The effort was really great, my parents still have the classic Marche mentality of work to which a whole life is sacrificed, of the “tribolare” as a daily mantra.
One of the peculiarities of the area and of my family is the link with the peasant culture, which is still very strong today. Next to the factory stood the house of the craftsmen - who knows which of the two was born first. Around the vegetable garden and the fields for raising animals. The Marche has managed to host huge industrial districts without creating the typical suburbs and suburban suburbs typical of large metropolises. The people of the Marches have adopted a modern production system, without losing the family dimension.
I was little, only in retrospect did I realize that those were the "golden years" of the Marche footwear district. I remember the legends that circulated about some entrepreneurs of Montegranaro: it was said that they had gold handles in the house and Ferrari in the garage. Popular suggestions or not, the well-being was perceptible and no one intended to hide it.
The great crisis
Suddenly, something breaks. The recession arrives at the end of the 90s, with the reduction of the demand for Made in Italy products. New, previously unknown markets are opening up and, as a result, new competitors arrive from Eastern Europe and Asia. Micro and small businesses are undergoing these changes, feel the blow, they come out devastated - when they come out.
This crisis, far from unpredictable, finds in the Marche a production system that already had flaws.
Everything falls: the desire of entrepreneurs to have more and more, at the lowest cost and in the shortest time, leads them to relocate, even to teach technology and production methods in Eastern countries, where labor had inhumane costs.
Orders canceled, representatives and customers disappeared into thin air, with materials already purchased and workers who had already worked on those collections that would never see the light.
There was no money for the employees, but there was no money to pay the bills. The story of half of the Marche shoe factories ended like this, without glory and without honors after years of sacrifices.
And today?
There were signs of recovery, timid and inconstant. To make matters worse there was first the earthquake, which seriously damaged infrastructure and homes, and then the pandemic of last 2020.
According to Istat, in 2020 the Italian textile and footwear sector lost 28.51TT compared to the previous year. More than 30% of Italian production is concentrated in the province of Fermo and Macerata, with a turnover that before Covid was around 2 billion euros a year.
As of October 31, 2020, 51 companies closed their doors.
The risk is not only closing, but also losing the heritage of relationships and artisanal skills, which are the basis of the success of this production model.
What future for the footwear tradition?
What did the greed of the entrepreneurs who preceded us lead us to?
To lose the value of what we do, the idea of well-being, the real one, not that of the gold handles at home. The one that allows you to live an economically dignified and respectful life towards yourself and the environment around you.
A footwear district cannot be destroyed overnight. It is an economic and productive ecosystem that has too deep roots to be uprooted with a gust of wind.
One can hope, however, that its parts can be regenerated, transforming and becoming the basis for other forms of economic life, not even imaginable before. And perhaps the human factor that will make the difference, what has always characterized our community of artisans. What manages to transform "competitors" into allies, who work together to change the system and make it more contemporary and truly sustainable.
Producing here in the factory of my parents, giving work to people who live in the same country as me, choosing suppliers from the district and bringing back the tradition of work that has characterized us.
You can not go back? So let's go on, recovering only the good that is of our past.
