Milan, Italy, Sept. 15, 2026 (Lusa) - The Portuguese footwear industry is this year completing «the largest investment cycle ever», with €100 million invested in sustainability, digitalisation, artificial intelligence and new technologies «bolstering the sector's confidence» in the future.
Mobilised through the BioShoes4All and FAIST – Agile, Intelligent, Sustainable and Technological Factory – projects, the investments made in sustainability, new materials, automation, robotisation, digitalisation and artificial intelligence are highlighted by the Portuguese Association of Footwear, Components, Leather Goods and Substitutes Manufacturers (APICCAPS) as «an unprecedented effort to prepare the sector for a new international competitive reality».
The results of these two projects are being showcased from Tuesday until Thursday in Milan, Italy, at the Lineapelle and Simac international trade fairs, two of the world's leading events for the footwear, components, tanning, leather goods, machinery and technology industries.
For the president of APICCAPS, Luís Onofre, the volume of investment mobilised by BioShoes4All and FAIST is «unequivocal proof of confidence in the future of the Portuguese footwear industry».
«At a particularly challenging time for European industry, Portuguese companies did not sit back and wait. They invested, took risks, developed new solutions and prepared themselves to compete in a new international context,» he maintained, emphasising that this had created «the conditions to begin a new cycle of growth and international recognition».
Presented as «one of the largest transformation initiatives ever developed by the Portuguese footwear sector», BioShoes4All brought together, over a period of four years, 69 Portuguese organisations around a strategy aimed at «accelerating the sector's transition to the bioeconomy», bringing together companies, universities and research centres.
In practice, the project enabled the development of new solutions in areas such as biomaterials, eco-friendly footwear, the circular economy and advanced production technologies, including 46 new footwear and leather goods products, of which 45 have a smaller ecological footprint, 44 a smaller carbon footprint and 27 a smaller fossil footprint.
New biomaterials were also created from resources and by-products such as pine bark, olive leaves, coffee grounds, chestnut shells and olive stones, whilst reductions of 20% in water consumption were achieved in certain processes within the leather industry.
«BioShoes4All has demonstrated that sustainability can be a genuine competitive advantage and not merely a response to new regulatory requirements,» says Luís Onofre.
Emphasising that the project succeeded in «bringing together companies, technology centres and universities, transforming knowledge into products and processes, and creating new industrial skills», he believes that this is perhaps the initiative's «greatest legacy»: «An industry that is better prepared, more collaborative and capable of transforming innovation into economic value».
At the same time, FAIST – the Agile, Intelligent, Sustainable and Technological Factory, with an investment of around €50 million, has focused on accelerating the sector's technological transformation.
With more than 40 companies and organisations involved, the project has focused on developing and testing solutions for the entire value chain, from product development to production, logistics and sustainability.
Among the expected outcomes are highly automated production lines, new equipment, innovative products and software solutions.
APICCAPS highlights that «artificial intelligence is also beginning to reach the shop floor», with the first pilot projects developed under FAIST pointing towards «gains in planning, reduced waste and fewer errors».
At the same time, the technology is also being explored to optimise production processes, anticipate consumer trends, improve supply chain management and enable faster and more accurate decision-making.
«We want to combine what has always set Portuguese footwear apart – talent, quality, flexibility, creativity and responsiveness – with a new generation of technologies,» emphasises Luís Onofre.
«Automation, robotisation and artificial intelligence are not here to replace the knowledge accumulated by the industry. They are here to enhance it. If we can combine the best of our people with new technologies, Portugal will be able to build a competitive advantage that is very difficult to replicate by industrial models based essentially on price,» he adds.
*** The Lusa news agency travelled at the invitation of the Portuguese Association of Manufacturers of Footwear, Components, Leather Goods and their Substitutes (APICCAPS) ***
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