Events

Latin American Footwear Forum 2025: regional collaboration is a strategic necessity

Jul 30, 2025 Latin America

Amid a challenging trade environment, the Latin American Footwear Forum is set to return from the 13th to the 15th of August with a more focused and action-driven agenda. We spoke to Horacio Moschetto, head of the Argentine Chamber of the Footwear Industry (CIC), to gain further insight into the event

The 2025 edition of the Latin American Footwear Forum, organised by the Association of Footwear and Related Chambers of Latin America (ACCAL)* and to be held at the Poliforum León in the Mexican state of Guanajuato from the 13^th to the 15^thof August, will discuss ways to strengthen the regional footwear industry in face of several shared challenges.

Main Challenges

Overall, Moschetto, who will be present at the event, argues that there is a need to discuss “how footwear-producing countries in Latin America can collaborate more effectively”. This is essential “because, although the region as a whole is the world’s second-largest producer of footwear, much of its production capacity operates separately and is fragmented”.

In addition, “unfair competition, both internal and external”, is a significant challenge. According to the head of the CIC, the Latin American footwear industry lacks the same mechanisms as its global competitors, such as Asian manufacturers, who benefit from substantial subsidies and more extensive production models. Furthermore, not all countries have introduced effective measures to combat practices such as dumping.

Still, he highlights that some “countries are implementing trade defence measures against unfair practices, particularly low-priced imports from Asia”. For instance, Brazil, Argentina and Peru have anti-dumping mechanisms in place against Chinese footwear and Mexico has already initiated anti-dumping investigations.

Finally, another issue currently affecting the industry is the volatile trade environment resulting from Trump’s tariff policies. To address this, countries are embracing measures that cover not only trade but also technological innovation, digitalisation and sustainability.

Agenda

Against this backdrop of shared challenges, the President of the CIC emphasises that “regional collaboration is no longer optional, but a strategic necessity”. Building on the previous forum, this year’s event has been planned around a more focused, concrete and action-oriented agenda for 2025 with the aim of strengthening the Latin American footwear industry.

With a view to improving the quality, added value and resilience of the industry as a whole, the following topics will be addressed: ‘Innovation and Technology in the Footwear Industry’, ‘Sustainability and Social Responsibility’, ‘International Trade and Exports’, ‘Market Trends and Consumer Behaviour’ and ‘Regional Integration’.

For more information about the programme, visit the website.

Future

In the end, the impact of the event is expected to extend beyond August. According to Moschetto, the XXVII Latin American Footwear Forum was “envisioned as a key space to strengthen regional integration, build a shared agenda to address challenges such as smuggling and unfair competition, and promote the exchange of practical tools in sustainability, innovation, and trade defense”.

Hopefully, it will contribute “to foster new strategic alliances, enhance productive capacities, and create growth opportunities in both domestic and international markets”, he concluded.

*ACCAL comprises chambers from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela.

Image Credits: Sofia Pádua and leon-mexico.com

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