The president of Valencia footwear association Avecal, Marián Cano, has said the footwear industry in the region, the most important in Spain for footwear production, has made it clear to the Spanish government that it hopes a formal apprenticeship programme will be one of the outcomes of the country’s general elections on December 20. In recent comments to specialist media in Spain, Ms Cano said that footwear manufacturers want to have in place a practical, hands-on apprenticeship programme in which young people can learn the trade quickly. She said that for young people to come into the footwear production industry, they need to pick up know-how that they can only learn on the factory floor (as opposed to in a classroom). A new generation of people with footwear production skills is necessary, she said, because her association receives enquiries “every day” from European brands that want to set up production in Spain as part of a strategy of bringing shoe manufacturing closer to target sales markets once more.
