A growing turnover, almost a rarity in these difficult times, and a production that has settled at remarkable figures, with 2,500 pairs manufactured per day in the three factories in Italy and abroad, 500 direct employees, 15 people devoted to Styling and Research & Development and 70 per cent of the production destined for export. The history of Calzaturificio Maritan began in 1995 from the passion and experience of Giancarlo Maritan, and it is a very good example of generational replacement, as the company was joined by his children Gabriele (who is in charge of Styling, Research and Development and Purchase) and Katia (Sales and Marketing). It is also a history of changes and of a constant harmony with the continuously evolving needs of the market, which have recently led the company to decide to return part of its production to Italy after a previous delocalization in Eastern Europe.

Our company is born as a subcontracting footwear factory for large-scale retailers, first Italian, then, above all from the 1990s, mainly foreign

affirms Gabriele Maritan.

This led to the need to expand the production that initially was located in Sommacampagna (Verona) with the opening of a new plant of 2 thousand square meters in Dossobuono di Villafranca, always in the province of Verona, to which were then added two factories of our property in Romania and Moldavia. Over the years, we have added to the production for large-scale retailers (above all foreign) the proposal of shoes with our brands: Maritan G, a men’s and women’s footwear brand dedicated to comfort, and Marco Ferretti, younger and trendier. The choice of moving the entire production to Eastern Europe, leaving only Styling and Research & Development in Italy – says Maritan – was dictated by the need to reduce costs, while maintaining a careful control over the product quality through the direct ownership of the factories. However, in the last few years some foreign customers have asked us to make a product with their brand completely manufactured in Italy, in order to be able to sell it with the wording “Made in Italy“

This is why Maritan decided to create a production chain dedicated to high-end men’s shoes in Dossobuono, which now make about 250 shoes per day, but that, in the future, will be able to aim at higher numbers and at manufacturing products also for female customers. It is a niche production, with a high quality and a high price.

The need to manufacture in Italy is above all linked to the possibility for foreign brands to use the image and strength of “Made in Italy” as a winning marketing strategy

says Gabriele Maritan.

What is certain is that the footwear company from Dossobuono has always used its ability to adapt to market needs as a winning weapon:

We have always paid a lot of attention to the evolving requests and needs of the market, so much so that we work closely with our customers, who tend to have less and less products in stock and to reorder collections. Our short-term goal is to reinforce faithful customers and to concentrate our subcontracting work on the US market, our historic market that now can only profit from the favorable exchange rate. At the same time, we aim to reinforce the image and appeal of our brands

Trade shows play an important role in this strategy.

We have attended Expo Riva Schuh and theMicam for years. The first one, for us, is the event that opens the fashion season, where we present the new collection and collect the first feedbacks from customers, and afterwards we propose the definitive collection and receive the first orders in Milan. We could say that ours is an “in-between season” product, as it is not strictly connected to winter or summer, with a great number of models like boots and sandals, and this enable us to have a certain business continuity and planning, with customers from all over the world