CHENGDU - Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan province, is constructing a women's shoes export base to receive orders directly from foreign buyers.
With an investment of 300 million yuan ($46.05 million) and covering an area of more than 300 mu (20 hectares), the export base is located in Chengdu's Wuhou dstrict. The project is scheduled to start operation in October 2012.
Dubbed "the capital of China's women's shoes" by the China Light Industry Federation and the China Leather Association in 2005, Wuhou district holds more than 1,000 shoe manufacturers and about 150,000 people are working in the shoe-making industry. The district produces about 140 million pairs of shoes per year.
The exporting base will provide not only export ordering and services, but also product design, development, advertising, e-commerce and personnel training.
In recent years, the pressures of rising raw material costs and increasing labor shortages have forced many shoe manufacturers and related industries formerly based in China's coastal areas to shift inland.
Enterprises such as Zara, a Spanish retail giant, and Intertek, a laboratory testing group, have moved into Chengdu, creating an ideal environment for the city to develop its shoe-making industry.
Currently, Russia is the major buyer of Chengdu's women's shoes. The export base is expected to open channels for local shoe makers to do direct trade with international purchasers, insiders said.
By establishing the exporting base, the city hopes to improve the quality of its products and services in order to expand its presence in the European and US markets.
