A New Shoe Making Factory Will Be Built in the Phoenix State Industrial Park

Smolensk Shoe Factory LLC has become an official resident of the Phoenix State Industrial Park located in the Smolensk Region. This issue has been considered during a regular session of the Commission on Investment Policy attached to the Administration of the Smolensk Region and chaired by Governor of the Smolensk Region Alexey Ostrovsky.

Smolensk Shoe Factory LLC has been manufacturing footwear since 1992. The company is currently operating in Russia and Belarus and is going to build a facility to produce rubber shoes within the Phoenix State Industrial Park. The projected built-up area is 24,500 sq. metres. Total investment volume will exceed 172 mln. rubles. Production launch is scheduled for Q1 2022.

“A new direct molding technology will be used to produce polyurethane rubber boots. Worth noting is that this production technique is low-cost and ensures high quality of the finished products. Many European producers are using this method. At present there are no similar productions in Russia, and there are only 8 plants worldwide that apply this technique for shoe making. That is the reason why we would like to be the first to introduce this technology to Russia. Rubber boots are generally made from polyvinylchloride (PVC) in our country, though this material can be extremely toxic to humans. Rubber boots made from polyurethane weigh 40% less that the ones made from PVC, but the main advantage is that they are absolutely eco-friendly, as the source materials used in the production process pose no threat to humans or the environment,” noted Ekaterina Tokareva, CEO of Smolensk Shoe Factory LLC.

“This investment project will be aimed at establishing a high-yield, advanced and sustainable production aimed to substitute the goods imported to the domestic market from EU-member states and China, for the ones produced domestically. The project will bring over 80 new jobs and will raise the regional budget at all levels due to the tax payments,” pointed out Governor Alexey Ostrovsky.