SIC 3144 Women's Footwear, Except Athletic

Encyclopedia of American Industries | 2005 | Copyright

SIC 3144
WOMEN'S FOOTWEAR, EXCEPT ATHLETIC

This category covers establishments engaged in the production of women's footwear designed primarily for dress, street, and work. Establishments engaged in the production of athletic shoes and misses', children's, infants', and babies' footwear are classified in SIC 3149: Footwear, Except Rubber, Not Elsewhere Classified. Establishments primarily engaged in the production of rubber or plastic footwear are classified in SIC 3021: Rubber and Plastics Footwear, and those manufacturing orthopedic extension shoes are classified in SIC 3842: Orthopedic, Prosthetic, and Surgical Appliances and Supplies.

NAICS Code(s)

316214 (Women's Footwear (except Athletic) Manufacturing)

Industry Snapshot

The U.S. women's footwear industry is dominated by large companies that design and manufacture a wide variety of shoes each year. A steady market of consumers eager for new styles, along with the short life span of a pair of shoes, have produced lucrative profits for the nation's well-established footwear manufacturers. According to Footwear Industries of America (FIA), U.S. companies produced and shipped approximately 37 million pairs of women's shoes in the late 1990s. In relation to the overall footwear industry, women's models accounted for about 30 percent of all shoes produced by manufacturers in the United States. However, since the early 1990s, the industry has been heavily influenced by the continuing popularity of rubber soled athletic shoes and other outdoor oriented casual models that do not fall directly into this category.

The import of foreign-made footwear has been the biggest problem for domestic shoe manufacturers as comparably stylish but lower priced models made outside the United States continue to dominate the market. Approximately 92 percent of shoes sold in the United States in the late 1990s were made abroad, arriving primarily from China, Brazil, and Indonesia. These imports were able to undercut their American counterparts in large part due to the lower labor and production costs incurred by foreign shoe companies. As a result, total industry shipments declined significantly throughout the late 1990s, falling from $703 million in 1997 to $373 million in 2000. The total number of employees dropped from 10,442 to 6,114 over the same time period.

Organization and Structure

Unveiling a wide assortment of new shoe styles each season is how industry leaders regularly improve their product lines and increase their market shares. A key aspect of this process consists in the work of a shoe company's in-house design staff, which develops appropriate new versions of their firm's basic products by monitoring European and American fashion trends. As this is one of the most expensive parts of the entire manufacturing process, more and more American companies have attempted to reduce overall costs by relocating many preliminary manufacturing tasks to foreign factories where labor expenses are lower. Nevertheless, shoes are frequently returned to the United States for a number of final production steps, at which point the finished footwear is distributed to stores across the nation. Marketing teams from each manufacturer then negotiate with...

Read all of SIC 3144 Women's Footwear, Except Athletic at HighBeam Business

Related newspaper, magazine, and trade journal articles from HighBeam Research

(Including press releases, facts, information, and biographies)

	Jewish Catacomb Predates Christian Ones News Wire article from: AP Online ; ...their dead in Roman catacombs. But Dutch experts...material from a Jewish catacomb in the city say...the Villa Torlonia catacomb, a Jewish burial...s 60 Christian catacombs, Rutgers said...many tombs in the catacomb, located under...six known Jewish catacombs in Rome. Four of...
	Jewish catacomb may predate Christian sites Newspaper article from: Deseret News (Salt Lake City) ; ...their dead in Roman catacombs. But Dutch experts...material from a Jewish catacomb in the city say...the Villa Torlonia catacomb, a Jewish burial...s 60 Christian catacombs, Rutgers said...many tombs in the catacomb, located under...six known Jewish catacombs in Rome. Four of...
	Study: Jewish catacomb in Rome predates Christian burial sites News Wire article from: AP Worldstream ; ...their dead in Roman catacombs. But Dutch experts...material from a Jewish catacomb in the city say...the Villa Torlonia catacomb, a Jewish burial...s 60 Christian catacombs, Rutgers said...the Villa Torlonia catacomb. The lines of tombs...six known Jewish catacombs in Rome. The ...
	LEARNING ABOUT FAITH AND LIFE IN THE CATACOMBS OF ROME Newspaper article from: The Boston Globe ; ...based International Catacomb Society, has spent...Christian Imagery in the Catacombs of Rome," which opens...only seven Christian catacombs are open. Yet if the...place. Seven Jewish catacombs have been discovered...found The International Catacomb Society here, dedicated...
	Les catacombes chretiennes de Rome: Origine, developpement, decor, inscriptions / Subterranean Rome: In search of the roots of Christianity in the Catacombs of the Eternal City Magazine article from: Anglican Theological Review ; ...historical survey of the catacombs replete with interesting...information: the term "catacomb" comes from two words...have been some sixty catacombs discovered to date...references, particularly to catacomb art, from those open...His "Guide to the Catacombs" (chapter 4) contains...
	Catacomb with over 1,000 coffins discovered in SW China News Wire article from: Xinhua News Agency ; Catacomb with over 1,000 coffins discovered in...GUIYANG, March 22 (Xinhua) -- A large catacomb containing more than 1,000 coffins has...Guizhou province, local experts said. The catacomb is believed to have belonged to the Miao...
	A mass grave from the catacomb of Saints Peter and Marcellinus in Rome, second-third century AD.(Research)(Author abstract) Magazine article from: Antiquity ; ...surface) but then the catacomb fell gradually into...of all Christian catacombs in Rome (Fiocchi...area X, first catacomb level), located...in the rest of the catacomb, and indeed in other catacombs. These are normally...
	Rome's catacombs were likely a Jewish invention Newspaper article from: The Record (Bergen County, NJ) ; ...their dead in Roman catacombs. But Dutch experts...material from a Jewish catacomb in the city say...the Villa Torlonia catacomb, a Jewish burial...s 60 Christian catacombs, Rutgers said...likely that they used catacombs from the beginning...find that a Jewish catacomb under Rome was ...
	Catacombs prove a lively attraction Newspaper article from: The Independent - London ; ...torchlight tours of the Brompton catacombs, in west London, which was...requesting the chance to visit the catacombs, led hourly tours around...always try to peep in to the catacombs through the locked gates...Office officials padlocked the catacomb's wrought iron gates in...
	Rome's 1st catacombs were Jewish, not Christian Newspaper article from: Chicago Sun-Times ; ...their dead in Roman catacombs. But Dutch experts...material from a Jewish catacomb say it appears early...showed the Villa Torlonia catacomb, a Jewish burial site...Rome's 60 Christian catacombs, said Leonard Victor...openings of tombs in the catacomb, located under the...