The Journey of Portuguese Shoes

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A few years ago Portuguese footwear was believed to be a doomed industry, however nowadays Portuguese shoes are one of the most popular in the world, recognized for the quality of both the manufacture process and materials. Leather shoes followed this success and became one of the most sought after luxury items.

The portuguese footwear industry: a brief history 

Until a few years ago, the Portuguese footwear industry was lagged and far from the world’s eyes. 

The Portuguese footwear industry operated in small factories with low-skilled workers and very poor technology, which made it difficult to increase production keeping the high quality. Against all odds it has managed to reinvent itself and become one of the best footwear industries in the world.

While some predicted the death of this industry in Portugal, the Portuguese entrepreneurs put their hands to work and the Portuguese footwear turned over, especially  the luxury segment. But how? 

The recent fame associated  to the Portuguese luxury footwear was due to several factors that together made this a prosperity story and a case study. 

Today’s success was built in the effort and talent of the Portuguese workers who, although poorly educated from a scholar point of view, carried the talent and know-how of an ancient yet qualified industry.

Nowadays, the workforce is more skilled and their experience and practical knowledge has been used to develop luxury shoes Made in Portugal. 

Technology and e-commerce development also played an important role in this process. Thanks to the development of techniques and methods that optimized production, making luxury shoes has become more productive and efficient while maintaining the high quality standard.

What happened?
New market segments were discovered, and brands found niche markets full of innovation, irreverence and boldness. This is how luxury shoes Made in Portugal earned the passion and loyalty of customers around the world.

And numbers don’t lie! Since 2009, overseas sales increased by 58% and in 2016 81 million pairs of shoes were sold in 152 countries. The shoes Made in Portugal has already created over 9,200 jobs, and it’s The sexyest industry in Europe. 


Patrícia Henriques SHOES and Portuguese luxury shoes

Patricia Henriques Shoes is proud to be part of this new generation of brands and entrepreneurs with a young and innovative vision.

We are a luxury brand that only works with the best techniques applied to the finest materials, always with very high standards of quality.  Patrícia Henriques Shoes lives in constant search for new designs, textures, colors, and ways to see a shoe. 

When this level of passion gets into the work, the final product comes with perfect finishes and lasts a lifetime.

Patrícia Henriques values quality over quantity. Our focus is on being close to our customers, listening to what they look for and along with the national and international trends, to produce something special, in very small editions, that lives up to the standard of quality that our customers deserve and demand. 

We don’t forget the path taken by the Portuguese footwear industry. Therefore, each pair of shoes is handmade and with all the attention and care, just like in the old times.

Portuguese leather shoes: quality for a lifetime

Overall, leather used in Portuguese leather shoes is carefully selected and treated in the best way.

The leather treatment depends on the type of footwear, style, and the occasion on which it will be worn. The handmade process of working the brightness, color and finishes is highly complex, and involves the quality of the production, both in materials and techniques, and all the know-how acquired over the years with  a modern vision of how to make footwear.

Luxury leather shoes was one of the products that most evolved with the leap in the footwear industry.

Once again,  leather shoes made in Portugal established themselves as a high quality luxury product that lasts a lifetime. At PH Shoes we’re still truly in love with this way of making shoes, which combines the handcraft with the modern way to make them.