Ecco on growth path

The Danish shoemaker Ecco is continuing its investment in Thailand after seeing a clear sign of economic recovery since the start of the second half.

Celebrating Ecco’s 15th anniversary in Thailand, from left: James Phillips, chief operating officer of Ecco; Jen Christian Meier, executive vice-president for production and logistics; Johs Knudesen, president for business development of Ecco; Kitti Chaiwattanatorn, CEO; and Jakob Hansen, chief financial officer of Ecco (Thailand).

Ecco (Thailand) Co is allocating between 700 million and 800 million baht in total through next year to upgrade production facilities and set up a research and development centre.

CEO Kitti Chaiwattanatorn said about 500 million baht had been spent this year, including 285 million for the first phase of a new factory in Phichit province, which will produce one million pairs of shoes per year and create 1,500 new jobs.

If the economy continues to improve worldwide, two more expansion phases could follow with another 1,500 workers hired for each phase, he said.

The remaining 215 million baht has gone into a three-story R&D building and mould-making equipment at the Ecco factory in the Saharojana Industrial Estate in Ayutthaya. The new equipment will lift production capacity by 20%.

The company will invest another 200-300 million baht next year in laser-engraving machinery at its Ayudhaya factory.

"We are ready for a solid move in the Thai market," Mr Kitti said. "Over the years, Thailand has proven to be a great place to produce shoes. The result is that we have growth and evolved considerably during the past years.

"The latest example is the new R&D centre that allows us to move from the designers' sketches to prototypes in only one day, from 12 weeks earlier."

As well, about 80% of all moulds for the Ecco group worldwide are now made in Thailand.

"The global financial crisis sent Ecco's global sales down but we have put in place measures to ensure that the falling sales are just temporary. Now, the good news is that we're seeing the first signs of recovery appearing with Ecco sales increasing in the US," Mr Kitti said.

Currently, Ecco (Thailand) produces 5.9 million pairs of shoes annually and expects to increase output to 6.8 million next year.

Ecco now has four production bases worldwide: China, Indonesia, Slovakia and Thailand, which is its largest production base.

Total sales of Ecco Thailand this year are expected to reach 5 billion baht, with exports worth 4.8 billion to the United States, Russia, Germany Sweden and Denmark.

Next year, sales are expected to reach 6 billion baht with 220 million from the local market and the rest from exports.

In the global market, Clark shoes rank number one, followed by Geox and Ecco. But in Thailand, Ecco is the market leader with a 20% share of the one-billion-baht premium shoe market.

Relate Search: Ecco Co, Kitti Chaiwattanatorn, Saharojana Industrial Estate