Career in Footwear Designing

Footwear, like clothes, has emerged as a significant facet of ones personality which sometimes, tells the observer things that even you ight not be knowing about yourself. Earlier, a career in footwear designing and technology was unheard of. The forte of making shoes and other footwear rested with the unorganized traditional sector. There was very little awareness and Footwear was considered a mere necessity. But the trend has changed in the past decade boding well for the industry as well as people at large. In fact, India ranks second only to China among the footwear- producing countries. With more and more importance being given to accessories, the Indian footwear industry is undergoing a boom and is poised to grow at a whopping annual rate of 20-30% in the next couple of years. With the industry at such a high, it is but obvious that the demand for skilled professionals is bound to go up at a good pace over the years to come.

A normal footwear industry can be divided into three basic departments- design, manufacture and marketing. Footwear designing involves creating new patterns and designs keeping in mind the changing needs and tastes of clients and customers. In other industries there is a huge scope of altering the finished products to suit the consumer needs. But footwear stands out as an exception to this rule, because it is something that needs to fit the consumer properly, so that there is no scope for alteration. Thus, precision is the key. And to be able to do so, one needs all the basic requirements of a designer. To be able to think spatially, have creative bent of mind and to be able to bring about a harmony between the aesthetics and utility are just a few of the prerequisites for footwear designer.