Zvornik-based Obuca opening a footwear factory in Mali Zvornik – Jobs for 150 workers, shoes meant for export to Italy, France, Russia and China

(Illustration) The Zvornik-based factory Obuca will soon open a production facility in the neighboring municipality of Mali Zvornik, in Brasina. The employment of 150 people is planned for the initial phase.

The entirety of the current production is now exported from Zvornik to Italy and France, and the shoes which cost from EUR 199 to EUR 299 there can be bought in Zvornik for no more than BAM 59 (around EUR 30).

The owner of the Zvornik-based factory, Vladimir Mijatovic, bought the company Standard out of bankruptcy in 2003 and started manufacturing footwear for clients in Italy and France with only 40 workers. Nowadays, the factory employs 450 people and produces, in addition to designer footwear, personal protective equipment.

– We produce footwear from natural materials. Soles are made of rubber and the upper part is made entirely out of leather. Even the glue is organic, entirely harmless to the environment, and there are no problems with vapors in the production facility, nor with the disposal of packaging. Our materials originate from Italy and France for the most part, and some of it comes from Ruma and Visoko – Vladimir Mijatovic explains.

When asked how the most expensive summer shoes can cost only BAM 59 (EUR 30) at the factory's store, while exceeding in quality and design many similar, far more expensive models in regular shops, he says that this is one of the decisions arising from the awareness of social responsibility.

– Those shoes leave our factory with prices of EUR 199 and EUR 299 already printed on the boxes, which is not expensive for clients in Italy or France, whereas our people don't have much purchasing power. The footwear in our store is of the exact same quality as the footwear which is exported, but it is made from the leftover materials and we only charge for our work.

Obuca will soon open a production facility in Brasina as well. Mijatovic jokingly says that, if the accent is shifted to the last syllable, the name Brasina can sound like the name of a place in Italy, and since the footwear from that facility will be exported as well, he believes that many clients will be attracted by the name and the design.

– We will initially employ 150 workers in Brasina and we plan to expand the market using the trade exceptions between Serbia and Russia and Serbia and China. Our footwear is already being sold in the Russian market, but only through Italy. Once we become the direct exporter, it will be cheaper by as much as 25% - Mijatovic reveals a part of the company's long-term business plans.

OBUĆA d.o.o. Zvornik

Obuca Zvornik

Vladimir Mijatovic

Standard

shoes

footwear

shoes export

footwear export

shoe factory

footwear factory

Brasina