The European Footwear Confederation has introduced a new membership category, Associate Members, expanding participation beyond national footwear associations to include manufacturers, distributors, expert groups and European technology centres. This change was made as part of a recent update to the CEC’s statutes, aimed at strengthening collaboration and broadening the footwear community’s expertise.

Under the new category, six European footwear technology centres have joined CEC as Associate Members: NOVEX, INESCOP and CETEC (Spain), CTCP (Portugal), PFI (Germany), Politecnico Calzaturiero (Italy) and SATRA (UK/Ireland). These centres bring specialised technical knowledge, research experience and industry support capacity, enhancing CEC’s ability to address sector challenges and opportunities.

Building on this expanded membership, European Footwear Confederation has launched a Sustainability Working Group focused on key EU policy developments that are relevant to the footwear industry, including ecodesign requirements, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), the EU Ecolabel revision and the Digital Product Passport. The group will support companies in anticipating and adapting to evolving regulatory requirements while identifying new circular and sustainability opportunities.

For more information, visit the European Footwear Confederation press release.