Italian footwear group Geox formally inaugurated on 31st January its new factory in Vranje, in the south of Serbia, creating 1,250 jobs.

The opening ceremony was attended by the group's President and founder, Mario Moretti Polegato, and the Italian ambassador to Serbia, Giuseppe Manzo, as well as by the Serb Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, the Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic and Vranje's mayor Zoran Antic, underlining the high regard in which leading Serb politicians hold Italian investment and economic presence in their country.

"This is another achievement in Serbia by a company which showcases a uniquely Italian way of doing business, relying on ideas and innovation to be competitive the world over. It's an international path to growth that is a priority for Italy", Ambassador Manzo said. Moretti Polegato recalled that the contract for building the Geox factory - the first Italian manufacturing facility built in Vranje's industrial zone - was signed in 2012, and underlined that the footwear production process will employ new, sophisticated technologies. He mentioned that Geox is distributed worldwide in 1,250 stores, and its employs a staff of 30,000 internationally.

Prime Minister Vucic, speaking at the inauguration ceremony, underlined his government's pledge to encourage investment in the south of Serbia too, the country's poorer, more disadvantaged part. "Serbia does not mean Belgrade only," he said. "In this part of the country too, we wish to build the necessary infrastructure, encourage new foreign investment and strengthen the private sector, to offer a future to new generations", Vucic added.

According to Serb media, Geox plans to manufacture 1,250,000 pairs of high fashion, high quality women’s shoes per year in Vranje. The Italian company invested €15.8 million for its new factory, while the Serb government granted subsidies worth €11.2 million in total, the equivalent of €9,000 for every new job that was created.