The moment of truth has arrived. After years of research to improve its technology, the company has unveiled a process called “3D pasting,” which eliminates the traditional stage-by-stage assembly by injecting a polymer from Elche to bond all components of a shoe at once. Simplicity Works has just begun production on its first line at the Elche Business Park facility. These production halls are designed to validate the new shoe-making system, starting with a capacity of 150,000 pairs and aiming to exceed 400,000 pairs annually once the system is fully scaled, projected to take about nine months to reach full operation.
And this is only the start. The firm envisions constructing a larger factory to accommodate higher volumes, capable of producing at least two million pairs per year within five years, according to founder and CEO Adrian Hernandez.
They recognize the challenge of moving from a lab to the factory floor and the complexities of large-scale manufacturing, so they recruited one of Europe’s top footwear industrialization experts, Danish-born Paul Haugaard Petersen, to guide the transition. Petersen has spent a significant portion of his career with Echo, a major European manufacturer, and is widely regarded as a key reference in the sector, with annual sales surpassing a billion euros.
Part of the production line at the Simplicity Works factory. ANTONIO LOVE
Specifically, Haugaard has been tasked with modernizing operations at the Danish company, driving robotization in several processes and setting a new benchmark for the industry. He has also collaborated with teams in Thailand, China, Slovakia, and Portugal. He later continued his work as CEO of another major European shoemaker, Lloyd, giving a further boost to the sector.
In his new role as Chief Operating Officer, his remit will be to initiate and oversee the production infrastructure of Simplicity Works, a transition he embraced after seven years of friendship with the founder.
Haugaard believes the polymer-joining system developed with Elche will restore Europe’s competitive edge in shoe production by eliminating many manual steps such as sewing, which remains a dominant cost in the industry. He notes that bonding parts via polymer injection into a mold enables new design possibilities and greater customization.
hiring
The arrival of Haugaard aligns with the start of production at what Simplicity Works calls its pilot facility. The plan is to exceed 400,000 pairs per year at this site. Two potential customers have expressed interest, one being a major Spanish sector company whose name is undisclosed and the other being German Wortman. The contracting process is underway to finalize these deals. The initial workforce will include 35 employees. Given the specialized skill set required for a factory of this caliber, finding line operators, electromechanical technicians, mechanical engineers, and industrial design engineers has proven to be a significant challenge that the company is actively solving.
Left to right, Rubén Serrano (Director of Production), Adrián Hernández (CEO), Poul Haugaard (COO). ANTONIO LOVE
Regarding funding for expansion, the company recently secured 1.8 million euros in non-refundable investments from the European EIC Accelerator program. In addition, the European Investment Bank (EIB) committed 15 million euros for development in the coming years, contingent on a matching investment from private partners. A new funding round has been launched, aiming to raise about 2.4 million euros within six months, with the EIB expected to match the same amount.
Simplicity Works from Elche will receive a European injection of 16.8 million
Looking ahead to the future factory capable of producing at least two million pairs per year, the company has not yet chosen a location beyond the intention to keep it in Elche to leverage the region’s role as a major European shoe design and production hub. The plans also include licensing the technology so that other companies can set up their own plants using this system. In fact, there is already a factory in Mexico operating with a similar approach for a prominent North American brand.