Comfort Club Autumn 2010

Autumn 2010

club WOW!

Our makeover winner looks fantastic!

Active, Healthy, Happy Feet

Look out for us on TV!

New season new shoes!

Enter our

exclusive reader competitions inside

Welcome With Autumn around the corner I’m looking forward to long walks in the woods with my dachshunds – don’t be deceived by those little legs!

I love the bright colours of Autumn, when the leaves start turning and, fingers crossed, we enjoy some sunny days. There’s lots of inspiring seasonal colours in our new range too – one of the things I love about Hotter shoes is that our designers manage to inject some colour into even the darkest of months - so keep an eye out for warm Sangria, rich Loganberry and deep Teal shades. They’ve also managed to infuse Hotter comfort into a host of new smart heels - with the wonderfully glamorous La Cruz, vintage style of Concerto and colourfully eye-catching Navajo - lots of options for workwear, going out and running around town.

As usual we’ve included some competitions in this edition of Comfort Club to keep your brains busy in case the British weather forces you indoors – and don’t forget there’s lots more news and chances to win on our fabulous Facebook page – we’d love to reach 1,000 friends this Autumn, so join us there and bring your friends along too. I hope you enjoy your Autumn and enjoy whatever new shoes you choose.

Kind regards Melanie Killilea Editor, Comfort Club

TV Time

The first customer at our Canterbury store Enid Colbear is greeted by Store Manager Colin Garner. Hotter fan Enid said: "I can’t believe it, it’s fantastic to see a Hotter shop in Canterbury."

Hotter on your high street The Hotter high street invasion continues a pace –with Canterbury opened in July and Norwich due to open its doors in September.

You’ll find our newest stores at The Parade in Canterbury and Gentlemen’s Walk in Norwich where there’s a full range of the latest Hotter fashions to flatter and comfort your feet. Not to mention a fully trained team of staff waiting to give you the best service you’ve ever experienced! We’d love to find out what you think about our stores – or send in a photo of you at a Hotter store our favourite wins a pair of shoes.

Your favourite footwear brand is back on the small screen this Autumn with a brand new advert showcasing the fun, versatility and activities you can enjoy in your Hotters – all in 30 seconds!

It was a challenge to fit in everything that the comfort of a pair of Hotter shoes frees you to do but we hope you like the results.

The adverts will be screening nationwide from September so

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keep a look out and let us know what you think. In fact, better than that, why not send us a photo of you on the go in your Hotter shoes – the most creative photo, judged by our advertising team, will win any pair of shoes featured in the ads. If you’re feeling all high tech you can upload your photos – or videos – to our Facebook page Hotter Comfort Concept Shoes.

Happy snapping!

Comfort inspired by

nature

Brady

Pixie Shout

Sugar

Jade

Shake

We’ve brought together a fabulous array of colourful, inspiring shoes for you this Autumn - classic favourites join wonderful newcomers which will delight and inspire.

Just a glance at this collection makes you think warm, cosy, welcoming comfort - so imagine how they’ll feel on your feet. Our design inspiration has come from the warming, luxurious tones of Autumn, so you’ll find intense reds, fabulous greens and rich browns to brighten your days - and your outfits!

For everyday wear you’ll fall in love with new Sugar which opens extra wide for fuss-free fastening; or why not try Shout with its beautiful asymmetrical elastic fastening.

For a sporty look we bring you Brady - with the added dimension of character leather in three colours, Brady creates a wonderful vintage look for your casual wardrobe. For the boot lovers amongst you we’ve conjured up toe warming treats - Jade is back in gloriously soft suede options, and say hello to cute Pixie - faux fur filled central heating for your feet!

ALL SHOES FEATURED ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.HOTTER.COM

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Autumn bird watching on your doorstep

By Matthew Merrit, Features Editor, Bird Watching Magazine

Autumn can offer the best bird watching opportunities of the year – everything’s in motion, as summer visitors depart for southern Europe and Africa and birds that bred within the Arctic Circle arrive in the UK to take advantage of our mild winters.

What better time to do some bird watching?

And the good news is you don’t need to head to a nature reserve. On farmland, pastures and parks, keep an eye out for flocks of Fieldfares and Redwings, which breed in Scandinavia but fly here in the winter. The Fieldfare is a large thrush, with a grey head and back and speckled breast, while the Redwing is a smaller thrush with a white stripe above the eye and a red flash beneath each wing. You might even hear the Redwing migrating on clear nights – they constantly give a thin ‘tseep tseep’ call as they fly.

Waxwing

In woods and parks, different species of finches often flock together to look for food and for safety from predators, sometimes joined by Treecreepers and

Goldcrests, Britain’s tiniest bird. Look out too for Jays, which cast off their usual Redwing shyness as they gather acorns and bury them in caches to get them through the winter.

If you’re at the coast, you can enjoy some of the UK’s greatest wildlife spectacles. Huge numbers of ducks, geese and wild swans arrive here in Autumn, you can watch them feeding on farmland during the day and returning to their coastal roosts at night. The same areas also attract wading birds, such as Knot or Dunlin, which fly in huge, swarm-like flocks,

30 miles

120 mile s

After months of preparation Accountant David Jackson, Personal Shopper Mark Titchener and Accounts Assistant Martyn Gordon began their epic journey at the charity’s headquarters at Great Ormond Street in central London.

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In outer London the cyclists met customer Joan at our Bromley store making good time to arrive in Eastbourne that afternoon.

350 mile s

Ceri, our Chichester manager gave the boys a welcome for the first stop of day two.

three me n,

Du nlin and they in turn attract normally shy predators such as Merlins or Goldcrest Peregrines. Close to home, it’s time to clean your bird feeders and fill them up for the colder weather ahead, but an easy way to attract birds to your garden is to leave out some windfall fruit or out-ofdate apples and pears.

These are great for the likes of Blackbirds, and you might even get a few Fieldfares and Redwings. In some years, too, there might be small flocks of Waxwings, colourful and ornatelooking birds from Siberia, which are particularly attracted to Rowan, Cotoneaster and Pyracantha berries.

To learn more about bird watching all the year round see Bird Watching magazine, available in all good newsagents or subscribe at www.greatmagazines.co.uk.

, s l e e h Six w four days, 420 miles

Competition Bird Watching magazine are giving one lucky Comfort Club reader a year’s subscription to their magazine. To be in with a chance of winning simply tell us:

The Hotter Tour de Stores team successfully completed their 420 mile cycling challenge in July, raising £1,700 for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

Q: Where do Fieldfares and Redwings breed?

Enter by post or email - see back page for details.

405 mile s

Three days, and 350 miles later, with stopovers in the picturesque Cotswolds and Crewe and there was a welcoming committee in Chester!

With the end almost in sight a quick stop at Southport, left the team with just 15 miles to reach Hotter headquarters – where a crowd assembled to welcome them back with a cake and some lovely bubbly to toast their success.

Only question now is what’s the next challenge?

Any suggestions readers?

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Hotter makeover

“I swear by Hotter shoes” We teamed up with Yours Magazine, to give one lucky Comfort Club reader a wardrobe overhaul and a glamorous new look.

Our winner: Pat’s outfit Pat Carter, 68, Dry Drayton, Cambridge Pat says: “I enter competitions all the time, but I never dreamt I’d win this one! I adore Hotter – they’re the only shoes I’ll wear, so when I took the call from Yours Magazine I was stunned.

“I had an operation on my foot in October last year, and although it’s much better now, it makes buying shoes tricky. I also suffered from DVT as a result, so my legs have been hidden away ever since. In my teens I used to wear mini skirts and high heels, but as I’ve got older comfort has become much more important.

I was so excited about my makeover day – it was a real treat to be picked as the winner.”

Credits: Stylist: Natalie Nicolaou Photography: Ruth Jenkinson Hair and make-up: Sarah Jane Green and Olivia Ferrer

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The dress Pat lives in trousers, but told us her legs always used to be her best assets. We think she has cracking pins too, so it was about time she showed them off again.

Mini skirts may be out, but that doesn’t have to mean banishing skirts and dresses to the back of the wardrobe. This ultra-flattering black dress is simple, yet stylish. The hemline sits just below the knee and the v-neckline and nipped in waist help give her shape.

The accessories Don’t be afraid to be bold with your accessories. Pat loves bright colours and this striking blue really suits her.

Combined with an elegant black dress, this wrap adds a splash of colour as well as hiding upper arms.

Tights are a saviour during the winter months as they hide a multitude of sins.

And, these thick opaque tights are perfect for chilly winter days! To complete your look, opt for bold jewellery to help add a youthful twist to your outfit.

The shoes Pat loves Hotter shoes and finding her the perfect pair to compliment her new look was easy. Small wedge heels like these will help make your legs look longer and slimmer and they’d look great teamed with jeans, too. If like Pat, comfort is key, Hotter styles are available in half sizes, as well as a range of wider fittings.

ALL SHOES FEATURED ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.HOTTER.COM

Get the look Black jersey dress £25.00, sizes 8-18, Next, Blue shawl £25.00, Autograph by Marks and Spencer Black tights £2.00, Primark Beaded necklace £18.00, Wallis Patent wedge shoes La Cruz £69.00 sizes 3-9 from Hotter,

The Verdict “I would never have picked the dress myself, but I absolutely love it. The whole outfit is wonderful and I feel great. I’ve had such a fantastic day being pampered!”

We couldn’t resist asking Pat’s husband Graham what he thought of her lovely new look: “I’ve always loved Pat how she is, but she looks lovely all dressed up – I’d even go as far as saying it has given her a new lease of life.”

Our PR Assistant Jenni Summers went every step of the way with Pat during her makeover, she said:

“ It was amazing to see Pat’s makeover take place. The outfit accessorised with her favourite new style for Autumn, La Cruz, looked amazing! Pat couldn’t stop smiling all day!”

Read more about Pat’s makeover in Yours Magazine (on sale September 21st) 7

Footnotes

In this edition of Comfort Club we put the newest addition to our hard working design team under the spotlight – welcome to Karen Peace.

Ladies, you’ll be delighted to know she is in charge of creating a mouthwatering collection of Hotter handbags and accessories just for you. She’s just getting to grips with our Spring 2011 styles and she tells us to expect fun new designs in a bright selection of colours, leathers, nubucks and fabrics.

So hello Karen and here are her footnotes ...

I was born in ... Leicester My favourite comfort food is ... a Sunday roast because it reminds me of my Mum’s hearty cooking

My favourite holiday destination is ... the Carribean

My all time favourite song is ... Feeling Good

by Nina Simone The best day of my life was ... Deciding to take a career break to go backpacking around Australia for 5 months – an amazing experience!

You wouldn’t know it but ... I’m good at Interior Design If I have time to myself I like to do ...

Yoga or walk my gorgeous Utonagan Alfie

Name that shoe 8

The best car I ever owned was ... My first car, a Renault Clio

The invention that makes my life most comfortable is ...

Sky Plus because I can save everything up to watch on a Sunday and be very lazy at the touch of a button.

My most memorable moment at Hotter is ...

Being told I had got the job!

The best Hotter shoe we’ve ever made is ...

Lulworth because the new fabrics make it a great shoe for any age.

Competition To celebrate Karen joining the team, we thought we’d offer a lucky reader the chance to win one of our lovely handbags – just answer this simple question: who or what is an Utonagan?

Once again you’ve amazed us with your creative suggestions for our latest shoe naming competition. Our Product Design Director Paul Sayers has selected his favourites and we are planning to let our online Comfort Club readers and Facebook

fans select the final winner. (If you’re not online you can also send in your vote along with any competition entries to our Comfort Club address). The short listed names are: Angel, Bonnie, Cassie, Charisma, Lola, Lulu, Poppy, Rapture.

What’s comforting, made in England ...and filled with bubbles?

By Graham Gendall Norton

...it’s not just our lovely shoes!

Last year, a renowned French Champagne house joined a shoe designer to produce an exceptional Christmas present: in a smart box, labelled “Le Rituel” was a fine bottle of bubbly and a glass slipper! Some ‘slipper’ - a clear cut-glass stiletto supported the heel, reaching as high as the neck of the Champagne bottle.

I’m sure the Fairy Godmother would have been more practical - think of the health and safety risks!

Cinderella, so our editor tells me, could have ensured a more comfortable evening if instead of those glass slippers she’d opted for Hotter shoes. Most have millions of air bubbles injected into the sole, cushioning your feet as you walk – Cinderella could have danced all night! The French are very proud of Champagne, which can be named as such only if it comes from the winemakers of that part of northern

France. Many will tell you a monk, Dom Pérignon invented the present method with its splendid bubbles, but that is not correct, he just introduced some steps along the way. It was an English physician who, by experimenting, found out how to do it.

In 1662 Dr Christopher Merret gave a lecture to the members of the Royal Society describing how it was possible to add sugar to make a sparkling wine. The released bubbles - which the French romantically call pearls are carbon dioxide, produced by the secondary fermentation in the bottle from the sugar. To trap the gas in the bottle and to produce a fine wine is a complex process, which also needs a thick, strong, and heavier glass bottle.

So, we invented the way to make “champagne”.

Recently some English producers have won international awards, coming ahead of French Champagnes in world ‘blind’ tastings.

We have an advantage: in Kent and Sussex, the chalky soil and the climate are practically identical to Champagne. The same grapes grow as well here as they do across the Channel.

COMPETITION Our prize for this edition is two bottles of a fabulous Sussex sparkler, along with a pair of shoes – both filled with comforting bubbles!

Pale gold in the glass, the grape blend 64% Chardonnay, 23% Pinot Noir the rest Pinot Meunier, as it might be in France.

Crisp, fresh, dry, opening to good, subtle citrus fruit, with a long finish, from gold medal winning Ridgeview (English Winemaker of the Year 2009), it’s their Bloomsbury Merret Brut 2007. Delicious!

Every one of their wines is a bubbly, has an English name, and tells the world that Dr Merret began it all. You can buy this one from Waitrose (£19.99), or, visit www.ridgeview.co.uk

Q. In what year did Dr Christopher Merret tell the Royal Society how to make champagne style wine?

ALL SHOES FEATURED ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.HOTTER.COM

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Active, health We know our shoes are the perfect companion to help keep you busy and active because they are just plain comfortable! But we were surprised to find out how many activities you could enjoy in your Hotter shoes - we soon discovered you’d done everything from jumping out of planes to trekking up mountains in your Hotters!

75 YEARS OLD. 12,000 feet high!

When 75 year old Yvonne Cole from Northants recently took part in a sky-dive she was advised to wear good strong boots so she duly strapped on her Hotter boots – Walk. Now she was ready for a 12,000 foot drop, out of a plane! The sky-dive took place in New Zealand however Yvonne who was first out of the plane, didn’t see much, all she could see and feel on her 90 second free fall drop, was lots of clouds and icy winds. Yvonne told Comfort Club “this was a brilliant experience and throughout the sky-dive my Walk boots stayed firmly in place and were very light and comfortable.” As you can see from her photograph she is still smiling after that terrifying drop!

u rite: Walk Y von ne’s favo

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GORE-TEX®, GORE-TEX GUARANTEED TO KEEP YOU DRY®, GORE-TEX® and designs are trademarks of W.L.Gore and Associates

So we thought we’d inspire you to get up and get active with Hotter this autumn with a few of our favourite stories.

HurrAy for Hotter!

Mrs Edge from Chester called to tell us a wonderful tale.

Her son was due to take part in a triathlon, when he arrived at the event he realised he had forgotten his shoes! He was, however, wearing his Hotter shoes at the time, phew!

So he decided to run the race in them instead, finding them so comfortable that after all that exercise he continued to wear them for the rest of the day!

Here is Adele Brockleban k, from our Marketing team trekkin g in the mountains of Peru, wearin g her trusty Hotter walking boots, Kes wick.

hy, happy feet John O’Groats to Lands End! Julie Robinson, a podiatrist from Cornwall and her husband Richard have been keeping fit and healthy this summer by cycling 1,028 miles in 16 days! They cycled from John O’Groats to Lands End fundraising for

Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Chief photographer Julie took lots of photo’s along the way documenting their amazing achievement. To date they have reached a grand total of £2,800!

Walk this way Hotter fan Jude Palmer has written the book “The Walkers Friend” which is packed full of practical tips from what socks to wear when walking to where to spot wildlife. Here are Jude’s top three walker’s tips:

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To keep your upper back and neck comfortable when carrying backpacks, shrug your shoulders up towards your ears then roll them down again – and repeat twenty times.

This will also help you breathe deeply.

In boots, look for good support underfoot and around the ankles, a sole with widely spaced treads and a stepped heel, and a waterproof upper. (Why not try a pair from our GORE-TEX® range?)

3 Acrylic mixed with cotton or wool is ideal when it comes to socks to absorb moisture and take it away from the skin.

Of her Mist shoes Jude says: “As soon I put on the shoes I noticed how light they were on the feet, and I almost bounced my way to the train station.” Ju de loves: Mist

COMPETITION To be in with a chance of winning a pair of Hotters’ GORE-TEX® weatherproof boots and a fantastic read “The Walkers Friend” by Jude Palmer, simply answer the following question: Q. Which Hotter boots did Mrs Cole sky dive in?

Send your entries by post or email - see back page for address details.

Whatever activities you’re planning this autumn, why not do it in a pair of Hotter shoes? For those of you who love walking, we’re putting together a collection of walks for other readers to enjoy, so send us your suggestions.

ALL SHOES FEATURED ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.HOTTER.COM

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Readers’ letters Home Sweet Home astic photo which she has

us this fant Christine, from Blackpool has sent look like they approve of her lings duck The is! taken and how cute it they like the shoebox even better!

Dizzy shoes in Mimosa Yellow but e in pets making themselves at hom Have you got any photos of your se post, email Plea ! them see to love ld wou We your Hotter shoeboxes? onto our Facebook page? or why not upload them straight

Comfort to fly for!

I have wide feet and nowhere else have I found the les comfort and gorgeous sty I use p sho The r. offe tter Ho that g erin sid con is in Southport and ar ralt Gib from fly to e that I hav travel to Manchester and then find to er ord in ort to Southp g shoes that I like...it is a lon don Lon in n eve t journey! No and have I found such comfy t. fee e wid for stylish shoes Miss Bailey, Kent

Customer Service: 0800 525 893 Personal Shoppers: 0800 083 3083

E: weloveshoes@hotter.com W: www.hotter.com Hotter Comfort Concept Shoes @hottershoes

COMPETITION WINNER

You and us Hotter fan Jenny Rigby wa s the winner of our recent Facebo ok competition with this gre at photo below. Now our Comfort Club readers have a chance to win too – send in your photos of you with someth ing Hotter – it could be our catalogue , shoes, a carrier bag or even you in a Hotter store. Our favourite will win a pair of shoes of their choice. Afte r she’d won her prize Jenny sent in the new photo above to show you just how good that winning sensation fee ls!

Send in your stories, photos and competition entries to Melanie Killilea, Editor, Comfort Club, Hotter Shoes, 2 Peel Road, Skelmersdale, WN8 9PT or email weloveshoes@hotter.com.

Unless otherwise stated competitions in this edition will close on 15th October 2010 – winners details will be printed in our online Comfort Club at www.hotter.com or contact the Editor for a full list.