Vamp: August 2017

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ALL BLACK welcomes Spring 2018 with a vast array of details.

From lazer perforations to flat coin studs and lush shoelaces, the spring collection will open your eyes to new shoe colors and our usual breakthrough styles. Please plan on visiting ALL BLACK at one of the following markets: FFANY | NYC | 8/1 - 8/3 ACCESSORIE CIRCUIT | NYC | 8/6 - 8/8 PL FN PLATFORM | LAS VEGAS | 8/14 - 8/16 ATLANTA SHOE MARKET | ATLANTA, GA | 8/19 - 8/21 www.allblackfootwear.com | facebook.com/allblackfootwear | @allblackfootwear

Come and Experience Earth at These Upcoming Shows: July 26 - 29, Outdoor Retailer, #32161 Salt Palace Convention Center August 14 - 16, FN Platform Las Vegas Convention Center August 19 - 21, Atlanta Shoe Market, #1317-1323 Cobb Galleria Centre 8 VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

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13 / FROM THE EDITOR AND PUBLISHER 14 / RETAIL JUNGLE Retail experts share four lessons footwear retailers can learn from Amazon.

16 / DIRECT LINE Direct-to-consumer brands discuss the highs and lows of cutting out the middle man.

18 / NOW OR NEVER Six high-tech tools that can give footwear retailers and brands a digital upgrade.

20 / STAR DUST Metallic silver footwear shines brightly for Spring ’18.

22 / PRINTING POWER 3-D printing is set to change everything the industry knows about shoes.

26 / SMART STEPS From GPS technology to performance-improving designs, smart footwear unveils a connected future.

28 / FANCY ME Strike a pose. Spring ’18 serves a heap of Instagram-worthy, party footwear.

34 / FUTURE OF FASHION Designers look into their crystal ball to predict footwear trends in 2050.

36 / THE VISIONARIES Meet the visionaries bringing newness to the shoe biz.

46 / OASIS Sit poolside this spring with pretty pastels and vacay-friendly silhouettes.

54 / GETTING TO KNOW GEN Z Experts share how retailers and brands can connect with Gen Z. 58 / THE LOOK Your trend checklist for Spring ’18.

PUBLISHER Edward Hertzman EDITORIAL & CREATIVE DIRECTOR Angela Velasquez ASSISTANT EDITOR Emily Goldman CONTRIBUTORS Tara Donaldson Lyndsay McGregor Genevieve Scarano Caroline Vazzana DESIGNER Celena Tang DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Eric Hertzman HERTZMAN MEDIA GROUP 545 8th Ave. Suite 530 NY, NY 10018 212.967.3065 I www.vampfootwear.com Cover: All Black satin slide Photography by Celena Tang

FROM THE PUBLISHER There is quite a bit of speculation over what retail will look like in the next year, or five, or 10.

Even the best merchants, most revered CEOs and VC icons have got it wrong when it came to the apparel and footwear business these past few years. They didn’t plan for a changing consumer, a digital universe and just rested on their glory days to ride them into the future.

Technology will continue to evolve. Maybe the style of your heel will change each season, where and how we purchase our footwear or by what means it is delivered may change, but the fundamentals of sound business will always remain the same.

When I started Sourcing Journal seven years ago, many thought a niche publication ran by an independent publisher would never succeed.

But what no one understood was the thirst, the want and more importantly the need for the information our industry required.

We launched Vamp in 2015 with the same sentiment. Footwear is a sexy business. The glitz and glam of celebrities wearing our shoes or influencers posting images of our products is crucial in today’s social media-crazed world.

However, the importance and need for trade journalism exists.

The footwear industry—from sourcing execs and brands, to independent retailers and online giants—needs to change its way of thinking.

Vamp is committed to being your authority.

We are going to continue investing in editorial coverage and technology to make sure you are well-informed and can make the best business decisions as possible. We want to be your daily homepage and your hub for all things footwear trade.

We need your help though. It’s more than supporting us via a print ad or a banner ad. Let us know the questions you need answered. The stores you want insight into. The trade deals you need better explained. The newest technology you want access to. We are here to serve you, but we need the industry’s support. Help us be a better publication.

And as far as my 10-year prediction… The one thing I can ensure everyone is, no one will be walking around barefoot.

Can’t resist a good shoefie

FROM THE EDITOR I often consider myself to be the oldest 30-something-year-old in the world. I read hardcover books about digital media, I’m protective of my box television and the last thing I purchased from Amazon was a college text book. The only reason I even own an iPhone is because I “misplaced” my beloved Blackberry during a Creative Recreation party in the East Village many years ago.

Instead of the latest electronics, I invest in new shoes. However, as much as I cling to my outdated habits, I am in a perpetual state of awe of the new technologies and the innovators changing the footwear and retail industries.

That is why we dedicate this issue to the visionary retailers, brands and tech companies that are leading by example and changing the way we look at product.

Take Feetz Founder Lucy Beard, who based her 3-D printed custom shoe company on the same premise as Starbucks’ success—use one machine to create endless possibilities. I don’t know about you, but I leave Starbucks each day with a cake pop, not an industry changing idea. Or Caleb Morairty and Jeff Wolfe, co-founders of The Outpost (pg. 43), an unconventional trade show for the outdoor market that combines experiential marketing with a festival-like environment in some of the most gorgeous settings imaginable.

I experienced my first Outpost in the Catskills in June, and let me tell you, it was an experience. Wearing Teva’s Original Universal sandals, 200 new friends (influencers, media, buyers and brand reps) and I lounged in tiny houses and took in seminars about astrology and beekeeping by day, and sipped cans of wine and danced in the rain by night. I arrived back in New York City, not feeling like I just spent my weekend at a trade show for work, but instead at a cool friend’s house who happened to have a geodesic dome and a couple of alpacas in their backyard.

It is often said that outsiders bring innovation—Beard, Morairty and Wolfe are footwear outsiders—and thanks to a heap of new technology, we can all be outsiders in some way, shape or form. We have all seen, on many occasions, how a photo app can turn a sales rep into a photographer for last-minute photo requests. Instagram made everyone an art director, inspiring endless “shoefies” and even inspiring our Spring ’18 trend story on pg. 28. Meanwhile, the flood of direct-to-consumer brands (pg. 16) is proof of how basic web building skills can get a new shoe brand up and running in no time.

As tech companies and shoe companies flip flop their roles, the footwear industry is bound to be affected by more outsiders. Combine that with the wealth of untapped creativity and innovation that I still believe lives deep within the shoe biz, and footwear is certain to head into a new and exciting era.

Whether you read Vamp on your desktop, laptop, smartphone, tablet or in print, I hope you continue to look to Vamp for the insight and tools that can help you in this wild journey.

Edward Hertzman

Angela Velasquez

VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

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FOUR LESSONS FOOTWEAR RETAILERS CAN LEARN FROM AMAZON. LYNDSAY MCGREGOR

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mazon’s expansion knows no bounds. In the 18 months since word first broke about the Seattle-based behemoth’s rollout of seven private-label apparel brands, its stable has increased to 14 and includes Franklin & Freeman, a line of men’s dress shoes. In 2016 alone the company raked in $136 billion in sales, while accounting for more than half (53 percent) of U.S. e-commerce growth, as per eMarketer. The company launched a low-cost version of its Prime membership program for Americans on government assistance and bought the Whole Foods grocery store chain for a whopping $14 billion.

But as Amazon has hurtled toward industry domination, established retailers have been shutting stores at a record clip. Macy’s, J.C. Penney, Sears and Payless are closing hundreds of stores combined. Other unlucky companies include mall stalwarts Abercrombie & Fitch, Wet Seal, The Limited and Bebe. Amazon, by default, has been blamed, despite several analysts declaring the U.S. over-stored.

Even Urban Outfitters CEO Richard Hayne admitted that the industry opened too many stores in recent years, all more or less selling the same stuff, and driving rents sky-high. “This created a bubble and, like housing, that bubble has now burst. We are seeing the results: doors shuttering and rents retreating.” Hayne said during an earnings call earlier this year.

He also blamed an obvious shift in shopper preference: store traffic is down, direct-to-consumer traffic is up. That’s not unique to Urban Outfitters. People are spending less money on goods and when they do shop they want it to be on their terms: anything, anytime, anywhere. Amazon may have had a part to play in digitizing the consumer decision journey, but today’s shoppers are too savvy to be swayed by anything less than convenience.

That’s not to say that retailers can’t learn from Amazon’s approach to selling. Even small businesses can recreate the company’s focus on customer experience and position themselves to provide value.

“While store closures have made headlines recently, retailers that can leverage their store base to provide differentiated experiences that shoppers can’t get online will succeed,” offered Meaghan Werle, e-commerce analyst at Kantar Retail. “It’s not necessarily about losing to online stores. Rather, it’s about how well a retailer is keeping up with changing shopper demands and expectations.”

Use brick-and-mortar as a marketing vehicle Amazon now has seven brick-and-mortar bookstores across the U.S., with plans to open six more soon—and they’re as much a marketing effort as they are a sales channel. Each location offers the opportunity to browse and buy books, while devices in the company’s Echo, Kindle and Fire families are also available to test drive and purchase.

The reason: Some people still prefer to touch and feel a product before they buy it. According to a 2014 A.T. Kearney survey of more than 2,500 consumers, two-thirds of online shoppers admitted to engaging with a physical store before or after the transaction. That preference was even more pronounced in categories like apparel and accessories, with 71 percent of online sales stemming from an in-store experience.

Scott Galloway, founder of research firm L2, believes retailers should take that knowledge and run with it. “Retailers that derive more than 30 percent of their business online (and there are a lot of them) need to refer to that channel as their core business,” he wrote in a recent blog post on L2’s website. “As such, their core business is growing double digits and their primary source of marketing, brick and mortar, sometimes makes money and is getting cheaper, as power shifts from landlords to tenants for the first time in 10 years.”

Amazon isn’t the only digital native that understands the value in having an offline presence.

Bonobos, Warby Parker, Birchbox and Rent the Runway are just four online-born brands that have opened brick-and-mortar stores in recent years. Meanwhile, Kohl’s learned the hard way that e-commerce is no substitute for a physical location: After the retailer closed 19 stores last year, online sales in those areas slipped by 10 percent.

Focus on the customer experience Amazon knows how to take care of its clientele. “Even when they don’t yet know it, customers want something better, and your desire to delight customers will drive you to invent on their behalf,” CEO Jeff Bezos wrote in his latest letter to the company’s shareholders.

“Amazon innovates on behalf of the customer, not in response to competitors,” Werle explained, pointing to the Prime program as an example, which offers members exclusive benefits such as video content, special offers and discounts. “Amazon is also intently focused on improving all aspects of the customer experience to help give Prime members more time back in their days. If a customer contacts Amazon, they see it as a flaw in the system.”

Indeed, Amazon has built customer loyalty and satisfaction on a bed of innovation, communication and fast and reliable fulfillment, which all retailers can strive to achieve. That being said, smaller businesses have an ace up their sleeve: size.

“Amazon is as big as it is because it’s as big as it is. Its size is its own competitve advantage,” said Steven Marotta, senior vice president and equity research analyst at investment bank C.L. King & Associates.

But bigger isn’t always better, especially when it comes to offering personalized, one-on-one interactions. Knowledgeable sales associates who provide expert product recommendations can turn a one-time shopper into a repeat customer, while greeting a regular by name and offering a personalized shopping experience can help build a lasting relationship that can’t be replicated online.

Don’t be afraid to experiment “Amazon’s made a lot of mistakes over the years,” Werle said, citing the ill-fated Fire phone and Amazon Elements private-label diapers as two of the company’s flops. “However, Amazon is very good at recognizing failures and applying learnings to future initiatives.”

In short, Amazon’s culture is built on a willingness to take risks and accept failures. That’s how the company has been able to reinvent the way people shop. And while most retailers don’t have the money to test things like drone delivery, introducing data analytics and using customer feedback to make more informed decisions is a no-brainer.

The same goes for AB testing: Amazon constantly tries out potential tweaks to improve user experience and conversion rates. Small businesses can easily play around with product placement and promotional signage in-store and measure their impact on the customer journey.

In addition, incorporating technology into the experience, such as mobile checkout or an app that allows repeat customers to receive special discounts, can help retailers serve their most valuable customers in a more meaningful way. As Werle put it, “Being wrong may be less costly than being slow.”

Offer a curated assortment The downside to being known as “the everything store” is that too many choice can overwhelm consumers. An evening spent scrolling through 2,226 pairs of women’s white socks and reading hundreds of opposing reviews can often kill a sale. Choice overload, according to McKinsey research, means that consumers are beginning to appreciate curated assortments, which is leading retailers to realize that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work for everyone.

That’s why personal shopping startup Stitch Fix took off. Members pay a $20 fee to receive a box of five items (at fixed intervals or by request) hand-picked by a stylist, pay for what they want to keep and send back the rest for free. It’s also why Kohl’s, Target and Walmart are embracing smaller-format stores.

Retailers can play to Amazon’s weaknesses by offering time-crunched consumers a great browsing experience in store, featuring a targeted assortment of products that appeal to their lifestyle needs. That same approach can be translated online, bolstered by editorial content like how-tos, gift guides, interviews and trend stories that inspire their customers and drive additional sales.

“Smaller formats with a more curated, tailored assortment will prevail,” Werle declared, predicting that the physical store of the future will feature both experiential and omnichannel elements, as well as a greater integration of technology.

“Ultimately, the complement of brick-and-mortar combined with digital will win the day,” Marotta agreed.

Amazon is already exploring more brick-andmortar concepts, confirming that a blurring of the lines between online and offline retail is crucial to its continued growth. Traditional retailers need to play to their strengths, focus on consumers and fully commit to becoming more digitally adept. The businesses that do that will surely give Amazon a run for its money.

VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

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DIRECT LINE THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF RUNNING A DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER FOOTWEAR COMPANY. EMILY GOLDMAN

A

convergence of new technology is making it easier than ever for novice shoe designers to get a footwear brand up and running without going through traditional wholesale channels. Widespread information on the internet means better informed entrepreneurs. Designers connect with suppliers and factories from the comfort of home using WeChat, while a business owner can set up a web store on Shopify or Square Space in almost no time at all. The result is a booming direct-to-consumer business model that is introducing new competition to the footwear game, and with lower prices and oftentimes a relatable story, consumers are rooting for the underdog.

From April 2016 to April 2017, The NPD Group said direct-to-consumer footwear dollar sales (vertical/branded stores and factory outlets) grew 10 percent. While shoe brands have supplemented their wholesale business with direct-to-consumer sales for years, the new class of direct-to-consumer businesses are choosing to bypass traditional retailers entirely.

“Wholesale brands selling on their own websites is definitely part of it, but we are now seeing a wave of start-ups selling on websites only, since retail distribution isn’t needed to launch any longer,” said Beth Goldstein, The NPD Group executive director, industry analyst, accessories and footwear.

Call it the Warby Parker effect. Through clever marketing and a simple home try-on process, the vertically integrated eyeglass brand helped make direct-to-consumer cool to shoppers that had grown weary of high mark ups and poor quality. By “cutting out the middle man,” Warby Parker offers contemporary frames for just $95.

Many more industries have followed, pulling back the curtain and revealing lower prices, including direct-to-consumer companies in mattresses (Casper, Zotto), linens (Brooklinen), apparel (Everlane, Mott & Bow) and overwhelmingly, footwear.

“Made in Italy” brand M.Gemi and sneaker company Greats have tapped into consumers’ demand for attainable style, touting high quality and lower prices on sleek websites and social media platforms. Meanwhile, Jimmy Choo Co-founder Tamara Mellon went the direct-to-consumer route to launch her eponymous line of women’s footwear. Mellon states on the brand’s e-commerce site, “I’m redefining luxury and doing what I do best: designing shoes and breaking rules.”

When Texan Paul Hedrick launched Tecovas in 2015, he set out to disrupt the handmade Western boot category by creating transparency. “We feel very strongly about making the absolute best product on the market—and the only way to make that more accessible to customers is to commit to selling direct and pricing them as honestly as possible,” Hedrick said.

On the brand’s website, Tecovas informs consumers that luxury boot manufacturers

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and retailers markup boots 4 to 6 times. The brand says the handmade boots made in Leon, Mexico that they sell for $200 to $250 direct-to-consumer, would cost consumers $400 to $600 through the brick-and-mortar channel.

“Not only does it allow a brand to give the consumer the most value for money since there isn’t a retailer marking up the brand’s price by 100 to 200 percent, but when you purchase directly from brands, you generally have a much better overall experience: from pre-purchase advice, directly from the designers to post-purchase customer service,” Hedrick said about direct-to-consumer.

Likewise, Paul Evans launched his eponymous line of men’s “made in Italy” footwear out of frustration. While working in New York City as a junior investment banker, Evans was obligated to wear dress shoes. However, the high-quality styles he favored sold for upwards of $1,000. After some soul searching and before a trip to Italy, Evans mulled over the prospect of creating his own footwear collection.

Hence, Paul Evans NY launched in 2013, offering men “designed in New York” and “made in Italy” dress shoes for $400 to $520. The brand sells its products online and boasts a single brick-and-mortar location in New York City.

While many direct-to-consumer brands name low prices for premium product as their point of differentiation, NPD’s Goldstein isn’t convinced that the brands’ consumer appeal stems from pinching pennies.

“I don’t think it is really about the consumer saving money, but I think some consumers value interacting with the brand [or] company directly. They know what they are getting is authentic and believe that if something goes wrong there is a better chance of them getting the issue resolved more easily than if they are dealing with a middleman,” Goldstein explained. “For the brand, they are more in control of their end-to-end customer experience, but have to work harder to gain exposure without the wholesale distribution.”

Despite his brand’s success with stylish, metropolitan men, Evans admits to some challenges. “If you’re a true direct-toconsumer company, meaning you don’t wholesale, then you sense that through the distribution channel. You market the channel

Paul Evans NY

yourself,” he explained.

Anyone in the footwear business will agree that launching a shoe brand is not easy.

The task is even more grueling without a lick of industry experience. “Selling directly to customers is one of the biggest challenges in retail—and it’s not something brands were used to doing themselves until fairly recently,” Hedrick said. “Marketing and selling to 10,000 customers individually is inarguably more difficult than agreeing to a 10,000-unit purchase order from a retailer.”

Evans agreed, pointing out that direct-to-consumer requires employees to wear many hats. “As a vertically integrated company you must do all the tasks [whereas in a] traditional retail distribution model you don’t have that responsibility,” Evans said, adding, “You must do everything in-house and it takes a long time to build a brand, a distribution model. It’s definitely difficult from a financial perspective.”

Like many direct-to-consumer brands, Tecovas aims to open brick-and-mortar stores. “Yes, retail is in our plans. For us, being direct is the paramount ideal—not necessarily being online,” Hedrick said. “Our next frontier will almost certainly involve flagship showrooms in key markets, places where we already have strong customer bases. We’re already testing this concept with our limited-hours Austin showroom, and it’s been a huge hit.”

Traditional retail channels still have their appeal. According to NPD data, over 85 percent of U.S. footwear sales are done through wholesale channels.

Explorism Founder Jeremie Lahmi admits that the direct-to-consumer business model is a sort of means to launch his company. The company made a foray into footwear this spring by selling hand-painted Stan Smith sneakers for the luxury price of

$380. His goal is to eventually enter the traditional brick-and-mortar retail space.

In some ways, direct-to-consumer brands are paying their dues now and may ultimately become better wholesale partners.

A Deloitte study titled, Going Digital, Going Direct, suggested that all businesses could learn something from the direct-to-consumer business model. For example, for brands that already have a core following, direct-to-consumer can open up new channels to drive revenue and broaden markets beyond the local trade area, reaching more consumers. For new businesses, direct-to-consumer offers opportunity, giving brands a direct approach from the beginning, allowing them to easily test and experiment with pricing and SKUs to help determine the ideal number for conversion and profit.

In another study conducted by worldwide advisory firm Forrester Consulting, almost 90 percent of the 125 manufacturers surveyed said that managing the customer experience through the entire purchasing cycle would boost their business potential.

Manufacturers also said that consumer insights were important, with 84 percent wanting to communicate pricing information to shoppers, as well as 80 percent showing interest in tracking consumers from visit to purchase. These aspects are all incorporated into a direct-to-consumer business model.

“We’re using the internet to create a brand and then once you create a community… then you’re ready to get into the physical world of retail. Retail is not going to disappear, it’s just changing, evolving,” Lahmi said. “Being directly in touch with the costumer is a game changer.”

Tecovas

VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

17

NOW

SIX HIGH-TECH TOOLS THAT COULD CHANGE THE WAY YOU SELL YOUR SHOES.

NEVER OR

LYNDSAY MCGREGOR

T

ime and again retail experts envisage the store of the future to be a small, showroom-like unit stocked with minimal inventory, self-checkouts (or no checkout at all) and personalized, data-driven service. However, with closures and bankruptcy filings seemingly the new normal in U.S. retail, it’s hard not to wonder which stores will survive long enough to see that day.

But with challenge comes opportunity and, as luck would have it, a plethora of innovations have arrived on the scene, each promising to enhance the customer experience and improve retail sales.

Here, Vamp pinpoints six technology solutions that shoe sellers can apply to their businesses to help secure their future.

Use data to predict sales It’s simple: The better brands know their customers, the better they can position themselves to offer products that will sell at market. But meeting consumer expectations in today’s tech-savvy world requires more insight than a focus group can generate.

“Traditional focus groups are not fast, it takes weeks to set them up, the end result is pretty small and it’s not a representative customer that shows up,” said Dan Leahy, co-founder of MakerSights, a predictive analytics platform that promises to forecast demand for brands with 90 percent accuracy, by inviting customers to weigh in on future products and applying an algorithm to identify likely winners and losers.

“We built MakerSights as a platform to allow brands the opportunity to strategically invest in products that customers are most likely to purchase, thereby increasing the chance of those products selling at market,” Leahy said. As surveys take less than 90 seconds to complete, brands can quickly accrue a large amount of data and confidently invest their time and resources.

The result: faster speed-to-market and potentially higher revenues. According to the company, its brand partners (ranging from Wolverine Worldwide to Ralph Lauren) have been able to reduce markdowns and boost gross margin by 2 to 4 percent.

Rather than relying on monetary incentives to increase participation—which Leahy said is likely to result in responses from people just looking for a discount—MakerSights encourages brands to trust that the thrill of being involved in the design process is enough to persuade customers to offer their opinion. “A broad swath of your customer base is willing to give that feedback so long as it’s fast, easy and fun,” Leahy said.

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Enhance the in-store experience with visual search

Seventy-seven percent of Americans now own a smartphone, as indicated by recent Pew Research Center findings. Yet people increasingly use their mobile devices for more than voice calls or texting. And retailers who don’t harness that activity are missing out.

“Most people want to take a picture of something because they don’t want to forget it or they want to show it to their significant other. This vein of consumer behavior already exists. It’s just a matter of training consumers to use your mobile app, not their camera roll,” said Ted Mann, CEO at Slyce, a visual search and image recognition company.

Slyce combines several advanced image recognition technologies in one universal scanner that can be integrated into retailers’ mobile apps and allows customers to snap or scan an object to receive exact-match or visually-similar results. Clients include Nordstrom, Tommy Hilfiger and Shoe Carnival and use cases range from locating a product in-store to styling tips to adding items to wish lists.

“Retailers are trying to figure out how to activate and engage customers in a new way and make the best use out of their physical stores,” Mann said, pointing out that retailers will only implement a high-tech solution if they’re confident in its ability to drive sales or power a better customer experience. “You need to ask yourself, what kind of unique functionality can you do on mobile that will add some true utility to your app?”

Introduce 3-D scanning to reduce returns Studies have shown that return rates are roughly 8 percent for in-store sales and between 20 and 30 percent for online orders. That percentage skews even higher in the case of fit-critical items like shoes.

With many e-tailers offering free returns to get a leg-up on the competition, a sale can often cost companies more money than it’s worth.

The good news: most fit-related footwear returns are preventable. And technologies that help shoppers choose the correct shoe size before placing their order take aim at the problem.

Invertex combines artificial intelligence and 3-D technology to improve sales and lower returns by boosting shopper confidence. The company’s omnichannel approach allows consumers to create an avatar of their feet by using an app or in-store scanner and receive accurate size recommendations.

“Today a customer can go online and buy the same Nike shoe in Foot Locker, in Finish Line or on Nike.com, for almost the same price. Price is no longer the differentiator. The only thing that matters is the customer experience,” said David Bleicher, founder and CEO, adding, “If a customer is confident about a brand, about the fit, about the comfort of that brand, he will return to that brand.”

Similarly, Swedish startup Volumental aims to create a more engaging shopping experience by collecting and displaying data like arch length and ball width—measurements that a shoe retailer would find it tough to ascertain using traditional tools—to help customers find the right shoes for their feet.

“It also allows the sales associate to spend more time focusing on the customer interaction and less time in the backroom by reducing the number of pairs each customer has to try,” said Anna Malkan, key account manager, noting that 80 percent of customers who use the Volumental scanner go on to make a purchase.

Create shoppable content Given that magazines are moving into retail and retailers are offering editorial-style brochures, it’s not too farfetched to imagine shoppable content as the future of retail. And with more fashion brands embracing social media and digital campaigns, it makes sense to further simplify the path to purchase with interactive video players.

London-based Smartzer offers tagging technology that adds clickable hotspots to digital videos, turning them into interative tools. Consumers can click on individual items to see more information or a link to shop, allowing e-commerce companies to generate sales and capture detailed analytics.

“Video is a great way to inspire consumers and provide a very visual way to showcase products,” said Smartzer Founder Karoline Gross, noting that clients including Burberry and Galeries Lafayette see 57 percent engagement and 12 percent click-through rates on average. “In addition to driving sales of the items in the video, we also see shoppable video as a new starting point for a whole shopping journey.”

Drive engagement with interactive displays From haul videos to outfit-of-the-day posts, today’s shopper isn’t shy about showing off spending sprees on social media. But what if brands and retailers could utilize that behavior and encourage social engagement while the customer was still in the store?

Melissa, the Brazilian-based plastic shoe company known for its collaborations with Karl Lagerfeld and Vivienne Westwood, recently paired up with experiential technology startup M-ND to boost engagement by installing interactive displays in its Orlando and Miami stores.

People who visit the stores are encouraged to take photos of themselves wearing Melissa

shoes and upload them with the hashtag #MelissaShoesUSA as well as a geotag of the store’s location. They can then use the interactive display to print their picture and access instant discounts.

“We created M-ND because we saw a disconnect between the brand and the consumer.

Everybody’s mobile phone is their best friend and we felt people were not engaging properly with their device and the brand,” explained Jim Hopper, M-ND co-founder and CEO, adding, “M-ND does two things really well: we drive engagement and by driving engagement we also increase sales.”

Embrace multichannel selling As Amazon continues to take market share from traditional retailers, it’s up to brands to ensure customers can easily find their goods wherever and however they shop. That means adopting a multichannel retail strategy that goes beyond brickand-mortar or a branded website. After all, the more places a product is offered, the more opportunities a brand has to reach new customers and boost sales.

However, managing data across multiple platforms is a logistical nightmare that most companies aren’t equipped to handle on their own.

Enter ChannelApe, a multichannel management tool that sends out inventory information to many sales channels and syncs purchase orders in one place for easy processing.

“What we do is free up all the time a client spends in the back office managing inventory, catalogs, orders and then fulfillments. With more time freed up because of a simple back-office software like ChannelApe, our clients can focus on building engaging and intuitive experiences,” said Co-Founder Mike Averto.

Let’s face it: high-tech innovations are no longer a “nice-to-have” and retail businesses can’t afford to keep doing business as usual, especially with Moody’s Investors Service claiming the number of distressed U.S. stores is nearing Great Recessionera levels.

As Volumental’s Malkan put it, “The key driver as the lines between online and physical stores disappear is to offer a consistent and unified shopping experience where shoppers feel that their relationship with a brand or retailer is seen and valued regardless of channel.”

Volumental’s 3-D scanners provide data to ensure perfect fit.

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SILVER HEATS UP SPRING ’18 COLLECTIONS. BY: ANGELA VELASQUEZ PHOTOGRAPHY: CELENA TANG

Top, clockwise: Butter mule, Rockport oxford, Vionic slide

PRINTING

Feetz

3-D PRINTING IS SET TO CHANGE EVERYTHING THE INDUSTRY KNOWS ABOUT SHOES. TARA DONALDSON

B

efore long, consumers will be able to customize their footwear just as they would their coffee orders and have them 3-D printed in the same amount of time it takes to get a venti caramel macchiato with skim, no whip. It may sound farfetched for now, but 3-D printing for footwear is already gaining traction.

The problem, however, seems to be that companies are looking to 3-D printing to make miracles in the way they produce footwear, cutting costs and enabling mass customization, and while it can, many have the wrong approach going in. The first step in embracing 3-D printing, is embracing 3-D thinking.

“When people look at 3-D printing, they’re mostly interested

in knowing ‘can this replace my current method of production?’ and a lot of times the answer is no,” said Nicoline van Enter, footwear forecaster and professor at SLEM, an international innovation and training institute for the footwear and leather industries.

For now at least, 3-D printing shouldn’t be viewed as a step-in for standard footwear manufacturing, but as a tool to improve what footwear can do.

The idea, as Lucy Beard, founder of Feetz—a newfangled footwear brand making 3-D printed, customized shoes and outdoing most footwear companies by leaps and bounds when it comes to innovation—explained, is really to rethink the entire footwear production process. “If you had to make no physical component, no last, all digital, how would you reinvent what a shoe is? How would you restructure what design meant for you? That’s what 3-D thinking is,” Beard said.

And Feetz should know, because the company has entirely re-conceptualized what it means to make a shoe and to provide ultimate customization. Think: Are laces still needed if a shoe simply fits? Can an insole be part of the shoe so that it fits better?

Feetz shoes are made based on 22 dimensions of fit, things like toe length and shape, and how much toe cleavage the wearer wants to show. But consumers aren’t expected to know—or measure all of that. With the company’s SizeMe technology, shoppers can download the Feetz app, take three photos of each foot and get a SizeMe ID that will be matched to their customized shoe order.

“You can get 87,000 combinations of coffee at Starbucks with just two little machines, so why can’t you get that in footwear?” Beard posed. “The industry can’t do this because they have to make shoes a year in advance.”

Contrary to that soon-to-be passé manufacturing model, Feetz has gotten the average printing time for its women’s shoe down to three to four hours (for an average size 6-7) from 24 hours last year. The shoe is printed in three parts: the upper, the insole and the tread, which are all fully printed from the same material. The upper is light and flexible, according to Beard, the insole is made of recycled memory foam and matches your arch, and a fabric liner is added for extra comfort.

There’s a lot 3-D can do, but what many brands are seeking is a replacement for the design process, which D’Wayne Edwards said is another err in getting to 3-D thinking.

“It’s not a design tool from a thinking point of view, it’s a visualization tool,” the Pensole Footwear Design Academy founder said. Really, he explained, “It’s more of an engineering tool, so the designers use it but it’s also a design tool because if you use it correctly, it can immediately inform what your pattern should look like.”

Companies looking to embrace 3-D printing for footwear will have to realize that to truly tap the benefits of this visualization tool, they may not be able to rely on existing designers or existing design process models.

“If you’re a company trying to think in 3-D, you should hire 3-D designers,” Edwards explained. “Expecting your current designers to start designing in 3-D is actually a mistake a lot of brands have made in the last couple years.”

Designing in 3-D demands a different skill set, according to Edwards. Most product is currently designed in 2-D and is often flat. Most of the time when designers are creating product, they have to show their creations to people that are not designers, people who may not be able to see in 3-D. What’s more, most companies are structured to receive design work in 2-D, so if the 3-D designer ultimately has to revert back to produce a 2-D design in order to get factories to understand, the entire efficiency of the effort is lost.

“If you had the capabilities of designing in 3-D using 3-D programs, you could make life-like images where it looks like a real object and you can make an intelligent decision based on an image and it would save money on sampling and time,” Edwards said.

However, he cautioned, “If it’s not a holistic process, it’s going to be a pretty expensive learning curve.”

As Beard added, 3-D design is actually mechanical design, complete with a slew of little refinements that need to be made before a design can be oriented to print. But what happens when you hire mechanical designers to make shoes is you get shoes with no beauty. But by the same token, hiring designers with a sense of beauty and no experience in mechanical design doesn’t work either.

“Most people still draw their shoes in Illustrator,” Enter said. “They send us a drawing and say ‘can you translate my drawing to 3-D?’ But again, if you design something in 3-D printing and for 3-D printing, you first have to understand the technology.”

Brands that can get 3-D thinking right and move onto a successful 3-D printing operation could end up with a lot to offer today’s ever more demanding consumer.

“Printing brings customization, different types of functionality, you can program the material to do something for you,” Enter explained. “With 3-D printing you can have a movement that works with the pronation of the foot. That’s already a different way of thinking that would even be possible.”

With 3-D printing, brands will be able to offer consumers the ability to add a logo or their name to a shoe, change the knotting structure of a fabric or how the grooves are set in the sole. “When you go to 3-D printing, you get personalization and customization,” Beard said. “I don’t need you to tell me what I want, I want to tell you what I want and you should make it.”

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Beyond personalization and customization, 3-D printing could help eliminate some of the business anxiety that comes with international trade and changes to it. And considering the rampant uncertainty that has rained down on retail in the last year, including things like adjustments to the North American Free Trade Agreement and talk of a border tax that would impose duties on American imports, the technology could prove beneficial to more than just the bottom line.

As Beard explained, “If you use 3-D printing, you can make the shoes wherever you put the printer, so just put the printer in the country or the city where you want to make the shoes and don’t even bother dealing with any of that stuff.”

The make-to-order concept could also help retail curb its inventory problem—which has become its overlypromotional problem when excess goods don’t sell and must be discounted.

“If you make it when somebody needs it and you have no inventory, the retailer is not going have this problem of ‘we have to take this bigger margin’ and the brand’s not going to be squeezed,” Beard said. “You basically reinvent this whole expectation system.”

Printing shoes with 3-D technology will also help cut production costs as sampling could be scaled back, materials used might be fewer and logistics costs could be reduced if the printer is closer to the consumer.

But the biggest cost savings—and advancements—will be in the outsole, according to Edwards. “The bottom of the shoe is the most expensive part and that’s where there’ll be the biggest adjustments for brands to make because it will save so much money on molds.”

The bonus benefit to 3-D printing that has made some brands’ ears perk up, is sustainability. At Feetz, the production model is cradle to cradle, not cradle to grave as Feetz Beard explained. The 3-D printed footwear is made entirely from recycled and recyclable materials, and the material can be recycled and reused up to 20 times.“We use 60 percent less material in everything that we do and zero water,” Beard said. “That is a game changer.”

Adidas made big waves this year with its 3-D printed shoe, the Futurecraft 4D, and the company said it expects to sell more than 100,000 pairs by the end of 2018 (the first of which is slated for release Dec. 2017). It is a substantial amount for 3-D printing, bringing mass production closer to the realm of possibility. The athletic wear retailer teamed with Silicon Valley-based 3-D printing company Carbon, to produce the footwear with customizable density throughout the midsole for improved performance, using a liquid resin material that’s more flexible than what some other 3-D printers are putting out—though it isn’t the most sustainable of materials, according to Enter.

“The resins that are being used are generally highly toxic, so for companies that have a lot of concern about the environment, that might not necessarily, at this moment, be the way to go,” Enter said.

What Adidas’ 4-D tech does do, however, is cut down the time to print by quite a bit.

“For just the bottom of an outsole, you’re looking at anywhere “IT’S A GOOD TECHNOLOGY BUT WE’RE WAITING from 6 to 8 hours to FOR THE MATERIALS TO CATCH UP WITH THE print a pair,” Edwards said. “4-D is probably CAPABILITIES OF WHAT CAN BE PRINTED.” at least half of that, maybe even shorter.”

So with sampling time curbed, costs cut and efficiency improved, what more will it take to get the footwear industry to tap into 3-D printing in a bigger way? Materials.

“It’s a good technology but we’re waiting for the materials to catch up with the capabilities of what can be printed,” Edwards said. “The material in the printer is not soft enough to flex and it’s not abrasion resistant enough to flex. Your feet move more than any part of your body if you’re walking and right now, with a lot of the materials, there are some flexible parts but they aren’t that durable.”

For now, the bulk of 3-D printing is done with plastics, but Beard is counting on innovators like Modern Meadow, which is experimenting with lab grown leather, to come through in the not-too-far future with new fabric-like materials that will take 3-D printing for footwear to the

“

next level. New methods of bioprinting, or printing with living cells could also foster more natural, breathable materials, according to Enter.

Looking ahead, some footwear categories will see 3-D show up in a bigger way than others. “I think there will be certain product categories where 3-D will be big: flip flops, sandals, more leisure activities that don’t require a lot of performance and wear. That will be the first part and then you’ll start to see performance products catch up to it,” Edwards said.

3-D printing is expected to radically change the capabilities for footwear in the next couple years. And, for Feetz, the move toward 3-D printed footwear was for the good of the industry— and for shoes.

“We’re not here to be a brand,” Beard said. “We’re here to be a technology that says I want every single shoe that’s made in the future to only be made for [consumers] when they want it.” Then, she said, “It doesn’t matter if you sell five shoes or 500 shoes or five million shoes because you only make it when somebody buys it.”

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SMART

FROM GPS TECHNOLOGY TO PERFORMANCE-IMPROVING DESIGNS, SMART FOOTWEAR UNVEILS A CONNECTED FUTURE. GENEVIEVE SCARANO

T

he shoes of tomorrow are here—and the industry isn’t missing a beat, providing consumers high-tech, smart footwear that could positively impact health and physical activity.

Over the past few years, smart footwear has gradually made its mark on the global market. As consumers continue to learn more about wearables, major players, including Under Armour, Salted Venture, Ducere Technologies and Anatomic & Co., have debuted their own versions of smart footwear that improve performance and wellbeing. Nike also took a stab at the future when it launched HyperAdapt 1.0, an advanced mechanical lacing shoe, last year.

Although smart shoes aren’t a new concept, the interest in intelligent products isn’t slowing down anytime soon. According to research group CCS Insight, 96 million smart wearable devices, including smart shoes, are projected to ship worldwide in 2017. What’s more, 185 million devices are expected to ship globally in 2021, while performance-enhancing lifestyle devices will remain the top wearables product category over the next four years.

“I think there are many brands that are working on [smart footwear] from many different angles. We are making major advances here, and we will see some amazing product in the very near future,” said Matt Powell, sports analyst at The NPD Group.

Currently, smart footwear is still in its early stages and primarily geared towards a niche consumer demographic, including athletes and health-conscious consumers. Some of these models, including Under Armour’s UA SpeedForm Gemini 3 RE and Salted Venture’s IOFIT smart golf shoe, enable consumers to improve their fitness performance.

“Most innovations currently are coming from the sports, fitness and wellness side, with the goal being to provide anyone from a casual runner to a professional athlete with more

26

VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

STEPS

information about their performance,” ABI Research Analyst Stephanie Lawrence said. “This information not only provides them with a way in which to determine how to improve, but also shows them where they may be causing injury and how to avoid it.”

Providing innovative technology is half the battle. Experts said in order to be successful in the smart footwear category, brands must focus on creating a comfortable shoe and appeal to a broader shopper demographic. If those two qualities are met, consumers are more likely to engage with smart footwear.

“These devices are intended to be worn for a long period of time, so comfort is essential to ensure the device’s survival,” Lawrence said. “The technology needs to withstand issues associated with sheer force, sweat and humidity, all of which are associated with the shoe form factor, while not interfering with the wearer.”

Powell points out that people who run for fitness are very particular about the shoes they use. “The products need to be relatively integrated into multiple styles. To tell a consumer, ‘We can tell you a lot about your run, but you have to wear this particular shoe,’ probably is not going to fly because I think the first thing that a runner thinks about is if the shoe is comfortable, am I free of injury, am I able to run easily in them. The shoe itself really becomes the first and most important investment and then the technology really needs to be easily integrated into multiple shoes,” he explained.

A smart shoe may have all the right cushioning and wearable properties, but other tracking devices, including wristbands, could fulfill the same purpose. Brands need to think freely and go beyond the performance tracking devices available in the market.

“While this new generation of smart shoes offer superior user experience at reasonable prices, we believe that smart shoes and smart clothing in general are still far from gaining wider appeal beyond sports and technology enthusiasts,” said George Jijiashvili, CCS Insight wearables analyst. “Smart shoe makers have acknowledged this and are now working on delivering features that are difficult or impossible to replicate on wrist-based wearables.”

Many major companies have ramped up their smart footwear initiatives to stay ahead of the game. These brands elevate the smart footwear concept by appealing to a wide variety of consumers, while delivering products that are comfortable and more advanced than other wearable devices.

After launching its first smart shoe, the UA SpeedForm Gemini 2 RE last year, Under Armour is on a roll in this category. In December, the company debuted a second connected footwear line. The three smart shoes, UA SpeedForm Gemini 3 RE, the UA SpeedForm Europa RE and the UA SpeedForm Velociti RE, are powered by Under Armour’s mobile app

and global digital running community, MapMyRun. Similar to the UA SpeedForm Gemini 2 RE, the new models contain UA Record Equipped, a smart footwear feature that heightens MapMyRun’s tracking abilities. UA Record Equipped provides detailed exercise statistics, including cadence and shoe mileage lifetime, without the need for recharging.

Under Armour elevated the models with Jump Test, a performance feature that scientifically evaluates muscle fatigue levels. When connected to MapMyRun, Jump Test enables wearers to measure their recovery status and provides guidance on how to switch up workout intensity. In addition to these technology features, each shoe also provides wearers with optimal comfort and protection. Fabrications include knit midfoot panel support, UA SpeedForm construction for an accurate fit and Charged Cushioning for improved wearable responsiveness.

Under Armour aims to expand its smart footwear line to other markets, including those in Australia, China, Europe, Japan, the Middle East and North America next year. “Through our connected footwear line, we are taking a core piece of our business and adding value to a growing audience among our customers—runners,” said Jasmine Maietta, senior director of brand marketing at Under Armour. “We are creating a frictionless experience for runners to focus on their training, while having access to the information that matters most to them, all through a comprehensive ecosystem.”

Salted Venture is also going above and beyond standard tracking to deliver a memorable wearables experience. Formed inside Samsung C-Lab, an innovation program for Samsung employees, the startup launched a smart golf shoe, IOFIT, in 2016.

Unlike other smart shoes, IOFIT enables wearers to tackle one of the most challenging golf moves—the swing. Pressure sensors embedded in the soles measure a player’s weight shift and balance during a golf swing. Data is then transferred to the player’s smartphone, where the IOFIT app provides personalized analysis and feedback on movement. Due to IOFIT’s technology, players can see any changes from pressure distribution to center of pressure (COP) in real-time. Players can also compete with friends in the app and save their customized swing information.

After the successful launch of IOFIT, Salted Venture plans to upgrade the shoe and work with other companies to develop innovative footwear outside of the golf sector.

“For IOFIT, we all know that balance is essential in our daily activities. Especially in golf, balance is directly related to the performance of your swing and having the right balance is the key to improving your golf swing and skills,” Salted Venture Marketing Manager Junsik Oh said. “We want every golfer to benefit from this information in a portable and affordable way.”

While other companies continue to roll out performance smart shoes, Anatomic & Co. takes a wellness-oriented approach to wearables. The U.K.-based footwear company developed the In Good Company smart shoe to help consumers digitally detox. “The In Good Company shoe was the world’s most sociable shoe, that didn’t connect you to the internet—it disconnected you,” Anatomic & Co. Co-Founder Moema Pimentel said. “The idea behind it was to help people reconnect with each other by minimizing the biggest distraction in people’s lives today—mobile phones.”

Wearable technology and mindfulness influenced the development of the shoe.

Bluetooth at the bottom of the shoe’s heel connects with Anatomic & Co.’s app. On the app, users can block unwanted notifications throughout the day. The app also enables users to choose contacts that won’t be blocked. Once users save their settings, the app silences incoming notifications, calls and messages with a do-not-disturb setting. Users can also set up times where the app will not block incoming phone activity, so they can enjoy activities and handle work-related communications conveniently.

Ducere Technologies is taking wearable technology to another important part of shoes—the soles. Lechal, Ducere Technologies’ smart footwear product, is a sole insert that tracks steps, mileage, calories burned in a day and also features navigational capabilities. The insert contains a Bluetooth device, which synchronizes

with Lechal’s app and notifies wearers with real-time information. Using vibrational feedback, users are alerted about proper direction through the insert’s GPS feature.

“The technology of touch is very intuitive since the brain recognizes touch but does not need time to process a response. In effect, this becomes the quickest way to respond and as a result, the mind is left free to process and soak in a wide variety of things around you and that’s the beauty of Lechal,” Ducere Technologies CEO and Founder Krispian Lawrence said. “It lets you work out or travel without having to be worried.”

With the influx of connected shoes and consumer awareness, the future of smart footwear is uncertain.

Although many smart shoes contain advanced performance metrics and technology that syncs up with other devices, there is much more work to be done.

“For these devices to really take off, vendors are going to have to explore exactly what information consumers are looking to gain from them and ensure that the devices can collect it accurately,” Lawrence said. “Strong marketing schemes will be required to inform the public about the devices, what they can do and how they are better than a standard activity tracker.”

Tapping into consumer’s wearable desires could be the next step. Regardless if consumers want to reduce muscle tension, perfect a physical move or evaluate mindfulness, brands will have to advance their smart shoes to meet these individualized needs.

“IT WOULD NOT SURPRISE ME THAT IN FIVE YEARS WE ARE ALL WEARING SOME KIND OF DEVICE THAT IS GIVING US FEEDBACK ON WHAT IS IMPORTANT FOR US.”

”

“The breakthrough is going to be that the devices become more sophisticated. It would not surprise me that in five years we are all wearing some kind of device that is giving us feedback on what is important for us,” Powell said. “We are not nearly at that level of sophistication yet with what these devices can do, but the potential exists for that to happen.”

Velociti RE by Under Armour

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BY: ANGELA VELASQUEZ / PHOTOGRAPHY: CELENA TANG

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FUTURE OF

FASHION DESIGNERS LOOK INTO THEIR CRYSTAL BALLS

TO PREDICT FUTURE FOOTWEAR TRENDS. CAROLINE VAZZANA

F

ootwear is an unpredictable business. Just look at 2017. This year has seen the collapse of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the launch of running shoes made from algae and the return of the basic unit bottom slide as a fashion ‘It’ item. While it’s impossible to know what the future holds for footwear, it’s fun to let our imagination run wild. Vamp turned to experts in the industry to find out where they see footwear going—specifically, shoes in the year 2050—and let’s just say, it seems like it’s going to be anything but boring.

Dennis Comeau, Butter designer In the year 2050, just three years after World War IV, the survivors who are left on planet Earth are struggling for survival. In this dark dystopia, a lucky few have clothes and shoes made of rare, now extinct animal hides, which helps to keep them warm in the onset of the new Ice Age. Meanwhile, the elite colonizers of planet Xisuac, 17 light-years away from Earth, are wearing clothing and footwear made from the lightest, softest and most endurable new synthetic materials, including very plush silky shoes constructed from fusing new elements Oganesson and Nihonium with Carbon. These new materials are more durable than carbon fiber, softer than velvet, and fit the body’s natural contours, yet feel like the wearer has nothing on…the epitome of comfort.

Jordan Adoni, Modern Vice designer There’s a huge span of what we can see for the future of footwear. Technology will be a huge part of it, from 3-D printed shoes to shoes that can run apps. But there will also be a push for more sustainable shoes, made from recycled materials. At Modern Vice, we have people bring in old denim jackets and flannels which we turn into new shoes.

Matt Bernson, designer In 2050, it is my vision that people will only wear slippers made of synthetic sheep skin. All animal skins will be replicated to near perfect 3-D printed synthetics that mimic all properties of the original exactly.

With that, Amazon will have made home delivery of everything so seamless that people won’t leave their homes anymore so only house slippers will be needed.

Stella Maze, Stella Hues designer We currently live in a culture of collection.

It’s not uncommon for women to own dozens of pairs of shoes eventually leading to more fashion waste and pollution of our planet. The shoe of the future is a multidimensional machine. Every step will charge an internal battery turning kinetic energy into stored power, transforming in color, size and shape to fit the day. Technological integration into clothing is where the world is heading. The shoe of the future is that promise come to life.

Joan Oloff, designer Without a doubt, the biggest trend in footwear is moving toward customization. We want our footwear to be unique for us and don’t want to wait too long to have it. This customization will apply both to fashion as well as to function. For example, we all love to design our own unique footwear.

We prefer to choose specific materials, colors, heel heights, etc. What we also need to remember is that footwear also needs to be functional.

My passion has been to re-engineer the insole construction for heels to be more ergonomically correct. This provides a healthier solution for the ill effects of traditionally constructed heels. In order to do this, we need to create our own molds and fabricate our footwear by hand. It is a laborious process. In the future, Cad-Cam technology will improve to the point that a simple scan of the foot can provide the information necessary for manufacturing. While 3-D printing is currently being utilized for simple shoe inserts and even certain footwear, we have a while to go before it will be able to truly be utilized in the high fashion footwear world. As the technology evolves, the luxury footwear world will continue to unite with technology. I’m excited for our future.

Nicole Brundage, Marskinryyppy designer Fast-forward to a place of untethered rebelliousness and incredibly glamorous kitsch. Where shoes hold the capacity to communicate and advocate the meaningfulness of self-expression. Here, I dress my feet with a one-of-a-kind piece meant to intrigue, stop the rush and create a connection with those around me. Here, flirty and feminine are mischievously at play, in a thrilling playground of dreamy translucence, where the concept of time is only a Rolex accessory. I look down, and find that my shoes court me, enhance my self-assurance, their voice uniting with my appetite for the daring and the free.

Taryn Rose, designer By 2050 shoes will have sensors and dynamic feedback to optimize human performance whether they are running a marathon or running to the grocery store. Sensors will be able to diagnose poor alignment that can cause foot, knee, lower back pain, and the shoe itself can dynamically correct the problem by stimulating the intrinsic muscles and proprioceptive nerve endings in the foot. The shoe will be able to aid those with weaknesses and imbalance for a better and safer walking experience. The sole of the foot is rich with nerve endings that make the shoe ideal as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool. We will be able to sense many metabolic problems like dehydration and hypoglycemia. Workers will be notified when fatigue is detected even before they feel fatigue in order to keep the workplace safe and healthy.

We will also deploy GPS technology for ease of navigation and location (this technology already exists but needs better implementation). We might even be able to levitate rather than ambulate, but I don’t think we will ever give up heels which will always remain an elevation of femininity.

Heather Williams, Bernardo designer The future of footwear is promoting personal style by making products that can be customized. We are starting to apply this idea by giving our customers options to create different looks within one pattern. Our production is getting on board by working to engineer our patterns and constructions to allow for interchangeable looks, colors and details. As we move this idea forward into the future, we hope to provide our customers with the ability to build their own Bernardos.

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THE

VISIONARIES From customization and advant garde designs, to redefining the traditional trade show experience, these five visionaries are bringing the industry into new and exciting territory.

GOOD KARMA WHEN VEGANISM AND ETHICALITY COLLIDE.

A

s any dedicated yogi will tell you, living ethically is the first step on the eight-limbed path of yoga. The first moral guideline: ahimsa, loosely translated from Sanskrit to mean “do no harm.” It’s also the founding principle behind a Brazilian shoe brand of the same name, manufactured in the world’s only fully vegan footwear factory.

Former airline pilot Gabriel Silva founded Ahimsa in 2013, following a Type 1 diabetes diagnosis that forced him to quit his high-flying career and adopt a vegan lifestyle. “When I turned vegan I did not find suitable footwear options for me,” recalled Silva, whose father has worked in the footwear industry for 35 years. “I decided I could start something small that proved the concept. If it worked, I could throw myself into it full time.”

While some shoe brands are happy to slap a vegan label on products made from synthetic materials and call it a day, Ahimsa’s core values drill deeper than that. Six months after launching, the company opened the doors to its own factory to ensure that its shoes were ethically produced from concept through to final product.

“Our thought process behind this decision was that only by controlling the entire supply chain would it be possible for us to have the product we were aiming for. Quality control is much easier when everything is done in-house,” Silva explained, adding, “By employing everyone directly, we can guarantee they are all being paid fairly and working under ethical conditions.”

Production is based in Franca, a footwear hub in southern Brazil, where all Ahimsa products are crafted using animal-free, alternative materials, like uppers made from recycled cotton, recycled PET plastic bottles and vegan leather made from non-toxic polyurethane. Insoles are bio latex (a natural latex rubber) covered with natural cork, while outsoles are made from rubber, natural crepe and EVA. “Like any traditional shoe factory, most of the labor is done by hand,” Silva said, noting that his manufacturing facility currently employs 14 people. “Of course we have machines that help accelerate many processes, but in general all our products are handled by all employees.”

Indeed, the brand’s Instagram page is peppered with pictures and videos of the factory workers cutting and stitching uppers by hand, surrounded by hammers, pliers, paring knives and eyelet setters.

Inspired by traditional footwear shapes, Ahimsa’s women’s offering spans simple sandles and slip-on loafers to slim-fit work-style boots (a bestseller), while men’s styles include sneakers, wingtips, chukka boots and boat shoes.

Prices range from $80 to $150.

“Our current designs are aimed at bringing classic back, usually with a modern twist. When we started everything was much more simple, more basic looking, but after four years of learning and developing our skills as a collective group, we are now able to make more complex styles,” Silva said.

Ahimsa now has retail partners in the U.S., Canada, UK, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Uruguay, Austria and Australia as well as free worldwide shipping on all online orders. But the journey has not been without its bumps and hurdles.

“I clearly remember how hard it was to explain our demands when Ahimsa

we outsourced everything,” Silva said. “Even when we started our own factory and started hiring more employees, we had classes to explain everything that was allowed in our products. The footwear industry is heavily populated with animal byproducts, not just leather, and we had to work really hard to ensure everything was really vegan.”

Despite this, Ahimsa does not yet have any certifications under its belt, nor has it been audited by an independent party to assure its employees are paid fair wages and work in safe conditions.

The reason: Certification can be a long and expensive process, with little evidence that it may increase sales.

“As a young company, we prefer to invest in areas that are more in need,” Silva explained, adding, “We are lucky that Brazilian regulations are already very strict. Oversight is very present, so we are held to much higher standards than you would expect from similar companies based elsewhere.”

That being said, Ahimsa is PETA-approved vegan, which means it lives up to its animal-free claims. Plus, the brand participated in Brazil’s Fashion Revolution Week, posting pictures with the hashtag #imadeyourshoes to highlight its supply chain transparency. Not carrying an official certification hasn’t hurt its image either: Silva describes Ahimsa’s typical customer as “vegan or vegetarian, between 25 and 35, who thinks about how product was made, in addition to what it is made from.”

“It’s amazing to see how much the awareness towards veganism has changed in just the four years since our start,” he said. “We hope to keep adding more products to our collection and to continue our expansion to more markets globally.”

—Lyndsay McGregor

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WE’RE HERE TO HELP

Two Ten Footwear Foundation provides emergency financial support for footwear employees facing difficult times, natural disaster recovery, a family medical crisis, job loss, and more.

Call 1.800.346.3210

For a complete description of our services and criteria, please visit www.twoten.org.

HOW TWO TEN HELPED FOOTWEAR FAMILIES IN 2016

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FAMILIES RECEIVED EVICTIONS OR UTILITY SUPPORT FORCLOSURES PREVENTED 38 VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

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FAMILIES RECEIVED DISASTER RELIEF

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RARE BIRD SHOES OF PREY TURNS TRADITIONAL SHOE-MAKING INTO AN OUTLET FOR SELF EXPRESSION.

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t first impression, Shoes of Prey is a Millennial’s dream come true. The custom shoe company, co-founded by a female entrepreneur, allows women to personalize each inch of their shoes—from upper to sole—through a userfriendly website that guarantees they’ll be on their feet within two weeks of the order.

However, a closer look at the 8-year-old company reveals its traditional roots. “We’re taking an old fashion process and pushing it forward,” said Shoes of Prey Co-founder Jodie Fox. In fact, Fox herself is an old soul, a trait that became apparent when she told her Italian grandmother about her plan to build a custom shoe business. “She said, ‘Oh I get it’ and started to laugh at me when I showed her leathers because that was how shoes were traditionally made in Italy,” Fox said.

“This is not a new idea, but it has changed.”

With zero footwear experience, Fox and co-founders Michael Fox and Mike Knapp launched Shoes of Prey in 2009 in Sydney, Australia as a direct-to-consumer platform with an abbreviated selection of customizable footwear and a 10-week lead time.

Today—backed by $26 million in Shoes of Prey venture funding, including a $15.5 million cash injection from U.S.-based retailer Nordstrom—if you can dream it, Shoes of Prey can build it in two weeks out of a company-owned factory in China.

It’s a huge feat that most footwear companies can’t imagine. Even footwear giants Nike and Adidas have lead times that span 3 to 6 weeks for custom footwear with fewer customizable components.

However, by choosing to invest in innovation over retail space and by tailoring their customizable options to reflect the current trends, Shoes of Prey has become a go-to brand for all types of consumers, from bridal parties seeking custom shoes that can be worn post-wedding, to creative types that wish to put their own stamp on their footwear, to ladies who simply cannot find the right heel height or width on the traditional sales floor.

Depending on what you qualify as “fast” these days, Shoes of Prey’s business model could be described the new sustainable approach to fast fashion.

While Zara, H&M and Topshop duke it out for consumers’ disposable income, Fox pointed out that Shoes of Prey offers consumers fashion footwear worthy of the investment—not wear and toss—because it is exactly what they want. “How do you compete with Zara?

You can’t. But we’re taking it further than Zara and we do everything on demand,” Fox said. “It’s a sustainable financial model, especially for fashion, because we manufacturer exactly what consumers want.”

The Shoes of Prey website is a digital emporium of more than 170 types of leather, suede, velvet, satin, vegan leather and more. The process begins simple enough with selecting a size (narrow, wide and extra-wide fits are available, too) and a

style. Then the fun begins with a catalog of toe shapes, straps and heel types and heights to handpick, followed by material and color selection for the upper and heel, down to the sole, lining and insole trim. Retail prices start from $129.

Designing shoes on Shoes of Prey can be an eye-opening experiment for users, reveling style preferences and eliciting strong and surprising opinions about unassuming elements like trims and ornamentation on footwear. The website learns as much about their customer’s style as the customer learns about their own preferences. Fox said one of the most important lessons learned since launching Shoes of Prey was how important it is to inform consumers about fashion and trends.

“I guess the biggest surprise to anyone running a fashion company is people truly need to know what is on trend now and how to make it work for them,” she said. “We’re very excited to offer people the opportunity to design anything, but people really need a bit of inspiration. It’s important to not give people

a blank space and help narrow down that broad opportunity,” she added.

The opportunities for Shoes of Prey, and for customization in general, are wide open. Fox’s vision for the future relies heavily on 3-D printing, design hubs and capabilities that allow designs to be more improvised. “Honestly, it’s been a long journey and it will never be a finished project,” Fox said, adding “There are lot of new and exciting technologies to speed things up further.”

—Angela Velasquez

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Making Waves For Spring 2018

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NAKED AMBITION UNITED NUDE TAKES INSPIRATION FROM ARCHITECTURE AND INDUSTRIAL DESIGN TO REINVENT FOOTWEAR.

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t often takes an outsider to disrupt an industry. And Rem D. Koolhaas, founder and creative director of United Nude, has disruption in his blood. His uncle and namesake is a Pritzker Prize-winning Dutch architect, known for shaking up established conventions, who worked as a journalist before turning his attention to buildings. So it’s no surprise to learn that the younger Koolhaas studied architecture before a broken heart shifted his focus toward footwear.

The first shoe he designed, the Möbius, was made from a single strip of carbon fiber that united the upper, outsole, footbed and heel into one infinite piece. Inspired by Bauhaus legend Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s iconic Barcelona chair, the Möbius was such a departure from the norm that Koolhaas was persuaded (by none other than Miuccia Prada and Sergio Rossi) to start his own brand. After linking up with Galahad Clark (of the shoe-making dynasty), United Nude launched in 2003.

“Coming from an architectural background has given me the freedom to design whatever I want because some of our shoes would never have been designed by a normal footwear designer,” Koolhaas said. “For me, each single pair of United Nude shoes is a reinterpretation of an architectural object or represents an exploration of different materials and colors. For each design I always start from a very clear and basic concept that is either a play on space or on gravity, which can be defined as an architectural approach.”

Today the brand is sold in 40 countries around the world, has 10 flagship stores and sells more then 200,000 pairs of shoes a year. It’s also known for producing out-there designs (some made entirely with a 3-D printer) and collaborating with boundary-pushing people like Iris van Herpen and Zaha Hadid. Not bad for an outsider.

“We launched the first shoe without me having any training in footwear—and I still don’t have any school training—but I got into shoes through practice. Now we make many shoes, but that’s always been the challenge, coming in as an outsider,” Koolhaas shared. “At the same time, it’s that outside experience that has helped me design some of the innovative shoes I create. We broke the rules not because we wanted to break them but because we did not know them.”

It’s fitting, then, that United Nude is no stranger to using 3-D printers. In 2014 the brand released a 3-D-printed shoe called Float (printed in three parts that clicked together to form the final product), made on-site at its New York City flagship store using 3D Systems’ compact consumer printer Cube.

The following year the two companies teamed up again for a project titled “Re-Inventing Shoes” that saw five of the world’s leading architects and designers create limited runs of 3-D printed shoes from hard nylon and soft rubber.

“We just like to experiment with all sorts of technologies, including 3-D printing. It allows you to create amazing new things, but for now just for our limited-edition projects and collaborations as it’s still too costly for mass production,” Koolhaas said.

United Nude’s extreme creations range from hoof-like to heel-less to 12-inch stilettos covered in tiny gold men. But wacky designs will only take you so far and building a successful brand requires a balance between creativity and commercial awareness.

“With some of our more exclusive shoes we only sell a couple of hundred pairs, but with others we sell 100,000 United Nude pairs,” Koolhaas revealed,

adding, “At United Nude we want to create something that is commercial and wearable but also keep on developing the more out-there designs.”

That being said, United Nude sees itself as more of a lifestyle than a fashion brand and its customers are just as interested in technology and industrial design as they are in wearing conceptual footwear.

“I like having new versions of a good design. The fact that the new iPhone works the same as the previous one is attractive because you don’t have to relearn it,” Koolhaas said, noting his aversion to the ever-increasing speed of today’s fashion cycle.

“We like to create different shapes and sculptures of products that are less designed or we develop something that we did before with the same shapes or materials because not everyone wants extreme products.”

Proportion, he said, is paramount to good design.

That’s why United Nude’s creations will always be guided by clarity, elegance and innovation—the same principles the Möbius was built on.

“It’s perhaps my most iconic design and it was the first shoe made from a single strip of carbon fiber,” Koolhaas said. “But besides that, it is also the shoe that made me change my profession, started my career, made me change where I lived. In other words, this was not just a shoe that I made—it was also the shoe that made me.” —L.M.

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OUT OF THE BOX THE OUTPOST TEARS DOWN CONVENTION CENTER WALLS TO REDEFINE WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A TRADE EVENT.

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rade shows traditionally connect buyers and sellers, but not all businesses need that, according to Jeff Wolf, co-founder of The Outpost, a new communityoriented trade event designed to foster real relationships with key buyers, distributors and influencers.

The simple way to describe The Outpost is a weekend of food, performances and activities for buyers, media, brand reps and influencers to meet like-minded people from various industries. However, the two-day outdoor industry event, founded by Wolfe and Caleb Morairty in 2016, quickly manifests into an adventure chock-full of organic opportunities for brands to introduce their products. Attendees stay in tents provided by a tent company, dine el fresco and sip drinks provided by a liquor company and sign up for a roster of brand-sponsored activities, from kayaking and yoga, to mixology and castiron cooking.

By combining the nostalgia of summer camp with a festival-like atmosphere— complete with live bands and DJs—Wolfe, who previous worked for an experimental marketing agency and Morairty, who worked for Capitol Records, aim to shed the bad connotations associated with trade events. “The general consensus is that trade shows are god awful experiences that suck the life out of everyone that is participating in one,” Wolf said. “Long days, no meaningful culture and it doesn’t seem like a proper way of doing business. So, we refer to ourselves as the anti-tradeshow.”

The concept for The Outpost came to fruition after Wolfe’s friend, who managed marketing for a mid-size business, felt overwhelmed organizing photo shoots, trade shows and product seeding with limited time and budget. “We talked about how it would be nice if there was a community-oriented platform to capture these things in one swoop,” Wolfe recalled, adding, “Brands need different tools and need a place to tell their story and articulate their culture, which is really what The Outpost is doing. It’s about creating a platform for brands to show what they stand for. Less about product, more about culture.”

Furthermore, The Outpost is positioned to capture products being used in the field, providing brands with invaluable content, including shareable videos and photographs to woo experience-obsessed Millennial consumers. “Today’s consumer is so aware, there’s nothing you can hide. They are connected to brands through social media, so you need to be constantly articulating what you stand for,” Wolfe said.

The Outpost held its first trade event in October 2016 in Bodega Bay, Cali.

“Our first Outpost was very much a proof of concept event,” Wolfe said. “People were surfing for the first time, doing yoga on a mountain… at the end of that weekend we were sitting there like, ‘What did we just do? We just stared another business.’” That event was followed by a second regional event in Joshua Tree, Calif. and a third this June in New York’s Catskills.

Brands can get involved on many levels. “Some will come for a networking experience; other brands will come to us and ask for something impactful to premier a new campaign or launch a new product, to create an experience in our own eco system,” Wolfe said.

“We know our audience and what will resonate. Brands can turn to us. We go back and forth on ideas to see how we The Outpost in New York can activate.”

Teva was an early adopter of The Outpost. Wolfe calls the Deckers-owned brand, which has invested in similar consumer-oriented activations at music festivals, the “fun guy” in the room. In Joshua Tree, Teva sponsored a botanist-led hike through the desert that ended at a surprise pop-up bar with a celebrity mixologist. The hikers—dressed in Teva footwear—were taught how to make craft cocktails with the plant life they collected along the way.

“We photographed that whole experience and had a cinematographer on hand,” Wolfe said. “Teva walked away with a cool experience and media of their new products being worn in the right environment.”

In September, the footwear brand will promote the launch of a new hiking boot at The Outpost’s event at Camp Navarro outside of San Francisco.

While regional events will stay intimate and inviteonly (approximately 200 people), Camp Navarro is being billed as The Outpost’s flagship event. The event will host 100 brands and unique activations and 500 to 700 attendees, including general admission tickets, which Wolfe said are likely being purchased by fellow industry folk passionate about brands and marketing.

Up next, The Outpost team plans to build up the media side of its business. “I think something special happens outside of four walls and so much of our project is providing brands with the right tools to amplify their story,” Wolfe said. “We are creating so much content, we need to create a destination for it.”

—A.V.

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LUXURY FOR LESS IDONI’S DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER MODEL MEANS ITALIANMADE QUALITY WITHOUT THE RETAIL MARK-UP.

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ike most big ideas, Idoni was born out of frustration. In this case, founder Amanda Carye’s exasperation at not being able to find cute, comfortable shoes that could take her through her commute and work day without having to change.

“I worked at Sotheby’s in New York City for years and I was walking about two miles each day to and from work in sneakers and switching into more stylish shoes at the office,” Carye remembered, adding, “I would spend an inordinate amount of time searching Zappos for something I could wear all day that wasn’t a sneaker or a bulky orthopoedic shoe.”

But it wasn’t until she went to business school and spent a term in Milan, Italy, where she stumbled across a classic slip-on shoe called the furlane that a lightbulb went off. The soft slippers—traditionally worn by Venetian gondoliers and with soles made from old bicycle tires—could easily be upgraded to suit a modern woman’s lifestyle.

“I started doing these thought experiments, looking at this shoe and thinking about adding an inner sole, adding in a wedge so your foot isn’t completely flat…That spiralled into me starting a shoe company,” she said.

Idoni launched online last October, selling Italian-made shoes directly to consumers for prices between $135 and $175—a fraction of the price of traditional luxury brands. (For comparison’s sake, London label Le Monde Beryl sells its take on Venetian slippers for upwards of $395.) The brand’s name, Idoni, comes from the Latin “idoneus,” which means fitting or suitable, nodding to Carye’s belief that comfort and style are not mutually exclusive.

Made in a small factory in the northeast of Italy, just outside Venice, the flats feature a slightly pointed toe, a slight wedge, an outsole with tyreinspired traction and a cushioned insole. Uppers come in silk, suede, metallic and velvet.

Finding a factory in the first place, however, proved to be as frustrating as finding that elusive comfy shoe. Though ACRIB (the Shoe Association of the Riviera del Brenta) offers a handy online business directory that allows brands to search for a “Made in Italy” manufacturer and filter their results by specialty, Carye’s cold calls and emails were mostly met with silence.

“A handful said yes but when I met with them all their questions revolved around ‘What’s a startup?’ or ‘What do you mean online-only?’ We spent a lot of time googling brands that were direct-to-consumer and selling on their own websites,” she laughed.

After a lot of back and forth, Carye made it to the prototype stage with two factories and chose to partner with the one that made a shoe that most closely represented what she had in mind.

“I do not know how a shoe is made—I understand the construction now better than I did before—but they understood the essence and idea of the shoe I wanted to make,” she said, adding with a laugh, “I’m waiting for a roadblock to come because it hasn’t come so far.”

Admittedly, Carye’s decision to skip the department store and sell directly to consumers via her own website was a bold one, given her lack of experience in the footwear space, but so far her approach is working.

“We only ship to the U.S. right now, but we have had people express interest from other countries and some very creative online shoppers who used third-party shippers to ship from the U.S. to their countries,” she said, pointing out that people will go to great lengths to get Italian-made, quality goods at a reasonable price.

As Idoni’s website explains, there is no middleman and no distribution system. Once the shoes leave the manufacturer, they are transported to a warehouse and that’s where they stay until being shipped to the customer.

“We’ve tried to minimize passing on any unnecessary costs to the shopper

Idoni so our retail prices are much closer to a traditional wholesale price than they would be in a store,” Carye said, noting that sales have been “really good,” with return customers picking up the style in different colors or buying a pair for their mother or daughter.

Another advantage of the direct-to-consumer model: access to realtime feedback. “In a way the big-box stores like Target or any of the big merchandisers, even though it’s an in-person exchange, it’s not a personalized interaction. You, as the customer, are not having a conversation with someone who’s going to listen to what you’re saying,” Carye said. “For me, working online, I’ll even take on doing our email support and it’s a personal interaction—granted, it’s over email—but we’re striving to create something new and the only way to do that is through user feedback.”

She’s also thought about adding men’s and children’s sizes to the Idoni lineup at some point in the future but for now she’s focused on making furlane-inspired flats just for women.

As she put it, “From a personal standpoint as well as having talked to so many customers about that pain point of searching for comfortable, stylish everyday shoes, our plan is to home in and make the shoes the best they possibly can be. After all, there’s enough comfortable shoes out there for men.” —L.M.

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s i s a O SIT POOLSIDE THIS SPRING WITH PRETTY PASTELS AND SWANKY SILHOUETTES. BY: ANGELA VELASQUEZ PHOTOGRAPHY: CELENA TANG

Seychelles mule

Coolway espadrille slides

Restricted slide

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Musse & Cloud slide

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Paul Mayer ballet flats

All Black penny loafer

Bernardo cut-out sneaker

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GETTING TO KNOW GEN Z GEN Z PRESENTS A WHOLE NEW WORLD OF OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FOR RETAIL. EMILY GOLDMAN

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ith each new generation comes an onslaught of commentary on why the newbies are lazier, more tech-obsessed and ego-centric than the previous. Even though the oldest Millennials turn 36-years-old this year, analysts and journalists are still dissecting the Millennial employee, the Millennial parent and the Millennial consumer. However, an even larger generation, Gen Z, is on the heels of Millennials, introducing a host of new quirks and buying habits for brands and retailers to woo and accommodate.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that Gen Z, or 6-to-21-year-olds born between 1996 and 2010, make up 25 percent of the U.S. population, more than any other living generation. The global Gen Z population is set to reach 2.6 billion by 2020.

Gen Z, also known as the Zeds, Bubble Wrap Kids and the New Millennials, has never “dialed up” to go online or used a hand-held map to navigate. They likely never rented a VHS from Blockbuster or spoke over a pay phone. More importantly to retail, Gen Z was born into a new frugal consumer mindset that took shape in the aftermath of the Great Recession, where experiences and connections—inperson and digitally—are more valuable than buying stuff.

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The nice generation

On the go

Raised by Gen X and Millennial parents, which were arguably the most affected by the low Gen Z consumers have abandoned traditional desktop wages and job loss as the result of the 2007 recession, Gen Z is naturally conservative with computers in favor of smartphones. Data from shopper insight their spending. “It’s a kind of behavior that you’re raised with and sticks with you, unless they experts, Shoppercentric, reveals that 96 percent of Gen Z become very wealthy,” said Nancy Nessel, a Gen Z marketing consultant. own a smartphone. The surge of smartphone ownership With this in mind, Gen Z is sensitive about who can and cannot afford something within is reflected in e-commerce sales. The U.S. Census Bureau their friend group. Therefore, they prefer to buy items later with their parents in an effort to reported that e-commerce sales increased 4.1% to $105.7 avoid making purchases in front of friends, according to HRC Retail Advisory President Farla billion in the first quarter of 2017.

“It’s no surprise that we continue to see mobile use on the Efros. On average, Gen Z’s online checkout cart for footwear is $74.10, or 12.2% less than older generations’ checkout carts, according to analytics company Content Square. rise. We believe our younger consumers, particularly Gen Z, Gen Z’s frugalness doesn’t bode well for retail and it places pressure on brands and are influencing this trend,” said Keds President Gillian Meek. retailers to stand out by tapping into their interests and by sharing a positive message. “Gen “Gen Z has been raised in the era of smartphones and they Z is even more socially conscious than Millennials. They are all-inclusive and they really don’t are used to having the world at their fingertips.”

Social media is a contributor to Gen Z’s preference for have any boundaries—their theme is no boundaries,” Nessel added.

There’s little doubt that the generation’s philanthropic interests influence their purchases. mobile and represents an opportunity for brands to draw in New York City-based marketing firm Inflexion Interactive said Gen Z is more likely to award a younger clientele. Keds uses social media to drive Gen Z brands with loyalty if the company is “transparent and shows it cares as much about their consumers to its e-commerce website. The brand features a passions and issues as they do.” A study by cloud-based customer intelligence platform, scrolling photo feed on its site with images of real consumers Vision Critical, found that 70 percent of Gen Z said it is important for products to align with wearing the brand. Meanwhile, each image links to the shoe’s their beliefs. Meanwhile, NRF data shows that 45 percent of Gen Zers agrees that they e-commerce page.

As social platforms integrate shopping through organic choose brands that are eco-friendly and socially responsible.

“This generation wants you to realize that cause-marketing has become so prolific that and paid features like Instagram product tags and Facebook they just assume that when they buy anything, it’s associated with moving the needle on Collection ads, Meek says consumers are being trained something,” said David Stillman, author of Gen Z @ Work. to interact with shopping cues. “As leaders in content Stillman urges brands to make a conscientious effort to build goodness into their brand. consumption, it is no surprise that Gen Z is contributing to this “Just doing ‘something’ doesn’t wow them anymore,” he said. A donation or temporary initiatives no longer cuts it. After all, Gen Z can sniff out a half-hearted marketing gimmick faster than anyone. Gen Z were some of “[CONSUMERS] KNOW WHEN THEY BUY A PAIR OF SHOES THEY the most vocal critics in the 2017 Pepsi advertisement fiasco featuring ARE REALLY HELPING TO EMPLOY A WOMAN IN KENYA, THAT Kendall Jenner—a celebrity Gen Z follows closely across social media.

Stillman praised Minnetonka for developing an authentic give-back RESONATES WITH THEM.” program. The footwear brand launched Mocs with Meaning in 2015, a collection of footwear made in partnership with Me to We, a foundation dedicated to teaching women in Kenya hand beading techniques. trend in a big way and driving purchase conversion through Minnetonka works with the foundation to help local economies by employing women to hand social media,” she said. bead shoes. “[Consumers] know when they buy a pair of shoes they are really helping to Gen Z thrives on content, but a brand’s messages need employ a woman in Kenya. That resonates with them,” Stillman said. to be short and direct to be effective. A Content Square study revealed that if a brand can’t reach Generation Z in less than New traditionalist five seconds, it can’t reach them at all, while a HRC Retail Online shopping continues to increase. According to a 2015 study conducted by Pew Advisory study showed that Gen Z’s attention span is a measly Research Center, roughly 1 in 10 Americans are online shoppers, with 15 percent buying seven seconds. online on a weekly basis. However, NRF says 98 percent of Gen Z shop in-store, with 67 More than half of Keds’ social media audience is Gen Z. percent of Gen Z shoppers saying they do most of the spending in traditional channels.

To retain their attention, Meeks says the company is focused “Gen Z typically still prefer the brick-and-mortar experience versus shopping online on creating micro content which is optimized for Gen Z’s short because they value the personal search for products,” said Hallie Spradlin, Fashion Snoops attention span. “Content such as GIFs are easily digestible accessories editor. “They like for their shopping experiences to be an event that they can share with friends, and tend to shop at fast fashion stores like H&M and Urban Outfitters that but still have the ability to story tell,” she said. have wide product offerings that feel new and on trend.”

Having it all Despite their fondness for fast fashion, the generation also values quality. According to Gen Z knows what they want, and now it’s up to retailers to NRF, 52 percent of Gen Z consumers will transfer loyalty from one brand to another if the rise to the occasion. “They’re curators,” Nessel said, adding, brand’s quality is not up to par. “Gen Z is smart, and pays attention to detail,” said Sari that Gen Z won’t settle for anything less than quality product Ratsula, BC Footwear president. from a brand that shares their values, from a retailer that BC Footwear keys into the Gen Z market with their Halo collection that retails for $70creates unique experience. $80. “We put a lot of effort into each one of our shoes. [Each] has something that makes From their conservative spending to proclivity for faceit special, from an extra layer of padding, or making sure it’s just the right shade of color,” to-face communication, Gen Z sets retailers up for a long, Ratsula said. tenuous relationship that can be sweet if brands make sure to Gen Z’s fondness for shopping in traditional stores will likely change as more of the hit all the generation’s qualifications. population gain access to credit cards. And while the generation might prefer showing face at When asked how retailers and brands can attract Gen retail stores, Gen Z remains one of the most technologically immersed generations. The NRF Z, Nessel said “by representing all the values that Gen Z found that 74 percent of Gen Zers spend their free time online, with 25 percent online five embraces like having no boundaries, being all inclusive.” She hours or more each day. added, “I think brands and stores are going to have to deliver According to Efros, wifi remains a factor in drawing Gen Z to malls and stores. The though, and that’s going to be a challenge.” generation craves social approval, and oftentimes asks friends and followers alike to give them the green light prior to purchasing an item. According to an HRC Retail Advisory study, more than 90 percent of Gen Z surveyed emphasized the importance of a strong wifi signal during a shopping experience.

“I think this is a generation that lives in a digital world. This is a generation where the lines between physical and digital have been eliminated. [Gen Z] likes experiences that incorporate both,” Stillman said, adding, “Logging onto your store or walking into your store should feel the same.”

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FOOTWEAR FOOTWEAR INDUSTRY LEADER LESLIE GALLIN SHARES TIPS ON NAVIGATING FOOTWEAR IN 2017 AND BEYOND.

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ant to learn how to succeed at tradeshows and establish your store or brand in the ever-evolving footwear industry? We asked fashion industry maven and President of Footwear for UBM Fashion, Leslie Gallin, for her top tips for building a footwear empire in 2017. Read her eye-opening advice below.

As a fashion and footwear industry veteran of many years, how do you see business changing in the industry and at the tradeshow?

Gallin: Years ago, when we started a brand, we all looked immediately to go to the trade market, not really concentrating on who the end user (the customer) would be. Today, it is about identifying who your end user is and knowing how they live, what they like and how they shop.

Then you need to have brick-and-mortar outlets covered, an online presence for transactional sales and information and a social media presence.

While this all sounds daunting, what we have learned is the tradeshow is more important than ever to establish those in-person relationships, build accounts and educate yourself on the most up to date things happening in the industry.

Why is NOW the time to be at a footwear tradeshow?

Gallin: The tradeshow is the best possible environment to learn, meet customers and glean insight on how to build a stronger business in today’s highly technical world. The old view was that the trade event was mainly transactional.

Today, it is about networking, relationship building, product and brand awareness and education. One needs to be in the room with footwear retail, trade, and charity organizations—and the tradeshow is the best place to connect with every part of the industry.

What do brands (both emerging and established) need to know to be successful on the show floor?

Gallin: Do your homework. Before the show, identify the retailers you want to sell to. Realistically speaking, if you’re a brand launching you should not start out looking for the major department stores. You need to build your brand with independent retailers. They will be your best

showcase and brand ambassadors. Be able to tell the story of your brand.

Also, get on ShopTheFloor, our secure digital platform for approved buyers only. It’s is a virtual showroom offered for free to all exhibitors at our events. And most importantly, make sure you have financing, back end business support and do not make shoes and ship without deposits.

How is technology and social media impacting the future of footwear?

Gallin: Change is always uncomfortable, but the beauty of technology today is everyone can play. It’s a building process. Think of it this way, it’s your canvas to tell your brand story. It’s an amazing way to educate the end consumer and let retailers know what your brand is about.

Yes, it takes time and you will need to have an overarching strategy but you can hire a young college person to take on daily posting. Your main goal should be to drive the consumer to your retailers to experience your brand live, and then to your website to learn and see more.

If you could give the footwear community one piece of advice what would it be?

Gallin: You must be active in the industry. Being in the room will help you build credibility, connections and opportunities for your businesses. I guarantee you will walk away with a nugget or two which will help you run your business better. I cannot stress how important it is today to be present at shows and industry meetings.

What can buyers and brands expect at your next show?

Gallin: We are all about the experience for our upcoming shows. We want to stimulate and offer new ideas for both sides of the aisle. Also, now is the perfect time for retailers to discover the best new and up-and-coming brands at our shows because all our brands have been vetted. I encourage retailers to attend and buy beautiful product for your stores. Your customer will respond at the cash register.

For more information on UBM FASHION’s footwear shows, visit: ubmfashion.com.

VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

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Look the

WOMEN

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nfluences from high fashion, fast fashion and athletics combine, offering buyers a colorful and invigorating blend of Spring ’18 footwear trends. Vamp has scoured collections, pinpointing the must-have looks for men, women and children for the new season. Here’s your Spring ’18 shopping checklist.

—Angela Velasquez

KIDS

Color block Fruit prints Denim Gingham Safari motifs Jelly shoes Hot pink Woven uppers Tassels Yellow Retro daisy motifs Footbed sandals Tropical colors Rainbow stripes Sneaker/chukka hybrids Crochet uppers Mesh uppers 58

VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2017

MEN

Translucent soles Slides Jute soles Loafers Knit uppers and sock-like vconstructions Brush effects Active sandals Paracord and drawstring laces Black and white leather sneakers Boots and sneakers with ankle straps Linen and canvas Raw leather details Retro runner silhouettes Braided and woven details Fuss-free leather sandals Velcro straps

Yellow Lavender Oversized bows Layers of ruffles Satin Ankle details Feathers Kitten heels Corset-inspired lacing Iridescent materials Heavy ornamentation Palm frond prints Black and white leather sneakers Unit bottom sandals Translucent uppers Embroidery and needlepoint Unique takes on denim: brighter blues, frayed, bleached, patchwork Pearl embellishments Grommets (silver and color) Traditional loafers Red patent uppers Mules Shower slides Ombre effects Chocked-up vamps Platform heels Slip-on sneakers

Š2017 Vionic Group LLC

discover

the vionic secret. what is the secret? find out at an upcoming show or ask your sales rep.

fn platform - aug 14-16 atlanta shoe market, booth 1637 - aug 19-21 Learn more at VionicShoes.com/retailers