Footwear Plus | The Source for Retailers | 2009 • December

THE SOURCE FOR RETAILERS • DECEMBER 2009 $10.00

GOTHIC GIRL

THE DARK SIDE OF SPRING

ROCKPORT GOES BACK TO ITS Retail ROOTS THE 2009 Style HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES FLORIDA BOUTIQUE SPANS Four GENERATIONS

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Caroline Diaco Publisher Greg Dutter Editorial Director Nancy Campbell Creative Director

8 A Year to Forget?

Lessons from the past 12 months have helped retailers and vendors get their operations in line for 2010.

By Leslie Shiers

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Q&A: Rockport Senior vice president David Kahan shares his team’s mission to get back to ‘best in class’ status for independent retailers. By Greg Dutter

Southern Hospitality Kemp’s Shoe Salon & Boutique in Florida treats customers like family, the way the original founder intended.

By Melissa Knific

CREATIVE Trevett McCandliss Art Director CONTRIBUTORS Dorothy Hong Photojournalist Bahar Shahpar Stylist Jamie Wetherbe West Coast Editor Kathy Passero Editor at Large Paola Polidori European Editor ADVERTISING Jennifer Craig Advertising Director Rita O’Brien Account Executive Erwin Pearl Special Accounts Laurie Guptill Production Manager

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4 Editor’s Note

Dream

6 Op-Ped 22 Trend Spotting

Moody shapes and details give Spring ’10 designer collections a dark yet ethereal edge.

30 Shoe Salon 32 Trend Spotting 33 This Just In 34 Kids 36 Green 38 Street 40 Made You Look

18 Camilla Skovgaard and Jean-Michel Cazabat.

EDITORIAL Leslie Shiers Managing Editor Melissa Knific Features Editor Angela Velasquez Editorial Assistant Del-Ann Henry Editorial Intern

On the cover: Giuseppe Zanotti boot with chain detail. Jacket and trousers by Moschino Cheap & Chic.

Photography by Aneta Bartos.

The 2009 Style Hall of Fame Footwear Plus adds Birkenstock, Reebok, Frye and Stride Rite shoes to our roster of undying consumer favorites.

ADMINISTRATION Alexandra Marinacci Operations Manager Theodore Hoffman Special Projects Director Melanie Prescott Circulation Manager Sanford Kearns Webmaster CONTACT INFO Sales/Editorial Offices 8 West 38th Street, Suite 201 New York, NY 10018 Tel: (646) 278-1550 Fax: (646) 278-1553 nyeditorial@ symphonypublishing.com Circulation Office 21 Highland Circle Needham, MA 02494 Tel: (800) 964-5150 Fax: (781) 453-9389 circulation@ symphonypublishing.com CORPORATE Symphony Publishing NY Corporate Headquarters 26202 Detroit Road, #300 Westlake, OH 44145 Tel: (440) 871-1300 Xen Zapis, Chairman Lee Zapis, President Rich Bongorno, CFO Sid Davis, Group Publisher

FOOTWEAR PLUS ™ (ISSN#1054-898X) The fashion magazine of the footwear industry is published monthly (except for bimonthly April/May and October/November editions) by Symphony Publishing NY, LLC, 8 West 38th Street, Suite 201, New York, NY, 10018-0150. The publishers of this magazine do not accept responsibility for statements made by their advertisers in business competition. Periodicals postage is paid in New York, NY, and additional mailing offices. Ride-along mail enclosed.

Subscription price for one year: $48.00 in the U.S. Rates oustide the U.S. are available upon request. Single copy price: $10.00. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to FOOTWEAR PLUS, P.O. Box 8548, Lowell, MA 01853-8548. Publisher not responsible for unsolicited articles or photos. Any photographs, artwork, manuscripts, editorial samples or merchandise sent for editorial consideration are sent at the sole risk of the sender. Symphony Publishing NY, LLC, will assume no responsibility for loss or damage. No portion of this issue may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. ©2009 by Symphony Publishing NY, LLC. Printed in the United States.

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editor’s note fading fears 7

Still Scared?

It’s safe to say that 2009 will go down in history as one frightening year. We have shuddered amid a worldwide financial meltdown, two long-running wars, 10-plus percent unemployment, swine flu and the untimely death of Michael Jackson, to cite a few fear factors.

Having nearly made it to the end of the calendar year, I got to wondering whether 2009 will seem as scary this time next year, 10 years down the road or a generation from now. It’s the fear of the unknown that is most frightening to us. Now that we have lived through the banking fallout, would it be so jarring should another well-established financial institution go belly up? Would neighbors’ foreclosures and bankruptcies be so shocking? Would your teeth chatter at news of the Dow dropping more than 200 points in one day? (Conversely, would you let your guard down if stocks spiked by triple digits in a day?) Would you be as startled to discover that the self-professed “smartest guys in the room” turned out to be despicable crooks, not to mention people who shamelessly manipulated the

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system to obtain H1N1 vaccines before the general public? Probably not.

All these fears have been realized, resulting in consumer spending paralysis. Americans, by and large, have been scared shop-less in 2009. But they say time heals all wounds, and as we slowly crawl out of this financial abyss perhaps that’s just what we need: time to regroup and distance ourselves from the shocking events of this past year.

In these scary times, my family and I sometimes escape by watching classic movies. The most recent was, ironically, Universal Pictures’ Classic Horror Collection, which includes the films “Frankenstein,” “The Mummy,” “The Wolf Man” and “Dracula.” When people first laid eyes on these monsters, they were terrified. But as a kid reared on 1980s slasher films, I was none too scared by the bloodless epics. Even my 7-year-old daughter got through them all without a nightmare. More importantly, they reminded me that most of the time, things are not nearly as scary in retrospect. Frankenstein’s got nothing on Bernie Madoff.

I can only hope our fear of the financial terrors of 2009 subside some day soon. The running time on this horror flick has been long enough. While it’s still very scary out there, major retailers’ third-quarter sales figures are improved and there’s a brighter outlook going into 2010. If nothing else, I’m not even a fraction as petrified as I was this time last year.

Greg Dutter, Editorial Director

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Op Ped

3 f o r m o re o f f - t he- c u f f c o ve rage , vi s i t : f o o t w ea rp lu s m a g a z i n e . c o m/b l o g

A Toast to Brand Strength

Kids: Take a Hike IF ONLY AN outdoor footwear company could grow trees with electrical outlets. Despite the market’s push to make the Great Outdoors (ahem) great to kids, the Outdoor Industry Association cites a 6-percent drop in participation among ages 6 to 17 in its 2009 Outdoor Recreation Participation Topline Report. While not as dramatic as last year’s 10-percent drop, the decline acts as a reality check for outdoor brands. “The outdoor community has not done enough to make ‘wow’ factors that appeal to the Millennials and Generation Y,” explains Joel Heath, marketing director for Teva, a division of Deckers Outdoor in Goleta, CA. According to the report, the leading obstacle is youths’ ambivalence to the outdoors. Heath says kids and teens are interested in the outdoors, but only if they can stay “plugged in.” Today’s generation does not want to feel separated from friends and news.

Accessibility is another factor, as 20 percent of 6- to 12-year-olds say their parents don’t facilitate these activities. Instead, kids turn to action sports, which are widely available in and out of schools and require less parental effort. Heath hopes more cities pick up where urban outdoor recreation areas—like Boulder’s mountain bike trails and Seattle’s hiking trails—left off. “It’d be great to see a climbing wall or more bike trails in Central Park,” he suggests.

The report did, however, show pockets of opportunity. As participation in bicycling and running on paved surfaces decreased or leveled, their mountain and trail counterparts saw a spike. In fact, participation in core outdoor activities like backpacking, mountain biking and trail running showed double-digit jumps.

Jacqueline Lenox, brand manager for Alemeda, CA-based Ahnu, says new trends like the barefoot movement may have helped propel awareness in these categories. As a result, she notes we’ll see more trail running and backpacking shoes in Ahnu’s future lines.

Even though participation is growing in these areas and shoe companies tend to strike where it’s hot, Heath says trail running, for example, is still a small segment. He thinks it’s wiser for brands to focus on specific activities that highlight the overall outdoor lifestyle, like Teva’s Mountain Games. Perhaps the industry’s snobbery is at fault. “We need to stop marketing to ourselves,” Heath says. “It doesn’t have to be an old white man sport, and if outdoor brands want to have a future they have to allow a new generation to add their own personality to the sports.” —Angela Velasquez

IN CASE YOU missed the ads or didn’t get the chance to swing by its historic St. James’s Gate Brewery in Dublin this year, Guinness celebrated its 250th anniversary in 2009. While such an incredible milestone is most worthy of celebration (250 years!), what is particularly remarkable from a branding perspective is that its stewards have remained steadfast to the storied stout’s ingredients, kept its brand image equally pure and never turned their backs on its rich Irish heritage.

To put it bluntly, Guinness has never “put a lime” in its beer. Nor has it resorted to other watered-down “Lite,” “Dry” or “Ice” versions. Hell, it took the company well over two centuries just to distribute its beverage in bottles and cans, but in doing so it never backed off from its original position: Guinness is best savored fresh from a tap. That’s not because it tastes different (blind taste tests have proven there is no discernable difference); rather, it’s the undetectable ingredient when people commune over a pint of Guinness in pubs, snugs, bars and watering holes around the globe. Along these lines, Guinness recently released a “pub finder” app compatible with iPhones—just another effort to keeping its good buzz going.

Whether you like dark beer or not, if you earn a living in a brand-building field, then you surely must raise a glass to Guinness’ extraordinary positioning. More importantly, Guinness’ key branding tenets can go down just as smooth with regard to footwear. For starters, a consistent image is key. A pint glass filled with dark brown stout topped by a foamy head requires no other brand identification; it is synonymous with Guinness. And while the fashion industry is all about change, having one iconic style or logo can anchor a brand’s image in consumers’ minds—a task that becomes increasingly difficult in a marketing overloaded society. But aside from Timberland’s wheat boot, the classic Ugg sheepskin boot and Converse’s All-Star sneaker, few brands have such universal product-to-brand associations. Of course, Nike’s swoosh and perhaps its Air Jordan “Jumpman” logo need no further explanation. But after that, the shoe business gets pretty muddy, imagewise. We’ve even done it to ourselves, having grouped the business into generic “brown shoe” and “white athletic” groupings.

Here’s another noteworthy Guinness brand tenet: Stick with what brought you to the dance.

Rather than go the way of many packaged good companies that dilute their original brand offering with similar spinoffs, Guinness has stuck to stout—period. Of course, when Guinness is selling more than 10 million glasses every single day worldwide, there’s little need to chase a slice of lime-flavored market share.

The same effective go-with-what-you-know-best strategy could be said of Macy’s “My Macy’s” program, which tailors merchandise on a by-store basis. The 100-year-old retailer built its reputation as a curator of taste, and the decision to go back to its roots and let buyers on a regional basis determine the wants and needs of their unique consumers seems smart. Macy’s CEO Terry Lundgren has reported positive results thus far. Seven of Macy’s top 10 districts (in terms of third-quarter same-store sales) were original My Macy’s pilot districts, and the chain is now rolling out the localization efforts nationwide. In addition, Macy’s recently introduced exclusive collections by Tommy Hilfiger and Martha Stewart, thus joining the ranks of JCPenney and Kohl’s, which are each trying to differentiate their merchandise from the competition. I’ll drink to that. —Greg Dutter

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Style: Kimondo. mbt.com Š2009 Masai USA Corp

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SPECIAL REPORT

A Year to Forget?

ILLUSTRATION BY SOPHIA CARDINALE

The industry takes stock of an undeniably tough ’09.

By Leslie Shiers “TRYING” IS THE word that Bob Campbell, CEO of BBC International, lands on when trying to sum up the past 12 months in the footwear business. Rialto president Matt Dragos proposes “inconsistent” or “unpredictable.” The difficulty didn’t come as a shocker to anyone not living in a cave in the fall of ’08, when the effects of the banking and housing market’s collapse collided with election uncertainty, with the resulting economic ripple sparking pronounced consumer anxiety. But as Jan. 1 approaches and a consternating year rolls to an end, many are stopping to reassess the takeaways from 2009 while looking ahead to the future.

“When you’re talking retail, every day, every year could be better,” says Gary Weiner, president of Saxon Shoes in Richmond, VA. “This was a year where the best retailers did OK if they were lucky, and anybody who wasn’t good—anybody who wasn’t on their toes—just got hammered or disappeared.”

“It’s [been] a funny year,” SportsOneSource analyst Matt Powell notes. “It started off really strong—much better than anticipated. And then it quickly died.” By March, consumers had battened down the latches of their wallets, fearing job losses, salary cuts, tanking stocks and other cataclysmic effects, and sell-throughs hit the skids. As the National Retail Federation of Washington, D.C., rattled off month after month of reports confirming “dipping,” “slowing” and “disappointing” year-over-year sales results, footwear retailers and vendors were snapped into the new reality by unprecedented market patterns. According to Mitch Kummetz, senior research analyst for R.W. Baird & Co., “These companies were working off of a playbook that didn’t really exist before. They had never seen quite this much of a deterioration in consumers and their business.”

Retailers felt the crush first, and those not in solid standing prior to ’09 bore the brunt of the fallout, with many turning to rockbottom sales promotions to liquidate merchandise and drum up cash flow. “It was the people who really needed the money that sold at bottom [prices] and got hurt,” reports Alan Miklofsky, chairman of the National Shoe Retailers Association and owner of The Shoe House in Tucson, AZ. “Retailers who may have been in problem situations already didn’t have the ability to hold through the worst part of the year, and things just became worse.”

However, those in good standing who were nimble enough to react quickly seem to have weathered the worst. “What we’ve seen over the past 18 months is brands and retailers adjusting to the

new dynamic,” says Christopher Svezia, an analyst at Susquehanna Financial Group. Most agree that the recession has set off a remarkable period of learning and market correction that puts the entire industry in better standing moving into 2010. “Everybody’s learning how to do more with less,” Powell notes. “I think that’s always healthy.”

Angel Martinez, CEO of Deckers Outdoor Corp., stresses that ’09 will definitely go down as a year for the business to remember. “It’s always important to have successfully made it through a difficult time and struggles,” he says. “It allows your organization to improve, focus on the things that matter most and get back to fundamentals.” Analysts, manufacturers and retailers say that for most companies, that meant a) increasing corporate efficiency and b) adjusting inventory levels (which had inflated right along with consumer spending). Those able to do this quickly once the recession smoke turned to fire fared best, and Kummetz notes these factors were directly responsible for profitability levels rising above the predictions made early in the year. “The tough environment gave some of these companies an excuse or a reason to get their costs in line,” he says. Once a turnaround takes hold, he adds, those that have tweaked their operations to fit the new economy will be best positioned for the future.

Getting payroll and expenses under control and smartly managing inventory has paid off for Rialto this year, Dragos reports.

Although he estimates between 500 to 1,000 Rialto-carrying doors closed in ’09, the exec reports it has ultimately (and surprisingly) been a pretty good year for the company. Dragos cites a fast reaction to the recession’s challenges as the reason why.

Retailers say efficiency and inventory management is key >37

“This was a year where the best retailers did OK if they were lucky, and anybody who wasn’t good just got hammered or disappeared.”

—Gary Weiner, president, Saxon Shoes

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Celebrating 20 Years in 2010

Special 20th Anniversary Issue: April/May 2010 Contact: Publisher Caroline Diaco cdiaco@symphonypublishing.com

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O&A

Doing the Right Thing Rockport SVP David Kahan declares his mission to make the comfort brand once again ‘best in class’ among leading independent retailers. By Greg Dutter DAVID KAHAN BELIEVES Rockport had been doing the wrong thing for far too long. It started when previous management decided to largely abandon the brand’s core independent retail base in favor of higher-volume dealers—a strategy that Kahan, Rockport’s senior vice president of U.S. sales, says underestimated the collective weight these key independents carry, particularly in the service-oriented comfort arena. These stores can make or break comfort brands; in addition to Rockport, Clarks, Birkenstock and Ecco have all made their bones within this tier. As time would

prove, choosing to neglect such an influential base can even have a negative trickle-up effect with the majors, since they take cues from these independents’ merchandise mix.

The sales numbers clearly bore this out. Upon Kahan’s start in April of last year, Rockport was the largest brand at Macy’s in men’s and had a developed business with Dillard’s, but a little research revealed that the overall dropoff in U.S. sales coincided with its growing absence from the independent channel. Making matters worse, the recession had been taking a whack out of Rockport’s department store sales.

Kahan decided it was high time to do the right thing: build the brand from the independent base outward. “In the brown shoe world, your authenticity comes from the true service environment, and you just can’t replicate that service level in a department store,” Kahan says, citing a recent in-store event at Harry’s Shoes in New York as proof. “They sold 50 pairs of Rockports in one day, mainly because they had two guys on the floor who have been there for 20 or more years and can really sell shoes. We might have sold 15 pairs on an average day otherwise.”

Unlike the athletic side of the business, where Kahan says brands are built by retail behemoths like Foot Locker and Finish Line as well as key regional players like Dr. Jays and Downtown Locker Room, a brown shoe brand’s acceptance by this “shoe mafia” of independents is critical. Rockport had fallen outside the family and Kahan knew the brand had to make amends, whether it required sit-downs with select dons, appearances before retail associations or working the phones. “It was like the gatekeepers had deemed other brands way more focused and engaged, and therefore worthy of their shelf space,” he says. Their biggest gripes were lack of product differentiation and no communication.

Sparking communicating again on Rockport’s behalf, Kahan first apologized for the past and then set forth with a comprehensive, proactive plan to regain the tier’s lost shelf space—starting with new product lines that addressed the needs of the better independents. The product began appearing in men’s styles this fall and will flow into women’s next spring with the Fall ’10 collection marking a complete makeover. But it’s not just about reissuing classic styles, rather Kahan says the new collections combine the Rockport DNA with new innovations. “It’s truly modernizing the collections and including the right architecture,” he says. “Our product team believes that Rockport has the right to be an innovator.”

Kahan thinks retailers are more than willing to forgive—so long as Rockport’s product delivers results. “I’m making considerable inroads, as I believe they sense the sincerity and the direction the brand is now going,” he says. “We have to earn our space, and I see some opportunities where brands may have had a good run but have lost some momentum.” The Adidas factor is also working in the brand’s favor, he adds, since investing in shop-inshops, extra marketing efforts and sales associate engagement programs in 40 key U.S. doors is pocket change for Rockport’s $12 billion parent.

Doing the right thing is the new mantra, and Kahan and CEO Michael Rupp have set ambitious goals backed by this philosophy: “By next year at this time, we want Rockport to be recognized as best in class with the better independent channel,” Kahan says. “Alongside that, we will continue to build our department store business with differentiated product as well as go after the moderate business with segmented product.” He is confident that Rockport has the reach. “The beauty of the brand is it’s not

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marginalized by a certain tier,” he says, likening it to Nike’s acceptance in the most elite running stores, coolest sneaker boutiques and moderate retailers. “Rockport has so much brand strength that allows it to play in a lot of different segments,” he says. “If we do the right thing for the brand, then Rockport can grow by substantial volume over the next couple of years.”

[Adidas CEO] Herbert Heiner said just after the acquisition that Rockport had the potential to be a $1 billion worldwide brand.

Oh, there’s no doubt about it. It’s why he has one of his handpicked guys [Michael Rupp] running it and is also giving it the necessary resources. This brand hasn’t even been globalized yet.

Nor has it become fully established in the women’s market yet.

True. The good aspect is that most women have no aversion to the Rockport brand. But there had been an aversion to some of the product in years past because we flip-flopped too many times on our product positioning. The DNA of the brand is comfort, and now the mindset is “don’t compromise style for comfort.” It’s a pretty simple thought process, but executing the product is a little more difficult. Thankfully, our new women’s design team is doing just that, and we are very excited about Fall ’10, which will mark the first breakthrough season.

The team really “gets” the female consumer—her lifestyle, needs, mindset and emotional connection to footwear. Our offering will have styles that meet the more “American heritage” comfort silhouettes, and we’ll also surprise people with great executions of contemporary on-trend styles.

ing. Are you on schedule with that effort?

Michael [Rupp] has set four objectives in order to become the leading footwear brand in the industry: Globalize the brand, develop a stronger retail presence, expand our women’s business and develop operational excellence. Now, 18

OFF THE CUFF

What are you reading?

[Zappos CEO] Tony Hsieh recommended “The Happiness Hypothesis.” It’s about how to achieve what everyone really wants—happiness. I suggested Tony read “Talent Is Overrated,” a fantastic book that challenges beliefs about innate talent being a key determinant of success.

What’s on your iPod? Bootleg Springsteen from 1975 and ’80s classic rock—yes, I’m a little ashamed to admit it—by REO Speedwagon and Journey. Plus, Dr. Wayne Dyer’s lecture of “The Power of Intention.”

If you could have dinner with anyone? My wife. It’s rare that we get a quiet dinner, just the two of us.

more deserving of respect and success than him.

What was your first-ever paying job? A Macy’s sales associate, working 14 hours a week.

Hard to believe a few years later I was working 14 hours a day at Macy’s!

Who is the most influential person in fashion? No one.

America has become a nation of niches.

Which do you fear more: global warming or financial meltdown? While global warming may take centuries, in the global economy of the 21st century, financial shockwaves can be felt almost instantaneously. Most people in Middle America had no idea what Lehman Brothers was, but they knew somehow that they needed to spend less this year.

for brand perception in the marketplace. Also, our in-store presence will be consistent with our own concept stores. Lastly, our operational capabilities have improved dramatically. We have created a true “center of excellence” that includes the functions of finance, business management, inventory management and customer service to better serve our sales organization and retail partners.

Just how strong were the economic headwinds this year?

The past year has been challenging and we don’t have expectations for a huge retail uptick in the near future. Still, even in a market that is flat at best in the year ahead—and that may be optimistic—we are holding ourselves to very high expectations and expect significant year-onyear growth in 2010. Our order portfolio for 2010 looks strong as we continue the rollout of DresSports, deliver some compelling women’s collections to our most visible retailers, create excellent online partnerships to drive consumer demand, launch our “Rock Shop” products that are value engineered and meet the needs of the moderate/family footwear consumer, and manage our inventory so as to maximize our replenishment capabilities. We will just continue to execute our master plan.

And key independent retailers are the plan’s lynchpin?

Yes. When I met with them I asked, “What are some of the things you would If you could hire anyone? do if you were me?” I told them I may Mitch Modell, CEO of Modell’s not be the smartest person in the world, Sporting Goods. He is a but I am smart enough to know that my dynamic leader who has infecWhat is your favorite homeanswers won’t come from sitting in an tious enthusiasm for his busitown memory? I’m a Brooklyn office in Canton, MA. I needed to hear ness and an incredible work boy, so I remember playing it straight from the people that helped ethic, inspires passion and loystickball with my friends and build this brand, and most importantly, alty in his team, and—before it then going to Dimola’s lunfind out whose support I would need to became a buzzword—preached cheonette on Avenue X for help build it back. Trust me, I got more win-win partnerships with his egg creams. If you don’t know than I bargained for. The leading indevendors. He is the epitome of what stickball is you “ain’t from pendents are not only passionate about the adage that everything you Brooklyn,” and if you don’t the industry but are passionate about put out in life comes back to know what an egg cream is, sharing their opinions. A consistent Just how important is developing you, and no businessperson is “fuggedaboutit.” message soon emerged—the belief that the women’s side of the brand?

Rockport is one of the strongest consumWomen’s is the most significant key er brands and that we had allowed brands to our success in the years ahead. that may not have had our pedigree to gain marmonths into my tenure and despite the serious We realize that our share is currently out of ket share based on their focused efforts to service economic headwinds, I am supremely confident whack versus men’s in the overall marketplace. this channel. All that these retailers really asked that we are on track in the U.S. market.

For Rockport to be successful in the leading for was innovative product unique to their chanOur division is fully integrated with our globfootwear independents, then we must be an imnel, excellent service—including store-level maral organization so that brand marketing and portant women’s resource. It will happen, but it keting support—and greater attention so that the messaging are consistent on a worldwide basis. will take some time. needs and mindset of their consumers is a part of Our branded stores in the U.S. are seeing signifour brand’s positioning. > icant promise and truly set the image necessary Sounds like an extensive brand reposition-

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O&A IN DOG YEARS David Kahan’s career took him from a leading department store to bigleague wholesalers, from brown shoes to athletic and back. — G.D. WHEN ASKED IF he’s a “shoe dog,” David Kahan’s reply is immediate: “Oh, definitely. There’s no doubt about it.” A kid from Brooklyn who landed in footwear, Kahan’s résume is chock full of executive stints with Macy’s, Nike, Fila, Reebok and, most recently, as senior vice president of sales for Rockport. Having toiled on both the retail and wholesale sides of the fence, he realizes that each has their needs but partnering is what leads to long-term peace and profitability.

Like many successful wholesale execs, his critical industry insight came from his work in retail, which began with Kahan’s first-ever job as a Macy’s sales associate back in the early ’80s. Armed with an accounting degree but little desire to become a CPA, Kahan entered Macy’s executive training program, which he cites as “the best background one can imagine, since you were in the trenches of retail from day one.”

Kahan’s first management role for Macy’s was overseeing a men’s shoe department in his hometown. At the time, he says, men’s was a tiny segment with no full-time sales staff. No one knew how to fit customers properly or even find shoes in the stockroom. So Kahan created an organizational system that featured numbered aisles and shelves and developed standards for the selling floor. Business soon took off and Kahan was receiving visits from Macy’s head buying office. He and his lead sales associate were invited to HQ to advise on which shoes his men’s department could sell. “We quickly became the best-performing footwear store in the entire chain,” Kahan recalls. Soon after, Kahan was tapped to become Macy’s first footwear coordinator, which sent him traveling to stores to set up stockrooms, train sales associates, and provide feedback to the buyers on assortment and inventory needs.

Footwear was growing exponentially at Macy’s, but Kahan’s new office at the Herald Square store was less than desirable. “It was a [tiny] unheated space that was once a display window,” he says. “It was freezing in the winter and stifling hot in the summer with mice running at our feet.” Kahan also recalls how the DMM used to literally “bark” orders at his team. “This was the first time I ever was referred to as a ‘shoe dog,’ but it was true—we lived and breathed footwear.”

In the late ’80s, just as the sneaker boom kicked into gear, Kahan was named Macy’s first dedicated athletic footwear buyer. Soon after, he was buying container loads of Reeboks and made Macy’s the only U.S. department store to carry Nike’s visible air

technology and New Balance shoes. Kahan’s team created “The Macy’s Athletic Club” shop-in-shop, in which sales associates wore logo shirts and track pants provided by Adidas. In addition, athletes made monthly appearances and afterhours health and wellness seminars drew large crowds. The department’s cachet even generated sales of hundreds of “Macy’s Athletic Club” T-shirts each week.

Kahan crossed into wholesale shortly after Macy’s went through its leveraged buyout. “There was a time in my 20s that I would have tattooed ‘Macy’s’ on my arm,” Kahan says. “But after the [buyout], I felt the energy shift to the wholesale side.” His first stop was a sales agency for Nike, where he learned to manage a territory, maximizing brand penetration while maintaining its image, and realized that the emotional connection a consumer has with a brand must be nurtured and protected vigilantly. Kahan then jumped to Fila, opening all of the company’s national department store accounts and eventually becoming general manager of Fila USA. “We had distribution of footwear and apparel across sporting goods, independents, family footwear, moderate chains and department stores,” he says.

Next up was Reebok, where Kahan ran U.S. sales, doing $300 million a year with Foot Locker alone. By then, he was on a first-name basis with all of the key players and wasn’t looking to switch categories. But having helped manage the integration of Reebok following Adidas’ acquisition, opportunity knocked in early 2008. Kahan had been working with Michael Rupp, then head of the integration effort, who later became Rockport’s CEO. About two months into his new job, Rupp reached out to his American colleague to head U.S. sales. “He didn’t know I had a brown shoe background,” Kahan says. “After [learning] that, he thought it was meant to be.”

Similarly, Kahan believes his career has come full circle. “I’m back with a brand that I believe is the only one that credibly combines the best of both worlds: engineered comfort,” he says, noting there’s an emotional bonus to this side of the business. Unlike with athletic shoes, which are largely functional, fashion shoes have a much deeper consumer connection. “It’s the only category where the salesperson returning from the stockroom is met by a woman who is literally praying that every [pair] comes in her size,” he says. “We are not just selling shoes; we are selling emotional fulfillment.”

Is that mission being accomplished?

In the past year, I am incredibly proud of our efforts to break through in some of these leading doors. We are back to being engaged with the leading trade organizations for independents; we have reorganized our U.S. operations so that the “pr ior it y ”-tier retailers have dedicated support to service their stores from sales, marketing, customer service and in-store training aspects; and most importantly, we have begun to deliver products that are focused directly on their clientele, starting with the launch of DresSports this fall and the introduction of Rockport Signature series in 2010. Our order portfolio shows significant gains in this channel. But we are just beginning to gain back retailer confidence. We have lots more to do. For 2010, we will kick into high gear with an intensification of our brand presence at retail, key account marketing efforts and sales associate training tools.

Where do department stores stand in this new brand platform?

A broadly distributed brand in and of itself is not a bad thing; in fact, it’s just the opposite, as it means that Rockport has tremendous brand awareness across a wide range of consumer profiles and the environments in which they shop.

The challenge then becomes—as it does for any consumer brand with such large mind space—how to differentiate between the points of distribution.

Basically, how do we generate excitement and offer a unique and compelling product proposition in each channel while maintaining the brand DNA across each of them? Our global product organization is doing a fantastic job to ensure this is happening. For example, while we may launch a technology story, such as the use of Adidas’ adiprene cushioning technology, our high-end footwear will feature full-foot adiprene for the leading independents and adiprene will be incorporated in the heels that target our moderate channel. Yet the qualities that make a shoe “Rockport”—their comfort, light weight and flexibility, or what we call “walkability”—is what a consumer expects in our shoes, no matter which channel they’re purchasing from. As long as we execute

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this in our product across each channel, create clear segmentation and maintain strong brand imaging, we will succeed.

What is Rockport’s current status with Macy’s?

Let me first say, for years a lot of pundits have been forecasting the demise of the department store and, frankly, I think they are wrong. Just walk into Macy’s Herald Square store on a Saturday afternoon—there is no more exciting retail environment on the face of the earth, in my opinion. The challenge for vendors has become how to connect with these very important consumers who are walking through Macy’s 600-plus doors seven days a week, coast to coast, now that they are a centralized buying organization. As the vendor, we must dedicate a far deeper level of analysis so as to understand door-bydoor inventory levels, geographic assortment needs and mix of product (promotional versus statement), and manage the sell-through data weekly. If you believe that Macy’s represents valuable real estate by which your brand can connect with consumers, then it’s imperative you do all you can to partner and make your business a success. It’s about how you are represented in the true flagship locations—we seek to balance commercial products with more directional styles—and, even more importantly from a turn and profitability standpoint for both your brand and Macy’s, how you are represented from an assortment and depth standpoint in the broader door mix.

We appreciate our close working relationship with Macy’s and believe— especially on the men’s side—that they are creating innovative ideas like “Men’s Nights Out” to engage shoppers, and that will have long-term benefits.

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What are some new product highlights?

First off, the launch of DresSports. In 1990, these were the shoes that ran the New York marathon, and to reintroduce the collection, a few Rockport employees ran the marathon in them this year. Coinciding with that event was a New York promotional blitz, complete with street teams of people in business suits and runners’ bibs who led consumers into retail locations for try-on events. In addition, every top New York independent held a trunk show designed to create energy as well as sell lots of shoes. Across the country, leading independents also featured window displays and in-store events to correspond with the promotion.

People who try on on the shoes won’t take them off. They love the lightweight, flexible construction—what we on the athletic side describe as the “ride” when they walk in them. This collection epitomizes what Rockport is all about: true engineered comfort. These shoes combine athletic shoe technology—they are lighter than most running flats—with contemporary style.

On a side note, [Brown Shoe CEO] Ron Fromm gave a fantastic speech recently regarding the next generation of consumers and how meeting their needs will change the industry and be a key to success for both brands and retailers. Along those lines, we believe that the younger consumer entering the workforce, who grew up wearing sneakers, just won’t accept the discomfort historically associated with such footwear. I remember when I first joined the workforce, my new dress shoes pinched my toes and grinded my heels—my feet were killing me. After a few weeks, they finally broke in and were OK, but today’s generation will not put up with that. DresSports >39

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Customers are treated like guests at Kemp’s Shoe Salon & Boutique in Florida—just like grandma wanted.

By Melissa Knific

THE YEAR WAS 1959. Mattel introduced Barbie, Alaska and Hawaii became U.S. states, and “Bonanza” premiered on NBC as the first weekly television series broadcast completely in color. Meanwhile, Dotti Kemp was realizing her dream in Boca Raton, FL, as she opened a shoe boutique decked out to the nines. Her idea was that the store wouldn’t be merely a store but rather a “salon”—an elegant yet comfortable place where women (referred to as “guests”) could come to shop and be surrounded by beautiful things. The entrepreneur envisioned Kemp’s Shoe Salon & Boutique as being similar in aesthetic to the shops on Palm Beach’s Worth Avenue, a street that has been known for high-quality merchandise since the 1920s. However, Kemp was adamant that the store didn’t feel stiff. “She wanted the atmosphere to be as comfortable as coming into your home,” explains Dotti’s granddaughter Meg Offutt, who is now co-owner and president of the company.

While Dotti has passed, her dream still remains. Her family has continued to pursue her original intents, and customers remain loyal. Kemp’s daughters, Ann Shambora and Martha Eckhart, originally took over for their mom; now, Shambora’s daughters—including Offutt, Diane Jarrell and Denise Metz as well as their sister-in-law, Diana Shambora—have inherited the store. Offutt, who has been with Kemp’s for 36 years, remembers visiting the boutique as a child. Growing up as army brats and living everywhere from Germany to Georgia, she and her siblings would visit Florida in the summertime and were often put to work in the store. “After working here in high school, I knew this was all I ever wanted to do,” Offutt recalls, noting that some of Dotti’s great-grandchildren have contributed through Web design, advertising and modeling, making it a fourth-generation business.

Kemp’s has since expanded and moved out of its original Boca Raton location into two separate 3,000-square-foot storefronts: one in Vero Beach, FL,

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and another in Stuart, FL, located to the north. The Vero Beach store, which is celebrating 36 years, is located on a downtown shopping street, close to other shops, hotels and restaurants, while the Stuart shop, which has been open since ’92, lies in a shopping plaza. Both boutiques have a similar aesthetic: Mirrors and glass windows open up the space; white furniture, wrought iron and chandeliers add sophistication; and plants and carpeting provide a feeling of being at home. In addition, the company also runs a 2,000-squarefoot outlet inland from its Vero Beach store called Kemp’s Too. Offutt notes it’s hard to pinpoint the average age of a Kemp’s shopper—she says the selection appeals to teenagers up to great-grandmothers. It’s not hard to see why, especially when looking at the store’s price range and category and brand mix. Footwear—spanning resort casual wear to comfort styles to sophisticated evening wear—costs anywhere from $49 to $400; lines include Me Too, Steve Madden, Cole Haan, Donald Pliner, Daniblack, Michael Kors, Kate Spade, Arche, Mephisto, Vaneli, Claudia Ciuti, Stuart Weitzman and more. Offutt, who also serves as the main footwear buyer, believes that buying what her shoppers demand—not necessarily what she herself likes— is key. “I’m not looking out of my own eyes but out of my customers’,” she says about her market-shopping philosophy. When taking a chance on a riskier design, Offutt jokes that she’ll order it in her own size to hedge her bet.

In general, Offutt says Kemp’s customer is reading fashion magazines but the stores aren’t located in a “fashion area;” instead, the boutique caters to a relatively conservative crowd. “People come to us expecting quality,” Offutt says. However, she adds that comfort and versatility are becoming increasingly important. Perhaps the blend of all three is what makes Paul Mayer Attitudes’ quilted ballet flat with a patent leather cap toe one of the store’s top-selling styles. “It’s comfortable and it doesn’t look like a tennis shoe,” she explains. “You can wear it with a skirt or shorts.” Kemp’s offers the style in 25 colors. While that style has done well in recent years, Offutt cites Jack Rogers as a longtime bestselling brand. When Dotti Kemp first opened her store, she worked closely with the brand and eventually created some of her own designs exclusive to Kemp’s. One style in particular—the Dotti sandal—is still sold today. (The shoe even has a special history: It is now part of the shoe collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.)

Because of its range of products, Kemp’s has discovered that merchandising by color rather than brand is the way to go. For example, if purple is the hot color of the season, Jarrell, who handles the displays, will group shoes of that hue together, then add non-footwear items in the same color family for visual interest. “One of the original reasons we started displaying by color was because people would bring their clothes in and say, ‘I need shoes to go with this dress,’” Offutt says, noting it makes it easier for them to match up their outfits. “If someone asks for Stuart Weitzman, we’d have to take her from table to table,” she says. In addition, handbags and coordinating accessories such as shoe ornaments, jewelry, belts, hats and sunglasses are in the same section. Apparel—which Offutt says is bought to match the shoes, instead of vice-versa—also makes up a small portion of the business.

Kemp’s is located in a resort area, so many of the clients are snowbirds who only live in the region for part of the year. (Offutt declares February through April as the store’s top-grossing months.) Tourists also make up a significant chunk of the customer base. Recently, two high-end hotels, including one with singer Gloria Estefan’s name attached, opened near the boutiques, and Offutt says they’ve helped bring in new clientele. There are also a number of permanent residents who are loyal, year-round customers, and Offutt finds these women often spend the most since they’re looking for items for every part of their wardrobe. “She’ll buy Mephisto walking shoes and her Stuart Weitzman evening shoes and

Cole Haan rubber flip-flops for the beach,” she reports.

One of the main reasons the owners decided to launch a website was due to their store’s fluctuating crowd. They felt an e-commerce option would allow seasonal residents (and tourists who discovered Kemp’s while vacationing) to buy from the store year-round. Kempsshoesalon.com debuted about three years ago, and Offutt says while managing it continues to be a learning process, she’s happy with the results thus far and foresees expanding that side of the business. “We never planned to try to compete with the biggies like Zappos, Amazon and Shopbop,” Offutt adds. “However, we have had great unplanned success with people from all over finding our online store.”

Besides the website, Offutt says that running promotions during slow months is a way to attract extra traffic. The boutiques host annual “parties” (the owners avoid the word “sale”)—the only time of year when merchandise is discounted besides in the outlet. Part of that tradition is a birthday celebration for the Vero Beach store the Saturday before Thanksgiving, where customers pre-shop for items and are handed a sealed envelope with a certain percentage off when they walk in the door. A similar event is held during Eastertime at the Stuart boutique, but instead of a mystery envelope, customers peek inside a plastic egg for their prize.

While Kemp’s owners don’t believe in constant sales, they do have something for the customer who is always on the lookout for a bargain: Kemp’s Too. The idea was born in Dotti’s Boca Raton store, when she decided to use an extra room to house discounted shoes. Every afternoon, an employee would open the room for a few hours and let customers shop. The idea was brought to the Vero Beach store and became such a hit that it turned into an overcrowded mess, so the staff eventually decided that opening a separate outlet location was the best option. Kemp’s Too merchandise comprises old stock as well as product purchased specifically for that store.

Offutt says Kemp’s is faring well despite the doom and gloom surrounding retail—especially in Florida, which has been especially hard-hit with foreclosures. In terms of buying strategy, Offutt has been on the search for the same quality footwear that her customers demand but at more affordable price points. However, she and her family don’t plan to stray from their grandmother’s original motto—“Kemp’s is not just a shoe salon… It’s a way of life”—but instead hope to build upon it. “We don’t have a crystal ball to the future,” Offutt concludes. “We can only say that we will still be around and adapting to political issues and what customers are looking for in 2015.” •

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2009 STYLE From top left: Actress and activist Drew Barrymore rocks the shoes; a 1968 catalog shot; singer Seal goes city casual; Usher fittingly promotes peace in his Arizonas.

The Grassroots Go-To How Birkenstock’s Arizona sandal won everyone’s vote.

DURING A YEAR when the president championed controversial healthcare policies, American soldiers anticipated their return home, gay rights activists won small battles and a New York team made it to the World Series, independent thinkers stepped out in Birkenstock’s Arizona sandals.

It was 1973—not 2009—but like a favorite shoe, some things are always worth the fight.

Shelly Glasgow, director of product development and merchandising for Birkenstock USA, admits the Arizona is part of the Obamasupporting, Starbucks-sipping, khaki-wearing caricature touted by media outlets of late, but she says it comes as no surprise to the Novato, CAbased company. “The type of person who wears Arizonas has always said, ‘I’m proud of who I am, but I might be a little different,’” she explains.

When Birkenstock’s Arizona first hit the aisles of Santa Cruz, CA, health food stores in 1973—yes, the shoes synonymous with granola types did in fact share its initial retail real estate with the snack food—even Birkenstock USA founder Margot Fraser couldn’t foresee the style’s iconic destiny. After traditional shoe stores turned the two-strap sandal away, Fraser tapped health food consumers who were apt to try new health-beneficial products.

“Health food stores were the place to go for something alternative,” Glasgow notes. It was a slow process. As Glasgow describes it, one week only one pair sold, followed by a few more the next, but word of the style’s simple construction and comfortable footbed grew beyond its Californian wellness roots and into a nationwide craze.

The Arizona peaked during a powerful time in history. By 1977, the sandal was deeply cemented as the choice footwear for the decade’s counterculture and was a far cry from the conservative lace-up styles worn by authority figures. “It was an antiestablishment look for anyone who thought differently,” Glasgow explains. “The same people who grew their hair long and wore bell-bottoms also wore Arizonas.”

The original lug-sole sandal came in cognac, which Glasgow notes was “the color of the era.”

(The taupe suede firmly associated with the brand wouldn’t rear its neutral head for a few more years.) The Arizona was Birkenstock’s third style—a blend of influences from the brand’s U.S. team and German craftsmen—and part of Fraser’s plan to slowly grow the brand she discovered while visiting a German resort in 1966. “Let’s just say the company has done a lot better in terms of

sales since the Arizona,” Glasgow notes. The success of the sandal in the States drove Birkenstock’s sales in England, Italy and Japan, jump-starting production of additional styles.

By the 1980s, Arizona’s core customer had changed. A growing focus on the mind and body influenced fashion, and a younger generation discovered the style. Fashion colors made the Arizona fun to collect, and Glasgow notes the shoe’s popularity carried over to college campuses, where it became part of students’ everyday uniform of comfortable sweatshirts and drawstring pants.

Today’s Arizona wearers are varied as its 25 different colors and materials options. (The company is excited about a Havana oiled-leather take for Spring ’10.) New customers are discovering the Arizona and original wearers are rediscovering the shoe for health reasons, steadying the style as one of Birkenstock’s top three sellers year after year.

And during turbulent times, Glasgow says the shoe calms minds as it soothes feet. “Arizonas are worn during memorable and powerful times in lives—at college, on first trips to Europe, during pregnancy,” she explains. “When they are on your feet, you remember those feelings.” —Angela Velasquez

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HALL OF FAME

Four new shoe styles join our roster of the world’s most iconic designs.

Work It Out Follow the Reebok Freestyle’s journey from aerobics-era invention to a full-fledged fashion craze.

IN THE HEYDEY of Jazzercize, Jane Fonda’s Workout and high-cut leotards, there was one sneaker that regularly popped up in aerobics studios below brightly colored knit legwarmers: the Reebok Freestyle. Back in 1982, the athletic footwear company launched the original Freestyle lo-top lace-up, which was created by then head designer Paul Brown. But according to Saadia Bryant, head of global classics marketing for the Canton, MA-based brand (now a division of the Adidas Group), it was Angel Martinez, Reebok’s vice president of new business development at the time (and current CEO of Deckers Outdoor), who first pinpointed the women’s fitness trend emerging in the early ’80s and founded the platform that, according to Uli Becker, current president and CEO of Reebok International, the brand stands on to this day.

“Reebok had been a running brand up to that point,” Bryant reports. “Angel thought [this new direction] would be a great opportunity for the brand.”

It was a unique selling point at the time, and Reebok thoroughly considered the support, cushioning and structure women required for the popular calorie-burning activity. “It came out of a functionality: How do we address women’s needs?” Bryant notes.

When the company followed up with a hi-top version with double Velcro straps in 1983, the trend erupted, and the Freestyle stepped out of the dance studios, gyms and church basements out onto the streets and into the clubs. “It was adopted as a fashion item as well as a functional shoe,” Bryant adds.

California led the masses toward fitness-oriented fashion, and the craze accelerated after ’80s superstars such as Cindy Crawford and Paula Abdul began sporting Freestyles. By 1985, the shoe accounted for half of Reebok’s sales (admittedly a smaller number than the brand boasts nowadays), Bryant says, and the company was producing the sneakers in 79 colors. While the all-white version has been the No. 1 seller throughout the style’s history, bright hues were also a hit. Actress Cybill Shepherd didn’t shy away from color, choosing bright orange Freestyles to pair with her black strapless gown when she walked the red carpet at the 1985 Emmy Awards. In New York, the style became such a hot commodity that Bryant says it even earned a nickname: the “5411,” a number derived from the original suggested retail price

($49.99) plus New York’s sales tax, which came to $54.11.

“From a fashion standpoint, the shoe was just trend-right at the time,” Bryant explains, noting that it caused women to choose athletic shoes as streetwear for the first time and had other companies scrambling to release their own takes on the shoe.

The Freestyle’s narrow shape—which has not been significantly changed since its debut—has an overall slimming effect for the wearer, she adds, noting that some die-hard fans even describe Freestyles as sexy. “People are just passionate about this silhouette,” the exec says.

As ’80s fashion and sneaker trends have come and gone over the years, Reebok has seen spikes and drops in Freestyle sales, but the hi-top has never completely faded from the scene. “We’ve kept it fresh and relevant, using trend-driven materials, colors and patterns and building stories around the shoe,” Bryant notes. Reebok created some noise to promote the style’s 25th anniversary in 2007, which resulted in increased interest. Collaborations have created excitement as well; a “world tour” program in 2008 highlighted stylists from major cities around the globe, and Reebok has offered Freestyle editions reflecting the paintings of Jean-Michel Basquiat and designer Rolland Berry in recent collections. “One of the great things about the Freestyle is that it’s a canvas for expression,” Bryant says.

“Women embrace the ability to express themselves through fashion.”

Many also view Reebok’s hi-top as a timeless design—it’s true it goes as well with today’s skinny jeans as the leggings and layered socks of decades past. And as Bryan put it, like it or not, any athletic company is also trading in the fashion business. “We like to say ‘The Freestyle is forever,’” she concludes. “We don’t see it ever going away.” —Leslie Shiers

From top: A mythologyinspired Freestyle design for Spring ‘10; a glossy red pair from the Fall ‘09 World Cities stylist collaboration; an oldschool ad featuring new neon versions.

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2009 STYLE Campus Life Frye’s Campus boot—originally designed for work during the Civil War era—defines Americana.

From top: An ad that ran in Glamour in 1983; another ad circa 1972. Right: Actress Jennifer Aniston in her Campus boots.

THE ORIGINAL DESIGNER’S name is unknown, but the style sure isn’t. In fact, The Frye Company’s Campus boot is so iconic that it was chosen by the Smithsonian Institute to be featured in a grouping of items—still on display today—that best represent 1960s America. Half a century later, the style remains at the forefront of fashion. “There are closets everywhere with 50-year-old Campus boots that have not only physically stood the test of time but also seem as relevant today as when someone first bought them,” notes Larry Tarica, president and COO of Great Neck, NYbased Jimlar Corp., Frye’s parent company. “They are timeless.”

Indeed. The Campus boot debuted in Frye’s first product line in the 1860s. Designed for labor, its durable leather fared well in inclement weather and its tall shaft protected wearers from snakebites and while horseback riding. Approximately 100 years later, Frye reintroduced the original Campus design, complete with a chunky stacked heel, blunt toe and leather-welted construction.

While the unisex boot still earned props from manual workers, it quickly became synonymous with the free thinkers of the ’60s and earned its place as a fashion item. “The first picture that comes to everyone’s mind is someone who went to Woodstock,” says Michael Petry, Frye’s current design director. He believes the boot has similar devotees today, worn by those with a “downtown” style. One thing that’s changed, he notes, is its demographic: In the ’60s, the Campus primarily had a male following; today, the majority of the buyers are female.

Petry believes the Campus’ simple design has helped maintain the boot’s longevity. “From a design standpoint, it’s a very difficult pattern to improve upon,” he explains. “It’s one of those you look at and say, ‘It’s perfect.’” The tannery and materials used in production have also remained constant: Frye still uses American-made Montana vegetable-tanned leather, which has a “crunch” effect. “They get better every day they are worn,” Tarica affirms.

The boot is consistently one of Frye’s top five sellers, Petry says, noting the No. 1 color at the moment is dark brown. Colors are regularly added—and taken away. Banana and saddle are mainstays; Petry says the brand will introduce a deep, saturated palate for Fall ’10. “Every season we update it with a new leather and a new color,” he explains. “It’s the key to breathing life into it.” Frye has also played with various tweaks, including a crepe sole, stitching detail, various shaft heights and the addition of a lug sole this fall.

Originally meant to be worn with jeans, the Campus boot is now paired with dresses, skirts and shorts to toughen up feminine looks, and Petry notes its versatility makes it an all-season boot. The Campus is popular worldwide and has had many celeb fans, including John Lennon, Lenny Kravitz and Sarah Jessica Parker. Recently, Jennifer Aniston donned a pair in the movie “Marley and Me.” Petry doesn’t foresee the Campus fading. “We’ve experienced no lulls no matter what the trend is,” he says, noting that children of 1960s Campus fans are now wearing them. “We love that the Campus boot helped define our brand,” Tarica says. “They are authentic and American and unchanging.” —Melissa Knific

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HALL OF FAME All in the Family Stride Rite’s Parker II wins the hearts of parents, generation after generation.

LACING UP A crisp pair of Stride Rite’s Parker II signifies a sweet but fleeting time in children’s lives, when parents can retreat to a timeless shoe style they once wore—without resistance.

“The Parker II brings classic style, nostalgia and tradition to purchasing the first walking shoes,” says Jenn Kretchmar, senior vice president of product for Stride Rite Children’s Group. “It brings parents and grandparents back to their own first shoe memory— a moment they can share and reminisce with their children.”

As part of the then Green Shoe Manufacturing Company’s 1919 collection (which also included an assortment of “health protective” shoes called Stride Rite), the first-walker bootie was the pride of the then Boston-based company (now of Canton, MA) and was plugged to retailers and parents as a “fine juvenile shoe.” The original bootie, offered in white, brown, tan, gray and black, was made from quality buck and elk leathers and sold at wholesale for just $1.50 during its debut year. The straightforward silhouette was fitting of the era’s traditional and tailored style. “During the earlier decades, shoe designs were formal, basic,” Kretchmar explains.

Under the Stride Rite Corporation name and redesigned by a Stride Rite designer in 2000, the bootie (this time only made in white) remains the brand’s best-selling baby style. Revamped in soft, full-grain leather and enhanced with a cradle footbed for comfort, today’s Parker II continues to read traditional yet jams in plenty of the 21st century features modern parents expect in their children’s footwear.

“Since our start, we have targeted parents and the

medical community in all of our marketing vehicles, emphasizing education, research and innovation,” Kretchmar says. The latest take on the versatile, lightweight bootie protects little feet with a wrapped toe guard, promotes natural movement with its deep flex grooves and helps stabilize and balance babies with contoured landing pads on the heel.

The Parker II is a unique creature in a category where buying is influenced by physicians, traditions, trends and play date chitchat. The shoe has survived the hard sole/soft sole debate between pediatricians, podiatrists and parents. And the staple style continues to outsell many of its trendier competitors, which bank on cutesy embellishments and gift-ready packaging to make the sale. Yet, according to Kretchmar, the Parker II’s iconic status and the profound emotional connections it carries may be its strongest attributes: “Our brand holds deep traditions with many families; multiple generations have bought their first pair of shoes at Stride Rite. The nostalgia of the classic white bootie continues to resonate with moms today as their parents [or they] themselves may still have their booties, bronzed from their childhood.” —A.V.

PREVIOUS HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

2007 Vans’ Checkerboard slip-on Ferragamo’s Vara pump Clarks’ Wallabee Merrell’s Jungle Moc

2008 Nike’s Air Force 1 basketball shoe Ugg Australia’s Classic Short boot Bernardo’s Miami sandal Dr. Martens’ 1460 boot

Left to right: Stride Rite’s advertisements span generations, the latest playing on the brand’s emotional connection with parents.

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TREND

Olive Branch Rugged canvas hits men’s styles in a range of earthy green hues.

Clockwise from top left: Palladium lug-sole boot; sneaker by Merrell; Fossil lace-up; Sperry Top-Sider slip-on; chukka by Timberland; Red Wing boot; Simple sneaker.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY TREVETT MCCANDLISS

SPOTTING

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WORLD

SHOES+ ACCESSORIES

MANDALAY BAY.LAS VEGAS

FEBRUARY 2.3.4 2010

WSASHOW.COM

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ARRESTING SHAPES AND SULTRY HUES ENTER THE DESIGNER PSYCHE FOR SPRING. PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANETA BARTOS

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Naot mules with twisted straps. Blouse and high-waisted shorts by Catherine Malandrino.

Georgina Goodman peep-toe stiletto. Bodysuit and blazer

by Shelly Steffee; Hache skort; Comme des Garรงons hat.

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Styling by Michel Onofrio; hair by Pierra Lortie; makeup by Vanessa Evelyn. Fashion editor: Melissa Knific

Wedge slides by Claudia Ciuti.

Hache top and shorts.

Opposite: H Williams cut-out booties. Hache dress; Sue by Sue Elen leather leggings.

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Moschino Cheap & Chic heels with cutout details. Blouse by Hache; shorts and mesh leggings by Shelly Steffee. Opposite: Patent pump by Casadei. Leather bodysuit

by Staerk; Roberto Cavalli fedora.

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Shoe Salon Clockwise from top left: Coye Nokes, Jean-Michel Cazabat, Tashkent by Cheyenne, Pedro García and Bettye Muller.

Designer Chat: Steven Dann This retailer-cum-vendor knows what women want.

Put a Cork in It E D I T O R’S P I CKS

some luxe for nighttime,” but kept them at a wearable height. “My models tell me what is comfortable and what is not,” he says. “A beautiful shoe is ruined if a woman can’t walk in it naturally.”

Who is your customer? A smart and sophisticated shopper who wants to feel as good as she looks. There’s no age limit.

Where do you find design inspiration?

I’m influenced by my travels, the color of the ocean, architecture—anything that screams to me. Sometimes I choose a color and everyone around me says “no way,” but

The natural material gets the designer’s touch.

then it becomes a bestseller. I follow my instincts.

What shoe should every woman own?

Classic python stiletto heels in a natural color. They deliver the most impact and go with anything found in a woman’s wardrobe.

Describe a shoe we’ll never see in your line. I hate open-toe boots. They’re stupid, silly and look like you stubbed your toe.

What would people be surprised to know about you? I like to cook and I’m good—especially with pasta. —Angela Velasquez

EDITOR’S PICKS PHOTOGRAPHY BY TREVETT MCCANDLISS

WITH A SHARP eye for style and unadulterated zeal for beautiful shoes, Steven Dann says he creates daily “Cinderella moments” for women at his eponymous four-year-old boutique in Great Neck, NY. He expects to replicate the magic with the launch of his own collection for Spring ’10. “If a woman is going to spend hundreds of dollars on a shoe, it better be special,” Dann asserts.

Dann was destined for luxury shoes. After working his way from part-time sales associate at a Maraolo Shoes store—a retailer Dann declared elegant and chic at the age of 14—to general manager of the Italian footwear chain’s 26 stores, he landed larger gigs at high-end mega houses including Gucci, Versace and Hogan. “I was putting all of my energy into other people’s businesses.

It started to feel like I should have my own,” he says. In 2005, Dann opened his own store.

After producing a successful in-house series of riding boots, Dann forged ahead with his first full collection, through which he says he’s tailoring styles to fit the gaps in the luxury market.

The spring lineup (priced between $395 and $596 retail), is aimed at finer boutiques and department stores and includes 12 wedge styles Dann deems ideal travel companions. He chose rich, saturated suedes, metallic leathers and python, because they “lend the versatile silhouette 30 footwearplusmagazine.com • december 2009

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TREND

Rainbow Brights Mouth-watering hues and playful details add some sass to both fresh and staple silhouettes.

Clockwise from top: Fergie ruffled sandal; Chocolat Blu cap-toe ballerina flat; Farylrobin multicolored heel; woven slide by Matiko; BC Shoes flat.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY TREVETT MCCANDLISS

SPOTTING

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THIS JUST IN

Grace Dellalian, 38 Photographer, Australia Wearing: Bata Europe.

Purchased: My husband got them for me in Italy.

How do these boots make you feel? Kind of sexy, like Catwoman.

Is this the shoe trend of the season? I’ve had guys tell me it is, and for a guy to say that, it must be. Plus, my husband is in the shoe business and is always a step ahead.

Jessie Scott, 28 Artist, Virginia Wearing: Marc Jacobs.

I bought them from Zappos for $200.

How do these boots make you feel? Sturdy and protected. They’re good all-weather boots.

Are skinny legs a must for this trend? Height is definitely a requirement. If you’re 5’3”, you’d probably just look like one big boot.

Alexandra Polifko, 20 Actor, Abu Dhabi Wearing: Mango. They’re from a Mango store, and cost $110.

What do you like about these boots? They’re warm, comfortable and hide my legs. I feel stylish on the streets of New York in them.

What’s next on your shoe shopping list? If I go back to warm weather, I’ll get a fancy pair of flip-flops.

Katie Hunt, 25 Actor, Rhode Island Wearing: Farylrobin. I paid $250 for them on Shopbop.com.

How do these boots make you feel? Comfortable yet polished.

Is this the shoe trend of the season? Yes, these and riding boots. They’re both flattering and unusual.

What’s next on your shoe shopping list? Over-theknee boots with a heel.

Layla Williams, 32 Shoe designer, NYC Wearing: I bought these at Prada for somewhere between $300 and $700.

What do you like about these boots? They’re comfy and you get the sex appeal without being on stilettos.

What’s next on your shoe shopping list? Platforms with a substantial heel.

It’s all about comfort and durability, and due to the recession, it has to last.

Up to There Dramatic over-the-knee boots become an everyday staple in wearable black.

By Dorothy Hong december 2009 • footwearplusmagazine.com 33

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ATHLETIC COMFORT GREEN

Let’s Talk Kicks Reebok lets kids make their own statement.

KIDS STREET WORK

Get In Character

KIDS GET A clean slate for doodling thanks to Canton, MA-based Reebok’s new Talkin’ Krazy line. The line’s “Write, Erase, Repeat” concept came from NBA players who wrote messages on their shoes before games.

After launching in Reebok’s men’s basketball line, the company foresees children wanting in on the action. “Whether kids want to make a fashion statement, stand apart from their peers or show off their artistic flair, the Talkin’ Krazy collection encourages them to express themselves,” says Neil Hernberg, head of kids’ product.

The shoes, which retail for roughly $29 to $60, have a seamless leather upper with a coating that enables dry-erase markers to write on the shoe and wipe off. The design team behind the Talkin’ Krazy lines was inspired by the brush strokes and splashes of color found in graffiti. “By using this street-style graffiti look, we were able to transform some of our most iconic models into something totally new and fresh,” Hernberg adds. The line-up includes a metallic silver high-top with pops of orange for preschoolers and a black sneaker with pink and purple highlights for toddlers. “Customization is a constant theme in kids products, but this is something completely new and fresh,” Hernberg explains. —Angela Velasquez

Weboo bows the latest wearable toy.

IF THEY CAN’T play with their food, kids can at least play with their shoes. That’s the idea behind Weboo Footwear, a new venture from the toy industry veterans responsible for Super Soaker water guns and the talking Teddy Ruxpin bear, which is marrying playful 3-D uppers shaped as child-friendly characters with constructions for everyday use.

The brand’s initial shoe and sandal styles include handpainted puppies, dinosaurs, sharks and ponies plus the spiky Weboo logo character, each with intricate design details such as glowin-the-dark eyes, spiny offshoots and pieces that move as the child walks. But Alex LaFazia, who heads sales and marketing for the Santa Monica, CA-based brand, puts equal emphasis on the shoes’ structure, which involves technologies found in athletic product and a WeFit System developed with podiatrists and shoe engineers. While Weboo’s team comes from a toy background, “We’ve spent the last year and a half figuring out what we didn’t know, making our shoes good for kids’ foot development,” LaFazia says. Uppers are manufactured in a toy factory and the soles are made in a shoe factory. The result?

Non-marking, playground-ready soles; ventilated, protective and flexible uppers; and sewn-in Lycra sock liners that allow enough give to accommodate growing feet.

LaFazia says seven new styles will join the original nine for Spring ’10, and other silhouettes are in development. Zappos and Nordstrom have already picked up the brand, and LaFazia believes the uniqueness of the product is drawing attention. “[Buyers] say, ‘Here’s something I haven’t seen every day for the last 10 years,’” he notes.

Weboo’s spring shoes are available in sizes 6T to 2 youth and wholesale for approximately $21; sandals run $19. The company is distributing to gift stores and nontraditional retailers in addition to shoe stores. —Leslie Shiers

A Fresh Spin Pampili redefines the ballerina shoe.

PAMPILI, A BRAZILIAN footwear fashion brand for young girls, takes a cue from Anna Pavlova for spring with its Twist Dance line: shoes with a spinning mechanism on the soles that let little girls do pirouettes aplenty. “Kids want something different,” says Marianne Campagna, U.S. sales rep for Pampili, which is being distributed by East Farmingdale, NY-based Unitrends USA. “I’m hoping it’s going to bring some real excitement to the pre-teen market.”

The Twist Dance technology is similar to that of Heely’s in the fact the rotary spinning mechanism (this time located on the ball of the foot) is only engaged when the child wants it to be, explains Unitrends team leader Danny Portela. That means kids can run and jump safely while wearing them. “The shoes are highly tested,” Campagna assures. Pampili is launching the concept with bright ballerina flats and sneakers in funky prints with sequins and other girl-friendly details; other styles—including a boot silhouette—will be added in future seasons. “They’re so doggone cute and fresh and fun,” Campagna says. “[Pampili is] not afraid of color or to embellish.” Buyer response has been great, she adds, noting Journey’s will launch the line, and several other majors are on board.

The Twist Dance line is offered in U.S. sizes 9 to 4. Pampili has a wide variety of other footwear for infants through size 5. “The line itself has a lot of legs,” Portela says. “This brand can pretty much satisfy any market.” —L.S.

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ATHLETIC COMFORT GREEN KIDS OUTDOOR STREET

Changing Channels A TV component airs in OlsenHaus’ spring line.

FOR VEGAN FOOTWEAR label OlsenHaus, animals are off limits—but your old TV set is fair game. This spring, the brand debuts a line of flats made with industrial waste created in factories that produce television sets. “It’s recycled polyester from the film that they’d be putting on the TV screen,” explains designer and founder Elizabeth Olsen, noting that her efforts to turn the microfiber into footwear are an industry first.

The material will hit the streets in February in OlsenHaus’ Babylon style ($150 retail)—a roundtoe ballet flat available in cow and cheetah prints as well as various solid hues. Olsen, who is committed to producing shoes free of any animal products, says she is currently experimenting with ways to use the material in heels and other designs, and hopes her entire fall line will incorporate the microfiber. “It’s already being used in apparel and upholstery,” she adds, noting the material is waterproof and durable but also has a super-soft suede feel unlike other nonleather options.

While Olsen notes the component is expensive, she is committed to taking her vegan label to the next level in terms of environmental sustainability. “The amount of money I’m putting into this is unheard of… and it [may] not even be profitable. But it gets me to where I want to go.” Buyers who understand her goals “got it,” she reports, noting that she’ll continue to push the industry forward by using unconventional materials—recycled detergent bottles and tire rubber may be her next ingredients. —Leslie Shiers

The Perfect Pair

Sustainable fashion footwear’s dream team.

WHAT DO YOU get when a vegan shoemaker and a sustainable apparel designer join forces? Shoes eco-fashionistas will adore. Both part of the same sustainable showroom in New York, Cri de Coeur founder Gina Ferraraccio and clothing designer (and Footwear Plus contributor) Bahar Shahpar decided to team up to create footwear to complement Shahpar’s Spring ’10 clothing collection for her presentation during New York Fashion Week. Ferraraccio says they were both eager to play around with Ultrasuede, a new animal-free material made from recycled plastic and other waste. The shoes, which mirror a warrior princess theme seen in Shahpar’s collection, received such a great response the duo is wholesaling the styles for spring.

Each of the three core shoes comes in a deep fuchsia or chartreuse. Assertive silhouettes include a platform bootie with a black stretch panel; a buckled bootie open on one side; and a heel with a black front panel and ankle tie. Ferraraccio says other conscientious factors include the use of low-VOC glues and faux-leather linings. (Packaging will be recycled, too.) Retailing for about $250, the shoes have obvious appeal for eco boutiques, but Ferraraccio says mainstream fashion stores are loving the designs as well. —L.S.

Natural Extension Robeez bows an Eco collection.

KIDS’ SHOE BRAND Robeez goes organic for Spring ’10 with the debut of an Eco Collection starring green materials and nature-inspired imagery. Robeez has always promoted unrestricted development while protecting little feet, notes Rachel Panetta, director of marketing for Stride Rite Children’s Group, a division of Lexington, MA-based Collective Brands.

“Now we offer a complete eco-friendly collection that continues to be best for baby when learning to walk and helps protect a baby’s future environment,” she asserts.

The line includes prewalkers and a range of playground-ready shoes for older children. The shoes feature uppers made with 60percent recycled leather and 100-percent organic cotton canvas; chrome-free leather linings that allow baby’s foot to breathe; and outsoles made of soft, chrome-free suede for comfort. For 0 to 2 years, Robeez offers three of its classic soft-sole shoes plus a Mary Jane and a T-strap. Child-friendly motifs include a tree and birds; a bright green tree frog; feet with the words “tiny footprint;” a bright, feminine floral pattern; and a floral design with the phrase “flower child.” All printing is done with water-soluble inks.

Bigger boys and girls (sizes 3 through 7) can choose from fisherman sandals; surfinspired slip-ons with a sea turtle motif; Mary Janes with floral or fruit details; and boat shoe–inspired looks jazzed up with plaid or argyle. These feature the same ecofriendly components as well as outsoles made with 30-percent recycled rubber.

The Eco line gives mom a new footwear option, Panetta says. Best of all, the prices ($29 retail for the soft soles, $35 for the First Steps shoes) are in line with Robeez’s core products. The Eco Collection is geared toward better department stores, independents and select e-tailers. —L.S.

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Special Report • continued from page 8

on their end, too, and many note smartening up now will surely lead to evenas possible. “That’s always helped us, but now when customers are potentially tual success. Just ask Weiner, who describes Saxon Shoes as the “tallest midgbuying because of price point, they can spot that attention to detail.” et” in the game. “In the grand scheme of retail right now, we’re all midgets,” In addition to fashion boots, analysts call out several other hits of 2009: he stresses. “Nobody is hitting home runs out there, but we’re doing as well or canvas and vulcanized sneakers, performance running shoes, and wellness better than most.” product, which hit the masses this year in a big way thanks to Skechers ShapeCampbell says BBC International’s ongoing diversification across retail Ups and Reebok’s EasyTone line. So despite some industry bitching and tiers, geographical regions and licensed brands helped buoy business this year. moaning, “There are pockets of things happening,” Powell says. Transitioning “It assists us when times are challenging,” he notes, explaining that any slack into 2010, he adds, “I do think we’ll see retailers make some specific bets on in one area is generally picked up by another. While BBC couldn’t match is certain categories.” Kummetz offers further encouragement for fashion merrecord-setting 2008 sales this year (last year’s Hannah Montana craze was chants: “We’re hearing anecdotes that high-end consumers are coming back. tough to repeat), it has seen international expansion of the Polo brand and rePeople are looking for newness in fashion versus just deals.” cently sealed a deal to become Disney’s sole U.S. footwear licensee. The recesAnd should the state of retail as of Dec. 31, 2009, be the state of retail for sion just validated BBC’s strategy, the exec notes, stressing that the goal is to the foreseeable future, Ouaknine offers a reminder that everything is relative: have the best partners and brands in order to nab a share of existing business, “A year ago, we were limping and [moaning in pain]. A year later, we’re still regardless of how much there is to go around. limping, but we’re used to it. When people ask how we’re doing, we answer, Making your customer happy is always a means to that end, but it became ‘Not bad at all.’” • more important for both vendors and retailers this year. For brands, that meant doing everything possible to support retail partners facing their worst fears in 2009. Martinez notes Deckers leaned on its strong balance sheet and offered special programs and terms where possible to help them weather the storm. Campbell says staying on top of delivery times was also essential, as retailers aren’t forgiving—not even as lead times grow increasingly shorter.

On the retail side, pleasing consumers boils down to offering innovative, value-packed product at a price they are willing pay—not giving them more of the same.

In terms of product, many brands got more conservative after noticing consumers reeling, and that wasn’t necessarily the best choice. Especially on the athletic side, Powell says, “There’s not a lot of great, fresh product out there. Those that are are selling well.”

Staying a step ahead of consumer desires also proved a boon, as any buyer who stocked up on boots this fall will tell you. “Nobody has enough boots,” Joe Ouaknine, CEO of Titan Industries, told Footwear Plus in midNovember. “That tells you, if you have the right trend, you’re going to do business.”

Whether Larry Tarica, president and COO of Jimlar Corp., parent company of Frye, presaged this season’s boot demand or not, his business confidence did not flag in the face of early media reports contesting a second-coming of the Great Depression. “We actually considered these conditions to provide an opportunity for us to increase our market share, and we continued to invest heavily in design, product development and BACK-TO-SCHOOL BACK-TO-SCHOOL SEASON...

SEASON... brand management,” he says, reporting that the tactic worked; Jimlar expects to see a double-digit sales increase in 2009. Tarica does, however, acknowledge consumers’ turn to lower-priced products—or at least FEBRUARY 3-4, 2010 those holding greater value—and says he expects this SAN DIEGO CONVENTION CENTER sentiment to linger.

SAN DIEGO CALIFORNIA Similarly, Martinez notes Ugg Australia, which also continues to see strong sales, must continue to provide premium product while keeping prices steady to keep consumers faithful. “We don’t want to compromise [our] materials,” the CEO says. “If consumers value our product, they’ll continue to support the brand.”

Rialto’s Dragos recalls one retailer who told him “moderate” is no longer a dirty word. He says that has meant good things for his brand, which has always FALL 2010 • HOLIDAY 2010 • WINTER 2010–11 tried to build as much perceived value into its products

JUMP START YOUR

IN JUST TWO DAYS.

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ATHLETIC COMFORT GREEN KIDS OUTDOOR STREET

Oh, Canada Dayton embraces its past and future.

Plenty to Say Apparel label Say What? flirts with footwear.

IF SHOES MAKE an outfit, Say What? leaves nothing to chance. The 11-yearold apparel and accessories brand—part of the American Attitudes portfolio—is now delivering its fresh, trend-driven designs to the teen and young women’s footwear market. Rozita Pnini, president and CEO, describes the Spring ’10 shoe line addition as a completion to the Say What? lifestyle and the icing on the cake for any Say What? girl. According to Pnini, ignoring the junior footwear category was a missed opportunity. “Our retailers kept stressing the importance of shoes to our girl,” she recalls. “It took time and a lot of discussion with our retailers, but we were finally able to capture the Say What? look in shoes.”

Poised for department and chain stores, the broad range of dress and casual silhouettes in soft fabrications, bright colors and with floral embellishments reflect the look of Say What?’s Spring ’10 apparel line—a shift from the edgy, rocker footwear trend that Pnini says is long overdue. “Our intention is to create a shoe for every occasion, just like we offer with our apparel,” Pnini adds. Dress styles span classic pumps in sorbet shades, two-tone T-straps and sequin peep toes. Pearlized ruffles, cutouts and Missoni-inspired prints add visual interest to wedge silhouettes, and each sole is given a lick of hot pink—a Say What? signature. Flat silhouettes include a satin slip-on adorned with a fabric flower, metallic peep toes and thong sandals accented with clusters of gemstones, and a range of feminine but sporty lo- and hi-top ribbon lace-ups made from satin.

The New York-based company, which Pnini says is staffed with young women who shop the trends themselves, designed the collection with fast fashion and affordable prices in mind. Retail prices range from $19 to $79. “We wanted to create a mix of styles that appealed to 12- to 18-year-old girls with some that could cross over to their mothers, too,” Pnini adds. —Angela Velasquez

DAYTON BOOTS CEO Stephen Encarnacao is binding a new chapter into the Canadian stalwart brand’s storied history. The former chief marketing executive for Reebok, whom also served at senior level for Puma USA and Converse, recently purchased controlling interest in Dayton Boots Enterprises—saving the Vancouver-based boot company from an overseas move and injecting the 63-year-old brand with newfound gusto. “The brand had to stay in Canada,” Encarnacao asserts.

“Dayton has the generational loyalty that is to die for and is associated with everything good about British Columbia.”

Today’s Dayton lineup, which has a strong biker and celebrity following, includes core styles for men and women that reflect the company’s early years, when founder Charlie Wohlford set out to make boots for construction workers and loggers. The single-seam Black Beauty ($500 retail), round-toe Rider ($380), an ankle-hugging lace-up ($380) and more casual styles like the Driver Boot ($380) with white or red heel caps all feature Goodyear welted construction and oil-proof soles. Top-tier leathers are hand cut to ensure thickness consistency, and each boot is double or triple hand-stitched for durability. A CSA-approved steel-toe work boot ($300) will drop in December. The line is geared toward fine booteries, independents and luxury department stores.

Encarnacao has plans to double business by next year while boosting the company’s international hold (Dayton is already hot in Germany) and honing in on 18- to 25-year-old consumers. Retailers can also expect Dayton’s first casual soft leather style and an apparel expansion in the future. There’s a lot on Encarnacao’s plate, including preparation for February’s 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games, when the world will place a spotlight on all things Canadian. Yet he sees a magnitude of potential in the Dayton brand—similar to what he saw in Reebok in the early 1980s—and intends to keep the company grounded in its working roots and is focused on creating jobs for Vancouverites. “If you keep a company small, you can offer employees more benefits,” he explains.

“Right now, providing jobs is the most important thing.” —A.V.

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Q&A • continued from page 15

combine a sneaker-like ride with the style of a dress shoe, so it becomes the perfect interview and first job shoe. It also helps bring the Rockport brand to a new consumer.

Has Rockport considered making a play for the wellness category?

While Rockport may not speak specifically to wellness or fitness, the fact that the average New Yorker, for example, walks two to three miles a day means that having shoes that are “walkable” will certainly yield health benefits. In general, our brand message is that Rockport enables people to do more, be more and live more, which I believe is a pretty empowering statement.

Will walking reemerge as a strong segment for the brand?

Yes, walking is a major element of what Rockport is. It’s not necessarily health or fitness walking, although there’s an element of that, but the fact that Rockport shoes are walkable means every Rockport product incorporates engineered comfort so consumers can go about their daily lives—what we call the “7 to 7 life”—in comfort. It’s the daily commute, running to meetings, through the airport, to lunch and finally to the soccer field to watch the kids. Our targeted consumer leads a hectic and full life. He and she

are what we call “metropolitan professionals,” and walking is an integral part of their lives.

Having once been a retailer, any advice on weathering these tough times?

Just like we are embracing who we are as a brand, I would advise retailers to embrace who they are. Ask, what is your competitive advantage versus the competition? Is it the breadth of your offering? Is it service? Is it a combination?

And do what you do best. While the recession has created a heightened expectation for value, it is all relative. It’s not just about price.

What in your retail experience best prepared you for your wholesale career?

Spending time on the selling floor. When I was a buyer at Macy’s, I went down to the floor every day from 12 to 1 p.m. and from 5 to 6 p.m. That’s where I learned what was going on in the market, what the reality was. Unfortunately, the training just isn’t the same today.

Why not? It seems to be one of the most successful exercises a retailer could provide.

Department stores have so much going on internally right now. The fact that a buyer is probably doing a job that literally 10-plus people used to do… I don’t think they have the time. Subsequent-

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FW_12_QA_04.indd 39

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ly, so much of the gut instinct has come out of the business. It’s now so pure data-driven. While we were always data-driven, the old-time career buyers went on feel and instinct. They didn’t need a spreadsheet to tell them what was going on.

Has it become a lost art form?

Absolutely. When I was an assistant buyer, one of our veteran buyers gave me the best advice: Walk the selling f loor every day, and not just in your department. Walk through domestics—towels, sheets and pillowcases—and you will start to understand what is going on with colors and patterns. Learn what inf luences people’s buying decisions and see what customers are wearing and what they are buying. I never forgot that.

What do you love most about your job?

I feel very fortunate to be in the footwear industry. Not to get too esoteric, but I believe everything has an energy to it—a desk, a chair, a tree, a flower—and we are fortunate that we work in an industry that brings products into the market that truly have an inherent positive energy, that truly give people satisfaction and happiness. Our products help people to perform better in their daily lives and, in the simplest terms, bring them joy. •

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11/17/09 2:20:07 PM

made you look riffs on a classic

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Expert Renditions

Carlos Falchi

Ugg Australia taps the fashion pros to create wearable art.

THINK MANOLO COULDN’T possibly design an “ugg”-looking shoe? Think again. This year’s annual Ugg Australia Art & Sole auction—the brand’s seventh—puts top designers’ one-off creations on the block. Big names such as Blahnik, Giuseppe Zanotti and Stuart Weitzman put their own spin on Ugg’s Classic Tall boot, as have “Project Runway” winners Christian Siriano and Leanne Marshall.

Their distinctive boots will be auctioned off via Ugg ’s website through Dec. 14, with all of the proceeds going to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Since its inception in 2003, Art & Sole has featured boots by celebs like Matthew McConaughey, Britney Spears and Charlize Theron, but Ugg execs believe bidders viewed them as keepsakes. Wanting to offer more wearable styles, they decided to switch to industry insiders. “Not only have the designer participants brought their fashion artistry and signature look to our classic Ugg boots, they have successfully fused the styles together, creating 24 fashion statements,” Ugg president Connie Rishwain says, noting designers were eager to contribute. “As a mother of three, anything to do with children is very close to my heart,” says Laurie Lynn Stark, co-owner of Chrome Hearts, a luxury accessory label that produced a star-studded design. Carlos Falchi concurs, noting his boot reflects the graffiti inspiration of his own recent collection.

Rishwain says the stakes are higher this year, with bidders being more budgetconscious, but she thinks the designers’ expertise in trends and what sells will help. “We have given St. Jude over $315,000 in donations from our Art & Sole auctions,” she notes. “We raise the bar each year.” —Del-Ann Henry

Leanne Marshall

Rebecca Taylor

Betsey Johnson

Zang Toi 40 footwearplusmagazine.com • december 2009

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