September / october 2019

FEATURE

Gold MEdal Service Awards

That Golden Glow

How the Award Winners Excel at Customer Service

It’s been five years since Footwear Insight created the Gold Medal Service Awards to recognize and honor the incredible, vital work that independent shoe shops across the country do every day. We know how hard you work to make your customers’ lives better, and we wanted to give the stores that go above and beyond the recognition they deserve. Read the full story.

School Colors

Cool for School

When it comes to kicks, whether you go old school or new school, class is definitely in session. The freshest updates to the classic court shoes and running styles are the varsity blues (and reds and golds and greens and oranges and …). Read the full story.

Crowd Source

A Staffing Playbook

Brick-and-mortar independents know service — and by extension, they know people. With so much of the channel’s strength resting on the customer service it provides, getting the right employees on the front lines is essential. Read the full story.

Trends

The Great (Urban) Outdoors

Consumers in urban environments (and suburban ones too, for that matter) with busy lives are increasingly looking to outdoor endeavors for balance. We asked execs at outdoor brands for their thoughts on the urban-outdoor trend and where it’s headed. Read the full story.

Lines We Like

In The Wild

Animal prints are on the prowl this fall and they are a strong presence in footwear collections for Spring 2020 as well. Here are a few of the styles making us purr.
Read the full story.

Analysis

What’s Next in the Tariff Standoff?

For the footwear industry, pain from tariffs has already been inflicted. Where do we go from here? As vendors and retailers alike work aggressively to mitigate impacts on holiday sales and beyond, container imports from China continue to... Read the full story.

Hosiery

The Right Stuff

Updates from Around the Sock Market including: Darn Tough Vermont, Feetures, Balega, Heat Holders, OS1st, Sock Guy, and Farm to Feet. Read the full story.

July / August 2019

FEATURE

Sandals

Take Cover

Closed-up sandals are the breakout trend for Spring 2020. We shine a spotlight on the hottest styles.

What to wear when the spring weather is a question mark? Forget early-season strappy sandals: closed-up styles that work as well in March as they do in July are the go-to pieces for shoulder season. Read the full story.

Crowd source

Getting Influential

When you think about “influencers,” who comes to mind? It might be Kim Kardashian West, who has promoted diet products, teeth whitening preparations and vitamins as well as her own beauty lines to her 144 million followers. Read the full story.

Q&A

Fox Files

When Jim Fox stepped into the CEO position at Dansko on the first of the year, he knew he was filling big shoes. The longtime CFO for the West Grove, PA-based comfort brand is the first person to serve in the top spot after taking over from founder Mandy Cabot. Read the full story.

Athletic

One for All

When it comes to fitness shoes, consumers are looking for The One. With the popularity of high intensity interval training (HIIT) fitness and combo classes — think Orange Theory and cycling-and-weight workouts — “do-everything” shoes that work for runs... Read the full story.

The Boot Book

Style +Tech Boot Up

When it comes to boots, customers want it all: pinnacle performance technologies, incredible out-of-the-box comfort, and style for days. Luckily, brands are ready to answer the call with no-compromise looks for every need.
Read the full story.

Retail

Eneslow At 110

Eneslow, New York’s iconic retail shoe and pedorthic/orthotic center, is celebrating its 110th birthday in a grand way: It’s opening another retail store. Read the full story.

Design Trends

Material Matters

The desire to make shoes faster, lighter, more durable, more cushioned or just plain more comfortable has driven some of the biggest franchises in the footwear world. Read the full story.

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