Answers to Trivia Featuring Last Week’s Winner Mike Ponce
by JULIA
Congrats to Marcelo for answering all but one ! HaHa. He’ll be asking one question next week! During the 1972 Summer Olympics, which shoe brand provided running shoes for the 400m hurdles champion, John Ake Bua? A: In 1972 PUMA provided running shoes for the 400m hurdles champion, John Ake Bua, from Uganda. PUMA even employed Ake Bua and tried to help integrate him and his family in German society, but even…
Notes From The Field
by William Weiss
Notes From The Field – Fraternity…Shoes…Strategy….and Lots Of Liquor There’s nothing sexier than a 6AM flight out of Grand Rapids. And nothing more conducive to deep reflection than the mescaline-like haze of a hangover (I stole that line from Lester Bangs; if you have to ask, then we can’t be friends). Lucky for me, I found myself in this exact position this morning, and it allowed me to consider the past week of my l…
The Daily 5-It’s all about the Good News!
by JULIA
I have been trying to find good news to highlight for the last couple of days and it is not such an easy task these days. I decided to reach out to the most optimistic, positive person in the shoe industry Rebo McFadden for help. Thanks to him and Blackberry Messenger, I was able to complete my list: 1. Reebok came out with their version of a fitness shoe and a new workout in collaboration with Cirque du Soleil: http://www.…
shoebizness.com LinkedIn Group!
by JULIA
Our LinkedIn group Footwear Professional Network/Shoebizness.com has more than 2200 members and is growing daily! I highly suggest if you already are not a member that you become one. It is a great way to network and connect with other industry people! Please see below for this last weeks updates!! http://www.linkedin.com/groupRegistration?gid=103836 Updates: This Week
Argentinian Invasion! Ferraro makes its U.S. debut…
by JULIA
Jose Cruzado, whom I wrote about earlier, told me that I needed to go visit the Argentinian brand Ferraro and I’m glad that I did! After 50 years in the footwear industry, Ferraro decided to make its US debut. Fabian Ferraro represents the second generation of family members running the company, which began by catering to a more traditional woman. When Fabian and his brother took over the company, the…
The Daily 5-All about the Good News!
by JULIA
1. Spring is selling, so I hear from Jenifer Cleary – who would not lie 2. Deckers posted healthy gains for the 4th quarter according to Footwear News 3. Steve Madden also had a strong 4th quarter. The success is partially contributed to by the fact that they are “good at delivering what they promise”. Not a bad practice!! – Footwear News 4. Jimlar has an ad the back of Footwear News tha…
Shout out to the guys at UES (Upper Echelon Shoes)
by JULIA
So my assistant, Claudia Davila styled a photo shoot for American Idol Season 1 top contestant Christina Christian (who happens to be a client of mine) while I was away at WSA. I just saw the photos from the shoot yesterday and of course immediately noticed the shoes! When I told Claudia I met the designers for UES and had featured them on this site, she shrieked with excitement. Turns out, she had styled the outfit aroun…
Industry-Watch out for this brand!!
by JULIA
Nana Sananikone may be one of the most creative people I have met in a while! Her brand Industry decided to launch footwear a couple of years ago and is already making great strides. Not many designers are able to make the transition from clothing to footwear quite as easily as Nana has. In fact, Industry has already won multiple awards for creativity, design and as a company for their charitable efforts. Ally and I met…
…And the Ballots Are In!
by JULIA
Following up on my predictions for the hottest footwear trends @ WSA – here are the actual top recurring trends seen during the show. What are your thoughts? 1. Athletic-Fashion: Along the lines of my “Tech-Mesh” prediction, we saw an abundance of fashion-forward athletic footwear. However, much of the footwear had a retro feel vs. new-wave design. UES (please see prior article!) did a fan…
What I’m Loving Right Now
by JULIA
Did anyone happen to visit UES (Upper Echelon Shoes) at Titan Industries? If so, you probably witnessed some of the freshest athletic-fashion footwear on the market today.
Time to Shape-up!
by JULIA
Day 1 was a great success – and the icing on the cake was meeting Rebo McFadden (Promotions and Marketing for Skechers). If you ever meet Rebo and mention Julia, you’ll hear a great story about a cell phone and a taxi - but I’ll let Rebo tell you the rest! Skechers has had a busy year by introducing TapouT and Punk Rose – 2 new footwear licenses. TapouT (based on the crew of MMA fighters) consi…
5 people I must thank!
by JULIA
1. Yimy Chirinos - designer for www.shoebizness.com and www.pearlandcompany.com 2. Seth Krebich – operations support and husband 3. Ally Ulrich – business partner, contributor and amazing friend 4. Tracy Russ – contributor and also amazing friend 5. Geoff Green- fan club president and again amazing friend You guys all rock! Thank you for your continued support, ideas, contributions…
Welcome and Hello!
by JULIA
Step into shoebizness.com, the on-line forum for footwear professionals BY footwear professionals! I launched shoebizness.com when I realized that there were so many talented, creative people in the industry who are at their best when they can connect with other professionals in a fun, energizing, fresh environment. But, I looked in vain for a place for this to happen on a regular basis. Shoebizness.com was cr…
How to Land on Your Feet after Getting the Corporate Boot
by JULIA
“There was nowhere to turn for growth — except out.” -Dan Bennette I met Dan while working on a position for a client of mine over a year ago. He was laid off by a company he had given 6 years of his professional life to….unfortunately a reality for so many these days. Dan’s story will hopefully inspire those of you who are in a similar situation to hang in there and continue to look towards the futu…
The Shoe Show Virgin
by JULIA
Shoebizness friends Tracy Russ and Ally Ulrich….and ME! The Shoe Show Virgin I was excited, a bit apprehensive, but mostly consumed with the special kind of curiosity that comes with the knowledge that you know you’re about to experience something wonderful, but you’re not quite sure what’s going to happen. I didn’t try to pretend I knew what I was doing, as I was with a woman with ex…
