Footwear main P[4-7]:FOOTWEAR NEW TEMPLAT 10 08 20/07/2009 13:00 Page 6
NEWS
British-made Hotter shoes’ Challenge & opportunity in the
20% growth
footwear supply chain
Recession beating Hotter ultimate indulgence for their As part of its 90th anniversary
chain can deliver
Comfort Concept has achieved feet – designed, manufactured, celebrations, SATRA will be
•
The opportunity of new
20% growth in the first six packed and shipped from a holding a series of technical technologies
months of 2009, its 50th Lancashire factory which just conferences investigating global
•
Ongoing research and
anniversary year, and plans to ten years ago employed 57 challenges and opportunities in innovation
open two new stores despite the people. As one of the last the footwear supply chain, from The challenge & opportunity
economic gloom. It is now bastions of shoe manufacturing raw materials to retail. conferences will take place:
manufacturing 1.3 million pairs in the UK, the 380 staff of The conference series, which
•
Wednesday 30th September
of footwear each year in the UK Hotter Comfort Concept are is exclusive to SATRA members, 2009, SATRA Technology
in one of the world’s most flying the flag for home-grown will see key industry speakers Centre, Kettering, UK
technologically advanced shoe footwear talent with an innova- and SATRA experts present a
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Wednesday 21st October
making factories. tive strategy which includes lively programme that will 2009, Boston, USA
Thousands are casting aside selling shoes direct to its address the following topics:
•
Friday 27th November 2009,
shoes which create blisters and customers via its on-site call
• Maintaining manufacturing
Dongguan, China
pinch toes to indulge their feet in centre and selling through 300
quality away from core
a British manufacturing phenom- independent UK retailers.
centres of business
For further information contact
enon, based in Lancashire, which Many would consider shoe
has last year turned over £37.5m manufacturing to be a dinosaur
•
Future labour bases
John Hubbard on 01536 410
and made profits of £5m. of the British manufacturing
•
Maintaining quality material
000 or email johnh@satra.co.uk
supply in a global industry
To enquire about SATRA
Managing Director Stewart sector, but so ground-breaking
Houlgrave said: “It’s our 50th is Hotter’s marketing model
•
The challenge of training to
Membership contact Alan Drage
prevent industry knowledge
email aland@satra.co.uk or visit
Birthday in 2009 and we are that it secured £21m of private
loss
www.satra.co.uk/portal/about_
aiming for 20 per cent growth. investment in 2007 – and it has
We plan to invest £3m over the been named in the top 100 of
•
Meeting the environmental
membership.php
challenge
www.satra.co.uk
coming year to create a state- the Times Profit Track 100 for
of-the-art website and boost the past two years.
•
What customers want
membership.php
and how the supply •
www.satra.co.uk
our overseas presence. Over “In the past we’ve sold our
the past six years we’ve shoes via images of naked
invested £6m in the company women wearing nothing but
and now have one of the most Hotter and our monthly factory
Step2wo opens its third store in China
successful production facilities tour is fully booked until 2016
anywhere in the world.“ purely by word of mouth,” said
Hotter designers secretly Stewart Houlgrave, Hotter Man-
hide ‘comfort concept’ features aging Director whose parents
in each pair of shoes, ensuring set up the company, “now our
Hotter’s five high street stores design team are ‘hotterising’
are also thriving. The company high street shoe fashions
targets the active over 50s because they are on a mission
market, where shoe shoppers to make the UK’s feet happy!”
are investing their cash in the
•
www.hotter.co.uk
Step2wo is delighted to an- retail experience working for
LIR has reached an agreement for the
nounce that it has opened its brands like Henkel and IKEA
third store in mainland China. and who has also worked
acquisition of Diadora
The new store, which is located in as a trainee at Marks & Spencer
Shenzhen in the South of China, in its former head office in
opened on May 8 2009 and Baker Street, London: “I am
LIR S.r.l., the financial holding the decision to acquire the follows the success of Step2wo’s delighted that the new Step2wo
owned by the Moretti Polegato Italian sportswear brand existing stores in Beijing. store is open,” says Patricia.
Family, which acts on the real Diadora. The agreement is in The 600sq ft store is located “There continues to be a de-
estate markets, editorial place for the restoration of the in the heart of the Luohu mand for high quality children’s
markets and footwear and company, with LIR’s intentions shopping district in Shenzhen clothing and footwear in China
apparel sectors, has reached to develop the enormous and carries many of the world’s and I believe that customers
an agreement to buy Diadora’s potential of the Italian brand: leading children’s fashion labels appreciate having access to a
assets. Diadora is credited with including Little Marc by Marc hand-picked selection of many
As the majority shareholder making Italian district Jacobs, Baby Dior and Miss of the best brands, all in one
of GEOX S.p.A and through the Montebelluna internationally Grant and caters for babies and place. I am confident that the
international success of the renowned for producing qual- children aged 0 to 14 years. The store will be a great success
Company, LIR has gained ity footwear, and therefore the store also carries an extensive and will follow in the footsteps
considerable knowledge of the aim of the acquisition is also to range of the Step2wo own of the other Step2wo stores in
footwear and apparel markets: safeguard its local legacy. brand luxury footwear line. Beijing, which continue to
LIR has therefore invested in
•
www.diadora.com The new store is run by attract a regular customer base.”
Patricia Li, who has extensive
•
www.Step2wo.com
6
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FOOTWEAR TODAY
•
AUGUST 2009
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