AGENT PROVOCATEUR Breaking with tradition H
ow many shopping days to Christmas I hear everyone asking at present? “Who cares” I hear the ‘Ebenezer’s’ shout back. With approximately 47 shopping days left (including Sunday’s) until the big day, we only have a very short space of time to get
all our present’s for Aunt Maude, Uncle Jack and the dog… but what will we all be buying this year? And the big question – ‘what sort of toys will be in the top ten for kids? Tracy Island? (showing my age now), the latest Barbie, or more likely a new Xbox or Playstation must-have. There are always the obligatory pair of slippers that over the years have morphed into soft toys with holes for feet, but what is completely unlikely on the millions of lists flying up the chimney in the weeks of December will be a nice pair of shoes or boots, or am I being too cynical, could footwear be creeping back into favour? As we suffer in this recession more and more families will be buying
more practical items for each other during the festive season. Dad might be in for a new pair of slippers (to go with his pipe and hand-knitted jumper) but Mum is very likely to be in for a new pair of winter boots in the latest fashion colour. I witnessed the Ugg phenomenon first hand last year where guys were begging shop assistants on Christmas Eve to double check the stock of size 6. Obviously shops were out of stock, but the guys went ahead and bought size 8 anyway just so they could look good on Christmas morning and feign surprise and mock-horror that they don’t fit (obviously the assistants error
..cough) happy in the knowledge the boots would go back for exchange or refund after Christmas. Now don’t get any ideas if you have read this and feel inspired to do the same (you should know better), but if you like to live dangerously I recommend not opening presents until AFTER lunch or you will never get down the pub and believe me the Boxing Day sulk really isn’t worth it. In recent years the trend has been in giving loved ones cash to spend at the ‘January sales’ (you know the ones that start in December and finish in March) to ‘grab themselves a bargain’. Common-sense tells you that invariably this is not the case as you have to be in the queue at ‘silly o’clock’ on the 31st of December to be able to get anywhere near a decent bargain. The carrot advertised to tease the taste buds has got smaller and smaller, so only the first three customers through the door on Sale Day really bag a bargain. However one or two multiples do seem to do well, Next springs to mind, but one can’t help but feel sorry for the assistants a few days later when seemingly equal size bags join an equal sized queue to the Returns Department…bah humbug! This all leads to promising sales in the retail footwear sector in the run up to Christmas, or perhaps I am an eternal optimist and putting my positive spin on the whole affair? I feel sure that instead of an unromantic voucher for a day go-carting, or a weekends pampering at a health farm, it could be the humble shoe is back on the menu. It seems that the current trend of buying practically is here to stay, not necessarily cheaper, but buying wisely wanting value for money. The grindery trade must have been rubbing its apron in the past couple of years with the sales of new heels, resoling and sticking and more
12 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2010
surprisingly the entrepreneurial cobblers are starting to sell quality footwear as an ‘add-on’- a distinct turn around in fortunes – you could even say ‘the boot is on the other foot!’ A friend in the jewellery industry says that business is booming on
very expensive items. Traditionally this is their busiest time anyway, but due to dire interest rates, the New Year hike in VAT and the fact that “good” pieces of jewellery do hold their value, jewellers will definitely deck the halls with boughs of holly this year and will be hanging mistletoe in abundance. Fine Art dealers will be doing the same. So do you have an essential ‘must have’ brand in stock, or high value
item that you can put centrally in your window that won’t sell well at any other time? Will you offer a free ‘wrapping service’ like the perfumers’ and florists? Have you considered putting your Christmas window in at the end of October to compete with the supermarkets?
Now don’t get any ideas if you have read this and feel inspired to do the same (you should know better), but if you like to live dangerously I recommend not opening presents until AFTER lunch or you will never get down the pub and believe me the Boxing Day sulk really isn’t worth it.
The chances are the answer is no….but why not? Christmas is all about tradition and traditionally trade is slow November – January, so why not break away from tradition and try something different. Don’t cram the shoes in the window in the hope of an impulse buy – make it something families will want to look at or the local press talk about instead. Has Santa ever fitted a pair of shoes? Well there’s always a first time! Time to think outside the box – literally! Christmas day falls on a Saturday, Boxing Day Sunday so for retail
staff this is a nightmare. Having got permission to go to the pub (I always buy the right size boots for the missus) I will drink a toast to you all and have my fingers (and toes) crossed that you are selling by the bucket load leaving the shelves clear for all the new stock I have just sold in. As it is the season of goodwill (as well as a time to be jolly), my wish is that shopkeepers will see sense and decide to close on Monday and Tuesday to give you all an enjoyable festive season. Perhaps it’s the thought of the eggnog and brandy addling my brain already. I hope you have enjoyed Agent Provocateur throughout 2010 and I wish you a wonderful Christmas and a prosperous 2011.
www.footweartoday.co.uk
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