Merrell
JP: Exactly. It’s something the consumer is beginning to recognise, much the same way as Gore-Tex is seen now.
SGBO: What’s Vibram’s input been? JP: The design team in the States has been working very closely with them to develop the product. They’re involved in the business because they do the majority of outsoles across our products. They’ve been a very positive partner for the brand and will continue to be so.
SGBO: The line is three shoes, with two that are performance/outdoor shoes, and another which is more lifestyle – tell us about the range. JP: There are three men’s and three women’s options. From the mens’ perspective there are two more outdoor looking, plus a full grain leather option, which is certainly more ‘fashion’ looking. But all three have the same outsole, so essentially the two outdoors ones are more breathable if you wanted to run in them. That’s probably the key difference.
SGBO: What are the price points to be? JP: Around £80-£92 rrp.
SGBO: Merrell recently acquired Chaco, the successful sandal brand. What are the plans for that? JP: We acquired Chaco last year. They’re based in Colorado and are the number one sandal brand in the US, in outdoor sandals. It’s a big brand and our thinking is we’re going to take it into the European market. The UK is very much part of that. We’ve got an added difference to our rivals though, in our biocentric footbed which we call ‘Addstride’. It has high arch support for the foot and rather than made with EVA it’s made with polyurethane so it doesn’t wear down over time, or compress. It’s a more expensive material but it’s better for your feet. If you use an EVA sole on a sandal like that and use it heavily, it will last about six months. If you used polyurethane on it, it will last the life of the shoe. We also do re-webbing so you can have one pair of Chacos for life! They also have an adjustable fit, so the webbing that goes around the sandal feeds all the way through so it brings the foot closer to the sandal and it’s part of what makes the walking more efficient. It’s complete custom adjustability and it will maximise fit and eliminates the bulk and stiffness of overlapping Velcro.
SGBO: How are you going to bring this to the UK retailer? JP: We launch it in Spring 2011, and the focus is very much on supporting retailers and help supporting sell-through for the first few seasons. Then the brand will continue to grow. We had a
phenomenal reaction to the brand at OutDoor in Friedrichshafen in the summer.
We’ll take this to outdoor specialist stores but it will work in department stores as well. It’s about communicating what Chaco’s all about, the adjustability, the Addstride footbed…
NOVEMBER 2010 SGB OUTDOOR
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