NEWS BFA News From time to time, the head of a British
footwear company is asked to give a personal view on the industry – his/her concerns, forecasts and issues of the day. Jaime Cooke, Managing Director of Muks, has agreed to be this month’s contributor: "The power of a celebrity wearing your brand
can be amazing for sales or even just making it in business. I started with a winter boot product in 2004 in which I was testing 4 pairs in a London boutique - 2 weeks later Kate Moss had purchased 2 of the 4 pairs and almost overnight I had a flourishing business. This led to other celebrities desiring the product and mass market growth, almost too fast for us to keep up with production. In the USA they talk about the 'Oprah Effect'.
This is a woman who has access to 44 million viewers per week, numbers which translates into huge sales for the products she recommends. It is a brand's dream to get on Oprah's Favourite Things list, your business can virtually be turned around within 24 hours of being mentioned. The common strand of being on Oprah affects brands in a similar way—up to 1,000 percent growth over the short term immediately following the episode and sustained higher revenues for months or years afterward. The only disadvantage to celebrity
endorsement is product copies and companies passing off through use of the brand's celebrity and PR images. We have experienced a vast number of cheap
copy products in the market place using our celebrity press, which creates a huge amount of confusion. Production needs to be closely monitored - sadly in some cases the copies come from the same factory as the authentic ones....”
Trade Mark Registration A company’s trademark is an asset and a form
of property, ownership of which can be registered and protected in the same way as any other property. Once registered, the owner of the trade mark has an enforceable, statutory right to prevent anyone from using anything similar to sell the same goods or services. Importantly, the owner of a registered trade mark can use the ©symbol or “RTM” abbreviation (for registered trade mark) with their trade mark to make clear that it is registered and that the owner will seek to protect it. This is an important deterrent to discourage anyone else from using or trying to register anything similar, particularly given that intellectual property crime, counterfeiting and piracy of trade-marked and copyrighted products and services is reportedly on the increase. It is good practice to review your corporate
brand, product names, slogans and logos etc to see how and whether registered trade mark protection could be sought to protect your
8 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • SEPTEMBER 2011
Richard Kottler, CEO BFA
AUSTRALIA EXPORT MISSION - 12-21 NOVEMBER 2011 UK Trade & Investment have advised of this unique opportunity for companies looking to maximise sales success within Australia. There is an attractive but limited support package available and we have full details of this and the programme for the mission. Please note that the deadline for registration is
2nd September 2011 but the earlier you reserve your place, the sooner UKTI can start the research which will help you to get the most out of your visit.
SOUTH AFRICA SHOE EXPO 2011 15 - 17 SEPTEMBER 2011, SANDTON, JOHANNESBURG The event will take place at the Sandton
intellectual property. Further information contact Margaret Briffa of Briffa Solicitors
margaret@briffa.com or Rachael Parman at Manches LLP
rachael.parman@
manches.com
London’s Low Emission Zone is changing in 2012. The Zone was launched in 2008 to deliver
cleaner air for London. From 3 January 2012, the emissions standards for diesel vehicles already affected by the LEZ will be tightened. Lorries, buses and coaches will be required to meet a Euro IV standard for particulate matter to drive within the LEZ without charge. Also from 3 January 2012, larger vans, minibuses and other specialist diesel vehicles will have to meet a Euro 3 standard for particulate matter in order to drive within the LEZ without charge. For further information go to
www.tfl.gov.uk/lezlondon which includes a vehicle checker.
Footwear Friends The Northamptonshire Footwear
Manufacturers’ Annual Dinner took place on 28 April, hosted by NPS Shoes Ltd., and was attended by 77 representatives of the industry. A collection on behalf of the charity Footwear Friends raised £784.50. The Dinner was preceded by a Northamptonshire footwear golf tournament which raised a further £300 for Footwear Friends.
Training The BFA will pay 50% of the cost of training that is specific to the industry (subject to approval by the BFA) - for more information, contact Sarah Carver on
sarah@britfoot.com.
Legal advice Similarly, there has been less use made of the FREE legal service provided by Croner. Those companies that have used this are full of praise for the level of informed and professional response. Wherever you have a legal issue, to access the
Croner service, either by using the business support helpline or, for help with practical issues such as HR related correspondence etc, please contact Elaine
elaine@britfoot.com.
Richard Kottler – Chief Executive, British Footwear Association Ltd.
richard.kottler@britfoot.com
www.footweartoday.co.uk
Convention Centre. The Shoe Expo is a platform intended to bring together footwear manufacturers, distributors, buyers and the general public from across the world. The event aims at attracting over 10000
delegates and exhibitors from across the world. It will also explore better business management methods and practices to improve productivity. The expo is focused at availing a strong platform to exhibit and bring to light opportunities that exist for shoe manufacturers, distributors and buyers of footwear from the whole world.
OVERSEAS AGENTS Many member companies have difficulty in
acquiring good, energetic and reliable overseas agents. It is difficult for the BFA and indeed the various overseas UK Trade Commissions to maintain up to date and meaningful lists of such agents and whilst it is always possible to find agents through showing at the various major exhibitions, this is very hit and miss and is less useful for the non-major countries. A number of BFA members have suggested
that we set up and operate a CONFIDENTIAL data base of agents, by country, that work with one or more of our members and who are interested in meeting other UK companies operating in a product area that would not compete with their existing brand portfolio. We already have 2-3 members that would be willing to post agent details onto a BFA held data base that could be added to and only accessed by other BFA companies. We are currently seriously researching this
concept and would welcome your comments on it. I would be grateful if you could let Nicholas know your views -
nicholas@fitsuk.com
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