NEWS Society of Shoe Fitters: Courses & Examinations 2011 / 2012
The two new official start dates in 2012 for the 5 month course (both starting directly after the MODA show) are: MARCH 1st 2012 and SEPTEMBER 1st 2012. and the two workshops will take place during each 5 month course – which are also offered to Deluxe Students and those on the 10 month course. The dates are:
DIARY DATES: Workshops 2012: Workshop 1 = Anatomy/Children’s Fitting/Returns: choice of March 21st or October 3rd Workshop 2 = Factory Visit/Manufacturing & Construction Methods/Adult Fitting: choice of June 6th or November 14th
With a great start to the new season’s courses
this September, the Society of Shoe Fitters are going to go on booking the 10 month course through to the end of February until the start of their new 5 month course – 1st March 2012. The new course format is allowing them to be far more flexible and in tune with people’s needs as they have reduced the number of Workshops from three to two, but are repeating them within the same year, so if students miss one they don’t have to wait too long to attend the one they’ve missed.
Another change taking place is the
presentation of their qualification. Whereas students who completed their coursework early had to wait until Workshop 3 to receive their certificates, goodie bags etc., now they will be sent immediately upon approval of their Tutor. Surprisingly they have booked more Deluxe
Courses than usual (which includes gauges and an instore visit for staff training), which is good news as it means ‘new shops are opening’ – a real injection of confidence for the trade and great for their Associate Members!
They make the Workshops available to anyone who has missed a Workshop during their course and were disappointed to do so. If you are a previous student and would like to come to one of these dates, please email the office and give a week’s notice, if they can fit you in they will. These are opened up to non-students if space allows. The Entrance Examination is available online
(
www.shoefitters-uk.org) for highly experienced shoe fitters who wish to qualify as members, and they have recently welcomed Phillip Taylor of the Cordwainer Unit in Hope Valley, Derbyshire and Lisa Preston of Shoemed in Stratford upon Avon, Warks. If you have someone in your shop who has been fitting for years, why not encourage them to do the examination and receive all the many benefits of belonging to the SSF!
De Montfort University footwear stars to showcase designs at Moda Moda Footwear, the UK’s largest and busiest footwear trade show will
once again collaborate with De Montfort University for the annual ‘History in the Making’ project, which will see final year footwear design students developing a range of shoes using the theme of ‘heritage’ for inspiration. Six finalists will then have their creations displayed at the Moda Footwear exhibition on 19-21 February at the NEC Birmingham.
The students from the BA (Hons) Footwear Design course, the UK’s only single honours course, have been challenged by Moda to design and develop a range of footwear which combines inspiration from a key period in history with today’s modern footwear trends. Six finalists will be chosen by Kevin Guildford, head of footwear at DMU to be showcased at Moda Footwear in February. The overall winner of the project will be decided by an industry panel including the editor of the UK’s leading footwear trade magazine Footwear and Fashion Extras and Sean O’Connor, director of Moda Footwear, who says, “We are extremely proud once again to work alongside De Montfort University on the ‘History in the Making’ project. The standard of work this year is exceptional and we hope that the exposure at the UK’s major footwear exhibition will help the candidates in their future career paths.”
The judges will be looking for the design that represents the best creative flair and interpretation of the brief, which last February saw Eleanor Ferry claim the top award for most commercial design with a World War II-inspired shoe.
10 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • JANUARY 2012
The collaboration project, now in its fourth consecutive year, is proving to be a credible opportunity for De Montfort University’s footwear design students to see the show as a platform to take their first steps towards a promising career in the design trade and also as a valuable opportunity to network with the footwear industry’s key figures that attend.
Moda Footwear will be showcasing the autumn/winter 12 collections from
19-21 February at the NEC Birmingham. For more information on the latest signings, event news and more please visit
moda-uk.co.uk.
Website at
moda-uk.co.uk and talk to us at
facebook.com/moda.uk and
twitter.com/ModaExhibitions
Fact Box: De Montfort University is the only single Honours Design course in the UK. • The course leads to successful careers in footwear design, buying and marketing, as well as using practical skills and shoemaking knowledge in the production and technical areas of the footwear industry. • Jimmy Choo holds an Honorary Doctorate from the University. • Previous graduates have gone to work for companies such as Gucci, Red or Dead, Office, Kurt Geiger, New Balance, Karen Millen, Adidas and Firetrap.
www.dmu.ac.uk www.footweartoday.co.uk
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