We are lucky to have shops in the beautiful Lake District. It is a joy to have a day around the shops when you have such wonderful scenery. The other big advantage is that you have your local trade all year round, but a huge increase in trade from visitors from March to November. We are also very lucky to have a fantastic team of staff looking after the shops.
Do you have a high turnover of staff? The original member of staff who joined us in Keswick at the very start is still with us and has seen the whole business grow. We have a very low turnover of staff, the only ones who leave generally do so within the first couple of months. After that, they all seem happy and understand how we work. We have two social events every year. The summer bar snack at a village pub and our end of year part, which includes the much coveted awards ceremony where we award various trophies for Sales person, Manager, Branch, and the most popular “Cock up of the Year” award. We work very hard at including all staff members in the business and try and share our success with them in some way. They are our business and we can’t be in every shop all the time.
Do you have an online shop/website and do you use social networking for business? We started our online business 5 years ago and it ticks along. We started selling on Amazon 5 years ago and to begin with it was very successful. Now, there are so many retailers selling via Amazon and everyone is cutting prices it is far less attractive than when we started. Our own website is used mainly for customers who have been into the shop and want another pair of shoes in another colour, or for a friend. I am sure we could do more but it’s all a matter of time.
How are you finding the footwear market currently? 2011 was a fantastic year for us and we were hoping 2012 would be the same. So far we are just ahead of last year, but not as much as I was hoping. The poor weather in April and early May left us a mountain to climb, but I think we have managed to clear the majority of our summer stock. Our philosophy has always been to completely clear the stock at the end of every season and start afresh. I think the consumer is still happy to spend money, but it has to be exactly what they are looking for rather than something that is nearly right.
Any tips on stock offers, novel ideas for clearing lines or advice for independent shoe retailers who might be feeling the pinch? My advice to any independent retailer is don’t try and offer all types of product. Decide on which area of the shoe trade you want to promote and stick to it. So many retailers try and offer every type of footwear, from work boots to wedding shoes. My other bit of advice is clear your stocks whatever the price. You can’t bring out last year’s style and expect it to sell. The consumer is far too canny for that. Old stock is like cancer it grows and grows and in the end will kill your business.
What is your favourite men’s footwear brand? People ask me which is my favourite brand. This depends on a lot of factors. If it’s personal choice from a construction point Church’s, if it’s from a profitable point Rieker and if it’s from which shoes I would wear myself, it’s Camper.
How do you select your products – which criteria do you use / what are your customers looking for? When it comes to buying, I think this is the most important part of my job. We start by analysing all sales data from the previous season and the four brands that have performed the worst are out, whoever they may be. Next we decide what our pairage is for the coming season. We then take our major brands and decide what pairage we are looking for from each of them and what is left is for any new brands. We then visit Moda and spend all 3 days looking and filling in our buying plan and hopefully by the time we journey back up the M6 we have our plan completed. We are very committed to keeping our range to Casual, Colourful and Comfortable and if a shoe doesn’t fit these criteria we don’t buy it. We try and introduce 3 or 4 new brands each year and at least 80% of all our stock are new styles even from the traditional brands. Having been an agent myself and now my son Gus Marshall has started on the road, I always try and allow any agent who has something new the chance to show me. I either agree to see them at Moda or I will see them after the buying season with a view to introducing their product in the following season. This way it means that I’m not wasting their time in the busy selling period and it gives me time to build it into my budget. Had I not adopted this approach I wouldn’t have had Fitflops 12 months before everybody else.
Have you always had a passion for footwear? How many pairs of shoes do you own? Do you have a favourite pair? I am very like the Old Cobblers son when it comes to shoes for myself. I put a new pair on and wear them until the have holes in or need polishing!!
And, the next step? Any plans for the future, new lines, retail systems/new technology, etc.? Looking forward, I think those retailers who are willing to offer service and something slightly different will always survive, especially in the small market towns. How anybody can survive in big cities or shopping malls I don’t know. As for Strolling 4 Shoes we will continue as we are maybe expand into other towns in the North West. I have been involved in the shoe trade for 41 years and loved every minute, but as I say to all my staff “If you wake up in the morning and think, I don’t want to go to work today, give me a ring and hand your notice in”. I feel exactly the same, the day I don’t want to go to work, I will give it up.”
Contact Details: Strolling4Shoes Tel: 01900 268292
enquiries@strolling4shoes.co.uk www.strolling4shoes.co.uk
AUGUST 2012 • FOOTWEAR TODAY
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