Footwear-OCT20-P30-32 Retailer Of The Month_Footwear_Jan10_p30 19/11/2020 19:44 Page 32
RETAILER OF THE MONTH
How important is shoe fitting to your business? Are you or any of your staff members of the Society Of Shoe Fitters? It’s very important to us and is the core of our offer, as I’ve mentioned above, we are all trained with the Society of Shoe Fitters and I am a member of the Society. It has been invaluable what we have learnt through S.S.F and we often refer and reference to the information we received throughout our training. We make sure that we recommend the best fit at all times and
sometimes this might not be the style parents would like. We have been to local nurseries and schools to talk about, inform and educate in foot health and why it is so important to look after your feet. We have generated an information leaflet which parents have found really useful; we are very passionate about this.
Does your shop sell other items besides footwear, bags, gloves, tights, socks, below the ankle products? We sell aftercare that we selected with our aftercare provider, Euroleathers, but other than that it is footwear.
Do you use an EPOS (retail technology) system in your shop(s)? Yes, we do use an EPOS system in the shop, we are used to these systems from previous roles we have had and it helps us make sure we keep on top of stock and make sure we always have choice and fit covered across our brands.
Any difficulties/problems? We do have some challenges when customers come in with damaged feet from poorly fitting shoes. Children do then tend to be so put off having any shoes on their feet and we have to build the trust up and install confidence in the child and parent again. Some parents are so keen on getting the first pair of shoes they can be
tempted to rush in and want to buy a pair. We try to educate and encourage bare foot walking for as long as possible. Educating the importance of shoe fitting is ongoing for us, we ae doing what we can to inform.
Any tips on stock offers, novel ideas for clearing lines or advice for independent shoe retailers who might be feeling the pinch? To be honest we haven’t had the need yet to clear any lines as we are only 15 months in to trading. We do plan on doing one main sale per year and this has just happened in January mainly to ensure that we keep our ranges fresh and do not carry stock over. We do have a loyalty scheme in place and a twin discount, and we run
various local offers through #fiverfest and for local schools and fetes. We have some exciting plans for 2020….
How do you select your products – which criteria do you use / what are your customers looking for? The first thing we evaluate is fit and this is our focus. Secondly, we base our decision on the style and what our customers feedback has been about styles we already stock and what they have told us I important to them. We want families, and children in particular, to enjoy shopping for our shoes and enjoy wearing them most of all.
Which footwear/fashion shows do you attend, how do you rate them? We haven’t attended many to date as we are happy with the brands we have. We have been to Moda for the last couple of years as a few of our suppliers are there and so we get to see everyone in the same day which is very useful.
Do you have a favourite footwear agent you can tell us about? We don’t have a favourite agent as they are all unique and have all been so helpful so far. We don’t do massive buys as we are a small, independent business but this has not been evident in any of the relationships we have with our agents at all. They have all been so supportive, encouraging and always get back to us, we feel very lucky with all of them.
Have you always had a passion for footwear? How many pairs of shoes do you own? Do you have a favourite pair? I have always had a passion for footwear, I must have close to 100 pairs of my own. I have a very vivid memory of buying a pair of shoes when I was younger and believe this is where my passion began. My favourite aunt and uncle were taking me to get a pair of shoes when I was about 4 years old. They had taken me to St. Albans and I was so excited I took my shoes off in the street, left them there and ran into the shoe shop ready for a new pair. They treated me to a beautiful pair of black patent shoes and I didn’t want to take them off, even in bed. My daughter has caught this shoe bug as she has saved every pair of
shoes she has ever owned and stores them in their boxes under our bed, frequently bringing them out to play ‘Shoe Shops’, she was doing this pre- Colourful Soles so must’ve been in the stars.
And, the next step? Any plans for the future, new lines, retail systems/new technology, etc? At the minute we are learning from every season and from our suppliers, we are listening to our customers and responding to their needs whenever we can. We would maybe like to look into more brands in the future, but right now we are more than happy with what we have. We are very excited about our autumn ranges and we are preparing for what will hopefully be a busy ‘Back to School’ We absolutely love planning and changing up our window as the
children in Lutterworth love looking in and seeing what we have done, and we have some exciting displays planned.
Contact: Tracey Hodgkinson Address: Colourful Soles Ltd, 23 Church Street, Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 4AE
Tel: 01455 552775 Email:
colourfulsolesltd@gmail.com Social: @colourfulsolesltd
32 • FOOTWEAR TODAY
• OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2020
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