Therefore, we don’t focus on foot sizing in the shop but we do offer a wide range of sizes to try, including some wide and half sizes. The comfort of the shoe is important in our business, hence the name, but it has to be coupled with style!
Q: Do you sell other items besides footwear, such as bags, socks or other accessories? A: Not yet, although this is an area we are aware of. We are a small team and relatively new, so we work on getting the basics right for our customers before trying to be a solution for everyone and satisfying no one. Once we are more settled, we will introduce more products.
Q: Do you use an EPOS (retail technology) system in your shop? A: We have our own stock management and EPOS software, built in house. It’s an extremely good system and allows us to keep our costs down, support immediate issues and adapt to our own specific needs. We are always looking for new technologies and external providers if we feel it can benefit us affordably.
Q: How do you select the different styles for your store? How do you know what your customers are looking for? A: It’s important to have a family of products to complement each other. In each group, we look for what the product can offer the customer. For example, dog walkers need waterproof boots while holidaymakers want something that has a comfortable footbed and looks great. It comes down to the balance between style and comfort, and then we provide a range of colours as much as our budget can handle!
Q: Which footwear trade shows do you attend throughout the year? A: We love getting out from the shop and attending industry shows to see growing trends and to speak with brands and agents face-to- face. Our favourite shows to attend are Footwear Today Live, INDX and Moda.
Q: How do you think the Government could best help footwear retailers at this difficult time? A: Business is difficult, and a constant balance between profit, cash flow and revenue. We cannot complain about rent as landlords/owners are often other businesses that are trying to make a living; it’s up to us whether we agree to their terms and go forward, rather than complain about it. The underlying difficulty is VAT especially when we’re competing with non-VAT companies. We want to grow, have a bigger team and generate more revenue rather than stay under the
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threshold. VAT is one of our major challenges when trying to be as competitive as possible for our customers.
Q: What are your plans for the future? A: We are proud to have a solid base to build on, and then grow from there. Our immediate strategy is to satisfy current infrastructure, and then look at new products/brands and possibly more high street shops – all while keeping our feet on the ground and enjoying our work!
Contact
Contact: Andreas Andreou Brookfield Comfort 3 Cumberland Place, Welshpool. SY21 7SB
sales@brookfieldcomfort.com
www.brookfieldcomfort.com Tel: 07818 443886
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2024 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • 37
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