NEWS
The British Footwear Association Launches Footwear50 Initiative and Calls for Sector-Wide Nominations
T
he UK’s leading membership organisation for the footwear trade will spotlight inspiring professionals in its new industry-wide campaign.
The British Footwear Association (BFA) is pleased to announce the launch of a new sector- wide initiative that will champion and celebrate 50 professionals from across the UK footwear trade.
Designed to recognise the achievements, contributions and leadership skills of footwear professionals, the BFA Footwear50 will kickstart with a sector-wide nominations process, allowing BFA Members and non-members to suggest individuals they think should be included. With the support of Headline Sponsor Micro- Fresh®, the Footwear50 will group footwear professionals into six categories: Retailers, Manufacturers, Design Independents, Brands, Suppliers & Wholesalers, and Footwear Supporters. This will ensure that people from across the footwear sector have the chance to feature. The final list of individuals will be chosen from the nominations list by the BFA Board of Directors and Management Team and presented in a dedicated Footwear50 guide to be unveiled in December 2022. The process will culminate in a BFA Christmas networking event, which all this year’s Footwear50 will be invited to attend.
business, Micro-Fresh® has always partnered with companies to improve product quality. We support the increased focus of the BFA on championing excellence and are delighted to be the Headline Sponsor of the BFA Footwear50 2022.”
BFA CEO, Lucy Reece Raybould, says: “This is the first of its kind for the BFA, and we are excited to launch a new initiative that highlights all the talent, passion and commitment that’s shown by so many excellent leaders in our field. This is an opportunity to shine a light on BFA Members and non-members and give a snapshot of who’s leading our trade forward in 2022. We predict this will become a much-anticipated annual event that those included will view as a badge of honour. We look forward to receiving nominations over the next few weeks.” The BFA is launching its debut Footwear50 in partnership with Micro-Fresh®, the invisible technology that keeps products like shoes fresher for longer.
Byron Dixon OBE, CEO of Micro-Fresh® adds: “We are hugely excited to partner with the BFA on this fantastic initiative to recognise the top 50 most inspiring and influential people in the footwear industry. As an innovative
Footwear50 Nominations Anyone working in the UK footwear sector is welcome to nominate an individual who they believe is an asset to the UK industry. Emails should be sent to nominations@
britishfootwearassociation.co.uk including the name of the person being nominated, their job title, company name, preferred Footwear50 category, and a short supporting paragraph of less than 100 words.
Nominations must be submitted by midnight on September 23, 2022.
The BFA Footwear50 in Partnership with Micro-Fresh® will be accompanied by a social media campaign using the hashtag #Footwear50. Further sponsorship opportunities are also available. Find out more by emailing BFA Business Development Manager, Polly Lythall:
polly.ly@britishfootwearassociation.
co.uk
Further information about the BFA can be found here:
britishfootwearassociation.co.uk
ShoeAI and the British Footwear Association (BFA) partner to boost members’ online shoe sales in tough economic times
A
I-driven guided selling software is proven to increase sales, transform online customer experience and enhance brand reputation.
Olten, 8 September 2022: ShoeAI, the AI-driven guided selling software vendor, has joined forces with the British Footwear Association (BFA) in a bid to support the Association’s membership through the cost-of-living crisis and looming financial contraction.
Having been inducted into the BFA’s community of approved Partners, ShoeAI can provide solutions to the Association’s Members, who span ecommerce businesses, bricks-and-mortar retailers, suppliers, wholesalers and emerging brands.
Timo Steitz, ShoeAI’s Founder and CEO, explains: “A perfect storm of post- pandemic footwear overordering followed by unprecedented falls in online demand as the cost-of-living crisis bites has left many footwear brands and retailers with falling sales and high inventories.
“That’s why it’s the perfect time to team up with the BFA. Now we’re a Partner, all its member companies can choose ShoeAI confident that, following our BFA audit and due diligence, our guided selling software is a reliable tool to drive their sales growth.”
Polly Lythall, Business Development Manager at the BFA, adds “The BFA exists to support members and connect them with partners who can help them succeed. ShoeAI is an impressive solution that assists retailers in accelerating
their digital sales. As UK households cut spending in the months ahead, our members will benefit from solutions that improve their customers’ experience and foster brand loyalty. We’re delighted to partner with this innovative company that supports those selling footwear online.” The footwear industry is experiencing an overstock crisis, with many retailers slashing orders or making significant discounts to tackle weak customer spending. ShoeAI’s solution offers an alternative strategy: sell more. ShoeAI achieves this by ‘guided selling’: as well as making sure that the customer finds the perfect fit for shoes that are in stock – a difficult task for an online retailer – sellers get insights into customer behaviour and can boost conversions by as much as 300%. With the average e-commerce conversion at 2% – a tenth of the average in-store conversion rate – an online sales assistant like Shoe AI fills some of that gap.
Drawing on machine learning capabilities, ShoeAI’s software improves the customer experience making shoppers three times more likely to buy shoes online. Customers are queried about shoes they already own, their size and shoe preferences, leading them through a six-step process that replicates the in-store experience that concludes with recommendations on shoes that are in stock in the right size. “Because customers are much more likely to buy a pair of shoes in a shop with a human assistant, this process is as close to a real-life experience as possible,” concludes Polly. “It’s a great solution and our new partnership with ShoeAI ensures our members will benefit.”
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