Retailers are expanding and enhancing their shoe departments because the footwear business has become so lucrative, with sales per square foot and profit margins that top other categories.
A new generation of designers such as Tabitha Simmons is driving demand, following predecessors including Christian Louboutin, who made designing shoes cool, said Saks President Ronald Frasch. High fashion is coming into ladies’ shoes at prices as low as $100, and the most extreme designs are being adapted for mass consumption by reducing heels to 2 1/2-inches from 5 inches, said Deborah Rudinsky, a footwear-market analyst for Doneger Group, a New York-based trend forecasting firm.
“The shoe can take the center stage and lead the outfit,” said Robert Burke, founder of a namesake luxury-goods consulting firm in New York. “The interest level has continued to grow. I would say it is here to stay.”
via Macy’s Leads Industrywide Shoe Expansion on 50% Margins – Businessweek.
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