Latest Headlines
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ArticleFDRA calls on US president to remove duties on Chinese footwear imports
Matt Priest, the president and CEO of Footwear Distributors & Retailers of America (FDRA), is urging the US president, Joe Biden, to remove by executive order Section 301 import tariffs imposed on China. In an open letter to Biden, Priest wrote that “retail footwear prices have risen sharply since implementation ...
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ArticleFootwear stocks treaded water in a quarter marked by shareholder activism
The prices of stocks monitored by Shoe Intelligence grew by 1.3 percent on average in the first quarter of 2024, compared with the previous three months, in very volatile trade. The quarter was marked by shareholder activism. Tabor Asset Management, a US investment company that has a 1.1 percent stake ...
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ArticleH&M and Inditex accused of allegedly using unethical Brazilian cotton
The British non-governmental organization (NGO) Earthsight is accusing H&M and Inditex of allegedly using cotton “linked to land grabbing, illegal deforestation, violence, human rights violations and corruption in Brazil.” It is also calling on governments to regulate the fashion industry on the grounds that it has failed to ensure sustainability ...
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ArticleAllbirds urged to bolster its share price by Nasdaq
On April 2, Allbirds was notified by Nasdaq that its share price was no longer compliant with the rules of the New York-based stock exchange because the closing bid price of its Class A common stock has fallen below $1.00 per share for 30 consecutive days. Allbirds has 180 calendar ...
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ArticleNovoloop’s pilot plant for recycled plastic comes on stream in India
Novoloop, a US plastic circular economy technology company, announced the startup of its pilot plant in Surat, India. The plant was built in collaboration with Aether Industries, an Indian speciality chemical manufacturer. Groundbreak for the plant was announced in January 2024 and construction completed in March 2024. The pilot plant ...
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ArticleRussia claims to have virtually eradicated illegal footwear sales
Since 2020, the mandatory labelling of fashion goods has secured additional income of 84.6 billion rubles (€848 million) on aggregate for the Russian federal budget, estimated the Russian Center for Prospective Technologies (CPT), a government agency authorized to supervise the labelling reform. Footwear labelling on its own provided additional income ...
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ArticleFormer Kaufhof owner reportedly taking over Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof
According to the German business publication Handelsblatt, the US investor NRDC Equity Partners is to be granted the contract to operate the 92 locations of the German department store chain Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof. NRDC is the investment company of Canadian entrepreneur Richard Baker, who also owns a majority stake in ...
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ArticleLudwig Görtz dies at 89
Ludwig Görtz, the former boss and owner of the footwear retailer Görtz, died on Easter Sunday at the age of 89, according to media reports. The Hamburg native joined his family’s business in 1960, at the age of 26, and took over the management of the company from his ...
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ArticleHyosung to build a bio-BDO factory in Vietnam as part of a $1bn investment plan
Hyosung TNC plans to build a bio-butanediol (BDO) factory in Vietnam with an annual production capacity of 50,000 tons. The project is part of a $1 billion investment program to reach an annual output of 200,000 tons of bio-BDO. On March 30, Hyosung TNC received approval for the “Hyosung BDO ...
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ArticleKeen introduces a hiking shoe with a lifetime guarantee regarding delamination
Keen introduced the Targhee IV, which it claims is the first shoe in the industry to have a delamination-free lifetime guarantee. Targhee IV is “a boot made to be the last hiking shoe you buy,” the US brand said in a statement. Delamination is when the glue used to adhere ...
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ArticleHow Fibbl aims to reduce returns, increase conversion rates with 3D models, AR technology
The Stockholm-based startup Fibbl states that its photorealistic 3D models and augmented reality technology for e-commerce can help footwear brands using its services tackle problems with high returns while also increasing conversion rates. Founded in 2021 by Henrik Arlestig and Johan Bertilsson, two childhood friends with over a decade of ...
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ArticleC-Suite interview: Palmroth plans to double its sales in three years
Palmroth is a family-owned footwear company based in Tampere, Finland, whose history dates back to 1928. Largely centered on winter shoes, the brand aims to double its sales volumes within the next three years. Run by Mikko Palmroth, who represents the third generation at the helm, the company sells annually ...
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ArticleTamaris plans to expand its Russian store network
By the end of 2024, Wortmann plans to add 15 doors to its existing network of 60 Tamaris stores in Russia and take several other steps to gain a better foothold in the country. Friedrich Naumann, CEO of Wortmann Vostok, said that the brand intends to open new stores ...
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ArticleZegna expects negative organic growth in Q1
Ermenegildo Zegna more than doubled its bottom line in 2023 but warned that organic growth will be negative in the first quarter of 2024. Last, the Italian fashion house posted a net profit of €135.7 million in 2023, up by 107.8 percent compared to the year earlier. Adjusted Ebit grew ...
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ArticleGerman fashion manufacturing back to pre-pandemic levels, but outlook remains cautious
German clothing manufacturers swung back to pre-Covid-19 levels as they posted a double-digit sales increase in 2023, up by 10.8 percent to €6.8 billion, according to official figures from the country’s statistics office Destatis. When considering companies with more than 50 employees, the number of workers in the industry ...
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ArticleDr. Martens urged to undergo a strategic review
Marathon Partners Equity Management is urging Dr. Martens to undergo a strategic review, including a potential sale of the company, to maximize shareholder value. The share price of the British bootmaker is down sharply since it was floated on the London Stock Exchange in January 2021. On April 4, Dr. ...
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ArticleVF expands its partnership with GMG
VF Corp. is expanding its partnership with the retail conglomerate GMG in order to grow in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and South East Asia (SEA) regions. The US group, whose portfolio includes the brands Vans, The North Face and Timberland, has been collaborating with the Dubai-based retail ...
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ArticleLevi’s to exit the footwear business
Levi Strauss & Co, which is known for its Levi’s brand, has decided to wind down its footwear business as it streamlines its organization to bolster efficiency and profitability thanks to the Project Fuel initiative launched in January. “And after a strategic review of our categories, we have taken the ...
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ArticleVenezuelan shoemakers rely on government intervention to regain market share
Faced with a difficult domestic economic environment, tough competition from neighboring countries and China as well as illegal imports, Venezuelan footwear manufacturers are relying on government help to relaunch a flagging industry. With one billion pairs of shoes produced annually, Latin America accounts for 4.8 percent of world footwear production, ...
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ArticleKidpik and Nina Footwear are merging
Kidpik, a kids’ online clothing subscription-based company listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York, and Nina Footwear, a private company operating a brand specializing in women’s and kids’ dress shoes, have agreed to combine. Under the deal, Kidpik will take over Nina Footwear through a reverse merger. Nina ...
