All Shoe Intelligence articles in Volume 27, Issue 1+2
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PDF NewsletterShoe Intelligence Executive Edition: Vol. 27 - 1+2
How Murcia’s shoemakers are exiting the 2024 jubilee year and preparing for 2025 | EU and Mercosur conclude free trade agreement talks | Ecco has a new CEO | Birkenstock posts higher-than-expected Q4 results | Otto Group changes legal status | Shoe Zone sees full-year profits halved as sales fall on weak consumer confidence, weather | Equita Smart Capital expands its footwear manufacturing hub | Emerging designer: CB Made in Italy seeks slow and steady growth | Emerging designer: Sustainability is Sneark’s signature style | Genesco more optimistic on outlook as Journeys turnaround gains pace | Caleres cuts earnings guidance, sees more balanced international growth | Designer Brands continues to ‘de-weatherize‘ business as Q3 boot sales slump 27% | Cirql unveils a new biodegradable midsole technology | Hong Fu breaks ground on its Tamil Nadu factory | Zalando to take over About You | Boohoo’s shareholders reject Mike Ashley’s bid for board seat | German companies face unprecedented supply chain challenges
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News briefs
Birkenstock opens a flagship store in Cologne amid European expansion
Birkenstock has transformed its former pop-up store in downtown Cologne into a permanent retail location. The 80-square-meter store, located at Ehrenstraße 5-7 and reopened on Nov. 28 after a complete redesign, is part of Birkenstock’s efforts to expand its presence in Europe. The store design prominently features cork ...
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News briefs
Kandahar opens its first shop-in-shop
The Swiss footwear brand Kandahar opened its first shop-in-shop in the heart of Zurich’s city center, in the renowned Schuhhaus Schulthess on the Rennweg shopping street, to showcase its collection. According to the co-CEO, Claudio Minder, “2025 will be a year of expansion for Kandahar.” In addition to ...
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News briefs
DMI appoints a new Managing Director
After three decades as managing director of the German fashion institute, Deutsches Mode-Institut (DMI), Gerd Müller-Thomkins has handed over the helm of the Cologne-based trend research institute to his successor Carl Tillessen. Müller-Thomkins and Tillessen have led the DMI together for the past four years, driving forward the internationalization ...
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ArticleHow Murcia’s shoemakers are exiting the 2024 jubilee year and preparing for 2025
After celebrating in 2024 the jubilee of Caravaca de la Cruz, the fifth holiest city of Catholic Christianity with Rome, Jerusalem, Santiago de Compostela and Camaleño, Calzia, a consortium of shoemakers located in Spain’s southeastern region of Murcia, is focusing on its next challenges. These include managing a slowdown in ...
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ArticleEmerging designer: Sustainability is Sneark’s signature style
Acutely aware that every year some 15 billion pairs of sneakers are produced and that a mere twelve months later the vast majority end up in landfills or are incinerated along with other household waste, Lello Romano, an architect and designer with a particular penchant for footwear based in Agrigento, ...
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News briefs
Fice names a new Secretary General
Fice, the Spanish association of shoemakers, has appointed Salvador Gómez as Secretary General, replacing Marián Cano. Gómez is currently Secretary General of Calzia, the association representing footwear manufacturers of Spain’s Murcia region. He has more than 20 years of experience in management, consulting and business representation in the footwear industry. ...
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News briefs
Boohoo sells its London office
Boohoo has completed the sale of its London office, located on Great Pulteney Street, Soho. The property has been sold for £49.5 million (€59.7m) in cash to Global Holdings UK Limited, an independent property fund. “The action taken to dispose of this non-core and non-strategic asset will further strengthen ...
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News briefs
Jimmy Choo opens a new office for its supply chain management
Jimmy Choo is scheduled to open its new offices for the management of the supply chain on Jan. 7. Located in Scandicci, near Florence, the 3,000-square-meter building has three floors containing offices and warehouses, and a further 2,600-square-meter basement for parking and utility rooms. The British shoemaker is owned by ...
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News briefs
Skechers opens flagship store in Prague
On Dec. 19, Skechers opened a 596-square-meter flagship store in the center of Prague, in the city’s high street, Na Příkopě. The location offers an extensive range of footwear, apparel and accessories for the entire family. The US brand now has eight Skechers retail locations in the Czech Republic and ...
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News briefs
Shoes For Crews names a new CEO
Shoes For Crews, a US firm specializing in slip-resistant footwear, appointed Chris Quinn as Chief Executive Officer effective Jan. 1, 2025. He has experience in the retail, e-commerce, footwear and apparel industries and has served as a director of Shoes For Crews since August 2024. Quinn replaces Donald Watros, who ...
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News briefs
The Pottero footwear brand is launched
The footwear brand Pottero said that its sneakers are available to pre-order. The launch is “a chance for investors and streetwear enthusiasts to support a contemporary, creative brand before it enters mass markets,” said the Dubai-based brand created by David Grippman. Currently available in a minimalist black and white design, ...
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ArticleSurveys paint a bleak picture of Germany’s holiday season sales
The shopping period leading up to the holiday season has brought more disappointment than cheer for both Germany’s online retailers and brick-and-mortar stores. The grim picture was painted by two surveys: the report of the German retail association, HDE, on brick-and-mortar sales in the week leading up to Dec. 15, ...
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News briefs
Bata names a Chief Design Officer
Bata appointed Miguel Esquide as Chief Design Officer. “Miguel’s experience, spanning two decades with renowned brands, will be central to shaping Bata’s creative direction and strengthening its brand identity,” commented the Lausanne-based footwear group. Esquide’s career includes the co-founding of the luxury brand 1Concept, as well as leading footwear design ...
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News briefs
Cambodia's footwear exports grow by over 24%
Cambodia exported $12.22 billion worth of garments, footwear and travel goods in the first eleven months of 2024, up by 24.9 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Commerce. Garments and textiles exports were up by 25.8 percent to $8.94 billion, while footwear grew by 24.3 percent ...
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News briefs
Indian footwear industry targets $26 billion in sales by 2030
The Indian footwear industry is targeting sales of $26 billion by 2030, including $8 billion of export revenues. Currently, the footwear market, both leather and non-leather, is estimated at $18 billion, including $6 billion in exports. The government aims to increase local manufacturing capacity, enhance quality standards and strengthen the ...
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ArticleBoohoo’s shareholders reject Mike Ashley’s bid for board seat
Boohoo’s shareholders have thwarted a bid by major shareholder and Frasers Group founder Mike Ashley to take a seat on the board of the struggling British online fashion retailer after they voted against the move in a special meeting. In a statement, Boohoo said that 64 percent of votes cast ...
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ArticleEquita Smart Capital expands its footwear manufacturing hub
The Italian fund Equita Smart Capital-Eltif, has acquired GT Emme, a producer of insoles and stripes for luxury women’s shoes located in Santa Maria a Monte, near the Tuscan town of Pisa. GT Emme posted sales of more than €5 million in 2023 and has a staff of 33 people. ...
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News briefs
French footwear sales slip in November
In November, French footwear retail sales fell by a seasonally and working-day adjusted 0.7 percent month-on-month, according to the Bank of France. Overall, French retail sales were stable month-on-month after a decrease of 0.1 percent in October. Sales volumes of manufactured goods also remained stable over the two months, while ...
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News briefs
Nice Footwear obtains the Lyle & Scott footwear license
Nice Brand Lab, the business unit of the Italian footwear company Nice Footwear specializing in licensed footwear for the group, has entered into a license agreement with the Scottish fashion brand Lyle & Scott to develop and distribute footwear collections in Europe. Nice Footwear was previously in charge of the ...
