August 10, 2005
I am not a shoe horse. At least I didn’t think so. Then I read an article in USA Today (www.usatoday.com) about women and their shoes. The average woman keeps about 24 pairs of shoes in her closet with about half that number in active rotation (uh yeah, we have to keep up with the seasons, duh).
If I’m honest with myself, that’s about the same number of shoes in my closet, too.
The NPD Group (www.npd.com), a research company that tracks retail sales and trends, reports that women’s shoe sales are up 5 percent to $16.4 billion and that the average woman spends about $277 a year on shoes.
If you’re a woman, you already know, at least on a subconscious level, the love most of us have for shoes. Shoes can make or break an outfit. Transform an outfit from casual to dressy. Send us into paroxysms of joy.
And with the fashion trend to mix designer clothes with mass items, shoes are an affordable luxury at stores like Payless or DSW (www.dswshoes.com). In fact, DSW just launched a campaign based on its research and conversations with women shoe shoppers.
The TV ads are narrated with a National Geographic or Wild Kingdom type documentary voiceover, talking about the female hunter having high hopes, or regaining her strength after a long winter, or finding the right partner.
DSW’s VP of Marketing said their focus groups revealed the bargain-hunting mentality of shoe shopping, something very primal that’s reflected in their new campaign. “They also spoke of how it’s rare that they browse for shoes. If they’re out, and a shoe store is nearby, they’re shopping,” he said.
Hey, the last pair of shoes I bought was a great pair of New Balance all-terrain running shoes. And it rocked. And I can run faster and jump higher and people like me more.
Isn’t that the way all shoes make you feel?
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