Winter

No, this is not a reference to how rubbish Melbourne’s weather has been. Or even this winter just past. It’s hard to fathom but footwear retailers are already looking at styles and trends for next autumn/winter. Yes, that’s 2011. Orders need to be placed now so that winter stock can be delivered by the beginning of autumn. So no sooner do you take delivery of all of your current season stock then you’re being asked to commit to styles and quantities for a season 6-8 months down the track. A pack of tarot cards and a crystal ball would probably be ideal tools right about now. It does help though that being in the southern hemisphere we are always going to be behind the seasons and trends of the northern hemisphere.

So what are some of the trends we’re seeing coming up for 2011?

We’re seeing the wedge style follow through into pumps, boots and booties which look absolutely gorgeous. Speaking of boots, there seems to be a bit of lacing action happening in that department. When combined with a quirky arched heel the look can be quite Victorian. Very feminine. And colour. Lovely, lovely colours through winter. Definitely a welcome change from basic black.

Out with the old, in with the new

I’ve been doing some long overdue spring cleaning at home lately in the wardrobe department. Thanks to a very good friend of mine, who has taken on the role of both Trinny and Susannah and helped me to be absolutely ruthless with my clothes and of course, shoes. I won’t even mention some of the horrors encountered in the clothes pile but my justification was that at one point in time, I believed that each article of clothing that I had bought, actually looked good. The shoes however, are a completely different story. Having a size 11 foot meant that I wasn’t exactly spoilt for choice when it came to shoe shopping. When I began to cull my shoe cupboard, I started to see just what my decision making processes must have been like in the dim, dark days before Glamazon Shoes. When shopping for shoes, the criteria were essentially as follows:

Do the shoes fit?

Yep, that’s it. (And I know you glamazons out there know what I’m talking about!) This was never more evident than when I pulled all the shoes out. And began cringing. There were a lot of slides and mules. And I mean a lot. As anyone with big feet knows, this style is extremely forgiving as it allows a bit of ‘foot overhang’ without causing pain. (Of course, the aesthetic pain is another matter altogether) But as the saying goes, “today is the first day of the rest of your life”. Well, for my life with shoes anyway.

The power of PR

The power of publicity in mainstream media can be nothing short of amazing. Glamazon Shoes was fortunate enough to receive a plug in Melbourne’s main Sunday newspaper, the Sunday Herald-Sun back in June. The immediate effect on sales that week and the next few was incredible. Our email database, which was 5 months old at the time, doubled in subscribers within 2 weeks. Each day brought a steady stream of glamazons trooping through the shop door. Naturally the immediate impact lessened over the coming weeks but the real surprise has been that even now, four months later, there is still the occasional customer that comes into the shop and mentions that Herald-Sun article that brought her here. Often these women have clipped out the story and put it away to visit when they have the time. Irrefutable proof that women have long memories. As if we need it…