Abstract
Falling prices and increased fashionability have stimulated strong growth in the footwear market and this looks set to continue, however, it is not the specialists that have benefited. The specialist shoe shops themselves have steadily lost share of spending because the new ideas and fashion sense, demanded by the highest spending groups, has been coming from other sources. There are signs that a new breed of specialist is beginning to fight back, particularly among the younger orientated chains, but the market is becoming increasingly competitive.
The failure of the footwear retailers to innovate in the 1990s left the market open for fashion retailers. The clothing market was maturing and the market was highly competitive causing the fashion retailers to look elsewhere for growth opportunities. The answer to many was to diversify into areas such as accessories, footwear and in some cases toiletries and make up. The result of which is shoe retailing has becoming far more demanding and far more competitive.
View Cart
