Issue link: http://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/1055891
The final two months of the year can be a blur — a parade of holidays, a frantic shopping season (this year's shaping up to be more promotional than ever!) and the dueling impulses to both look ahead to the year to come and recap the year that was. Do you feel it? I do, of course. But as we were putting together this issue, it occurred to me that maybe it's not just the season. The idea of looking back while aiming forward seems like one that's animating the industry right now. The heritage menswear brands we talked to for "Dress for Success" (page 26) are finding new life as they bring the best of their archives to a discerning new customer — but the brands that are doing it best are looking at ways to make their styles relevant in look and feel. And the same goes for Stride Rite: the iconic children's brand blows out the candles on 100 years in 2019, and under licensee Vida Kids it's making appeal to millennial moms a core tenant. Read how execs plan to build for a second century on page 44. Even basketball, which has struggled as the fashion winds have shifted, is looking in the rearview mirror for inspiration. With a whole crop of new-endorsers-same-as-the-old-endorsers and serious '90s vibes to ground the fashion play, brands like Puma, AND1 and Fila are banking that going back will help launch them into the future. See our story on page 38. Is there a takeaway for your business? I bet there is. Is there a custom, an event, a habit, even a feeling from your store's past that deserves a fresh look in 2019? Any solid routines that could use a fresh eye and a little shaking up? It couldn't hurt to look back into the annals of your store to see if there's the germ of something great for the year to come. We're doing the same here at Footwear Insight. In the next months, we're going to keep growing our new biweekly email blast, Footwear Insight Extra (are you on our list? If you're not, email jbeaudry@formula4media.com and we'll make sure you're subscribed) to bring you even more of the news, fresh analysis and yes, insight that we put into each of our issues — just more often and in a faster format. And we're digging into the magazine, too, with even more stories devoted to the world of specialty retail. Because as far as we're concerned, that's the golden standard of the past, the present and most especially the future. l - Jen Keep On Keeping On TIMEOUT | JENNIFER ERNST BEAUDRY The idea of looking back while aiming forward seems like one that's animating the industry right now. the healthiest shoes you'll ever wear ® Featuring Lynco ® or thotic suppor t and memory foam cushioning for superior comfor t