Footwear Insight

14 • Footwear Insight ~ January/February 2023 footwearinsight.com READY FOR ANYTHING By Cara Griffin & Bob McGee T h e outlook for the year ahead is an optimistic one for many leading indepen- dent retailers. e past 12 months have been filled with plenty of challenges, but there are many bright spots to find as well, according to our recent conversations with sev- eral retailers honored with Footwear Insight's Gold Medal Service Award for Customer Service. Previously, in the November/ December 2022 of Footwear Insight, the full list of stores honored with the 2022 Gold Medal Service Award for Customer Service was revealed. In that issue, retailers shared "customer service secrets." Here several of those award-winning retailers offer more in- sight — weighing in on business issues that they are facing and opportunities they are seeing in the marketplace. A Return to Normalcy "In the current brick-and-mortar retail environment the biggest challenge is supply, but that seems to be alleviating. It doesn't seem like it will be a great challenge for much longer. We are nimble enough that we can pivot to other brands with similar shoes to cover us while the supply chain catches up. Aer that it's the age-old battle of the vendor/supplier undercutting us. When a brand goes to 40% across the board on their DTC, no matter how short the sale, it's killer to us little independent shoe stores. We don't begrudge the brands as it's part of business and inventory management, but it sure does put us in a bind." — Matthew Gold, Comfort Plus Shoes "We are optimistic that [in 2023] we will continue to move toward pre-pandemic normalcy. From the vendor side, we are looking forward to overcoming many of the shipping and supply-chain problems that have plagued us all over the last three years. And from the consumer side, we are certain that our customers will con- tinue to want the in-person, human, individualized service that we deliver. Shoes are personal items and find- ing the right pair is best achieved through the in-person, professional brick-and-mortar experience that true shoe-fitting professionals can provide." — PJ Calhoun, e Shoe Market "I am very optimistic for the coming year. It appears that the factory shut- downs are mostly in the past and that we will be able to get products in a Comfort Plus Shoes & Footcare, Leawood, KS. "Possibly the best highlight of the past year was receiving inventory! It's a great feeling to have what you need at the time you need it. RETAIL

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