Shoe-in

Taken from a fantastic webinar, this episode features Rothy's COO talking about operations, supply chain management and sustainability innovation. The conversation was powered by Centric, who provides the top class PLM for footwear companies. With special guests: Heather Howard, COO, Rothy's and Colleen Grass, Centric Software

Shoe retailers continue to struggle with complex ordering systems and inventory management. But software company Fitted, whose team have a lot of shoe experience, has new tools to help streamline brand and retailer processes, mobilize distribution and optimize relationships. Listen to this great conversation on how retailers are changing how they do business to succeed in this new environment! With special guest: Jennifer Hazard, Director of Sales, Fitted

Salina Ferretti and Rob Perschino stopped by Shoe-in Show to talk about new trends and what's to come at JUNE FFANY in NY. With special guests: Salina Ferretti, CEO, Falc USA and Rob Perschino, GM, Falc USA

Brooks' fearless leader Jim Weber stops by Shoe-In Show to discuss his new book "Running with Purpose" and his inspiring journey as head of one of the world's premier running shoe companies. Join us as Jim shares fascinating stories along his journey from his one-page strategy approach to turning Brooks around to that time he let a voicemail from Warren Buffett go unanswered for five days!! And make sure you buy the book! All book profits will be donated to the Brooks Booster Club to provide performance running footwear, apparel, and funding to under-resourced high school cross country and track teams. Pick it up on the Brooks site or Amazon. With special guest: Jim Weber, CEO, Brooks

There are many pieces to the new economic and business puzzle the footwear industry and shoe professionals are trying to understand to make better decisions. Team FDRA works to fill in some gaps on how inflation, demand, war, inventory and consumer shifts are impacting the shoe business. We also share what we think is coming and how to prepare. With special guest: Gary Raines, Chief Economist, FDRA

Footwear materials are innovating at breakneck speed, but shoes still contain a lot of plastics. Why is that and how is that changing? Ahead of Earth Day we wanted to have a robust discussion on the state of shoe material innovations with Natural Fiber Welding's Alan Lugo and Dr. Stephen Taylor (a soil scientist working on shoe issues!). You'll gain some great insights and wisdom on how to rethink shoe materials and brand sustainability strategy. With special guests: Alan Lugo, Product Strategy Manager, Natural Fiber Welding and Dr. Stephen Taylor, Soil Scientist & Circularity Engineer, Natural Fiber Welding

Dave Powers joins us on this important episode to talk about the great behind the scenes work being done at Deckers Brands on sustainability. More than buzz words, Dave talks about the importance of how authentic leadership and culture ensures success on ESG issues. We also discuss how important purpose is to a strong workforce willing to innovate. Another must-listen episode!

Wolverine's own Tom Kennedy stops by Shoe-In Show to check in with Sandi and Matt on all the latest work boot trends and his approach to diversifying his brands in order to serve a more diverse consumer base.

FDRA's "Supply Chain in Crisis" webinar had some of the industry's top thought leaders discussing what you must be watching as we continue to deal with supply chain headaches. It was so good we had to broadcast it out on Shoe-In to make sure everyone had a chance to listen!

The old world of Excel is crumbling. Data that sits is useless. A new system is being built for a more sustainable future that helps teams visualize, understand data and make better choices at the start. We talk with Material Exchange in this episode about their new updated platform and how it's changing the game for good!

Is inflation the new four-letter word? In this episode, we discuss the many issues and challenges inflation poses to our industry and the economy, with dashes of other random observations and comments on human nature. Yes, this is the latest footwear philosophy episode not to be missed!!!

Industry analyst and sneaker industry expert Chris Burns joins Shoe-In Show again in an attempt to kick-off March Madness in style. As you'll hear, we never really get around to talking basketball as Matt, Andy and Chris explore a plethora of other topics around DTC, e-commerce, NFTs, StockX, brand strategies, and even shoe conspiracies appropriately coined "Shoe-anon." You need a footwear analyst focused on all the right metrics? Chris is your guy.

On this episode we chat with Converse Directors, Tamara Odom and Brodrick Foster and get the inside scoop on what it's like to work at Converse. During this conversation, you'll learn how Converse is committed to diversity and empowering its employees to reach new heights and be their best selves. We also get to hear about the cool projects they're working on, some even featuring NBA superstars! This is a thoughtful and super fun episode that you don't want to miss!

Jazerai Allen-Lord, Founder of True to Size stops by Shoe-In to discuss her latest work and how companies can be greater agents of change to provide safe and fair spaces for workers of color.

The Shoe-In Show BHM '22 series rolls on as Dr. D'Wayne Edwards joins Matt and Sabria to talk about the opening of the Pensole Lewis School of Business & Design in Detroit, his calling to empower black design students in all industries, and his continuation of the amazing and iconic legacy of Dr. Violet Lewis.

Converse executive and FDRA board member Brandis Russell stops by Shoe-In Show to kick off our BHM '22 series by sharing her own shoe story and to talk about the important changes taking place at the newly reimagined Black Footwear Forum.

What if you could know what sustainable products and language best connect with your customers BEFORE you launch new shoes and campaign? In this episode, we talk about how the most successful brands are leveraging First Insight's new capability on ESG issues to ensure they are hitting the mark. We also have a thoughtful conversation on key challenges and opportunities that will impact shoe sales in 2022!

Stuart Jenkins, founder of Blumaka, joins us again to talk about his latest learnings and insights into footwear foams. We talk about the outdated manufacturing processes that need to be updated in order to reduce waste and emissions and get to a more "ethical" path for footwear companies.

FDRA's new Vice President of Corporate Engagement Sandi Mines is no stranger to the shoe industry having grown up in a shoe family and worked at the helm of Footwear News. Listen in as Sandi shares her "shoe story" with our audience and unveils her bullish plans for FDRA in 2022 and beyond.

Supply chain extraordinaire and current Head of Procurement & Commercial Excellence at Wayfair, Pete Mento stops by Shoe-In to try and tackle the many difficult challenges facing the global supply chain in 2022. We may not have all the answers, but we sure do have a ton of questions. If supply chain is top-of-mind for you today, you won't want to miss this episode and Pete Mento's many hot takes.