As we head deeper into the witching season (also known by the more benign term “pumpkin spice season”), the scary question haunting many in our industry is just how spooked consumers will be over price increases largely attributed to recent tariff hikes. Will they run screaming from stores like teenage counselors at Camp Crystal Lake with a machete-wielding Jason at their heels? Or will they get a more standard horror movie jump scare, then live to keep on shopping?
The script, of course, is still being written. We’re at that middle point in the classic horror movie format when the monster (higher prices) has revealed itself and we’re all waiting to see who the next victims might be. Consumers aren’t the only ones in danger, by the way. There was no shortage of fear and dread among wholesalers and retailers at The Atlanta Shoe Market last month. They, too, could become part of this killer’s body count. Many brands are already skating on paper thin margins and can’t weather more cost increases and/or sales decreases. Plenty of retailers are in a similarly perilous limbo, especially coming off what many report as a soft spring and summer sales season. Some suggest that consumers have already tipped their shoe shopping hand, frightened off by frequent Casandra-like news reports of higher priced consumer goods and general economic dread. Whatever the factors, the margin for error is now sharper than Michael Myers’ knife.
So how does one attain the coveted “final girl” status in this movie? (For non-horror movie aficionados, the final girl is the protagonist who survives against the odds.) As Scream revealed, there are certain rules to making it through a slasher film alive. I believe there are similar rules for surviving this real-life scary movie. They involve authenticity, perseverance, passion, loyalty, originality, consistency, and hard work. These qualities are plentiful among this issue’s Milestone profiles of Hawley Lane Shoes/50 years; Clarks Desert Boot/75 years; Weaver’s Leather Store/100 years; and Xtratuf/75 years.
Take (p. 10) the passion exhibited by Hawley Lane Shoes co-owners Dave Levy and Joe Gradia, for example. Keeping the five-store, Connecticut-based, sit-and-fit chain thriving is a 24-7 endeavor. But that’s perfectly ok since this is a family business in every sense of the word. From the merchandise to the third-generation ownership to the 70-person staff to the many first-name-basis customers, Hawley Lane Shoes’ family first philosophy helps take the sting out of the long hours and many frightful trials and tribulations. And no matter what might be lurking around the corner, the chain’s ability to put smiles on customers’ faces through expert pain-relief fittings is a smart survival strategy.
Originality and authenticity define the Clarks Desert Boot (p. 16). Considered the first casual dress shoe, the iconic chukka boot with its signature crepe sole has been adopted by legions of trendsetters over the decades. To borrow a concept from the horror movie format, the cooler and more likeable the character, the more likely they are to survive. (A then-unknown Johnny Depp in A Nightmare on Elm Street is a notable exception.) The fact is the Clarks Desert Boot works on many levels, from the utilitarian design that made it the preferred choice of British soldiers serving in Africa during WWII to the lightweight comfort that has made it de rigueur for anti-establishment crusaders the world over. Indeed, chameleon-like versatility is its best survivor trait.
Similar attributes apply to Xtratuf (p. 24), the performance fishing brand that has successfully expanded its product line and is reeling in a rapidly growing audience of tailgaters and fishermancore fashionistas. Whether the wearer is on a boat in the Bering Strait in below zero conditions with icy waves splashing topside or stomping in puddles in a neighborhood park, their feet will stay dry, warm, and protected. That’s consistency. What’s more, the brand refuses to turn its back on its core retailers. Matters like distribution, deliveries, and inventory management are top of mind with that base despite the company’s newfound popularity. That’s loyalty. Both are final girl-worthy attributes.
Last but surely not least, there’s Weaver’s Leather Store (p. 20) in Buffalo Center, Iowa, population 839. The fourth-generation, family-owned sit-and-fit retailer and shoe repair operation personifies the qualities of loyalty, consistency, passion, authenticity, perseverance, originality, and hard work. In fact, Weaver’s has earned Jamie Lee Curtis–level final girl status. Nothing scares this family, and its steadfast determination to adapt and thrive while holding on to its core values and traditions is the stuff hit movies are made of.
On that note, I can’t help but hope at times that this past year will turn out to be a really bad dream, and that we’ll all wake up soon. I hope the cruel fallout from unproven macro political policies will disappear. Alas, it feels like horror movie monsters are running amok right now. It’s a scary, scary world. So, here’s to you all achieving final girl status in the ongoing frightfest. Stay strong and whatever you do, don’t say, “I’ll be right back.”
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