Michael Abrams, senior vice president of sales for Lady Couture and Ninety Union
This is the story of Michael Abrams, a shoe industry lifer and a sole survivor. His colorful tale spans early chapters working in all facets of independent retailing and, for the past quarter century, in the wholesale arena at an array of fast fashion brands. In a Noo Yawk accent as thick as Joey Ramone’s, Abrams gives the skinny on his careeuh—the hits, misses, and memories. Despite decades in the industry, Abrams is just getting revved up. He speaks from experience and with plenty of candor. It’s both refreshing and inspiring, especially considering that his latest chapters are some of his most successful to date. So, let’s get to the story.
Starting in high school Abrams pitched in, first in the stockroom and then on the salesfloor, of his parents’ three S&T Shoes stores in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The Queens, NY, native desperately wanted a car, and his parents told him he had to earn it. So after school he’d hop on a bus and then take the subway to the stores and pitch in while doing his homework between breaks. Abrams got schooled in the retailing basics. The most important lesson learned from his dad still rings true today. “Treat everyone the same, no matter who they are,” he says, adding that you meet the same people on their way up as on their way down. “It’s worked for me. I’ve been doing this a long time, and I have a good reputation in the business. I never screwed anybody.”
Turns out, Abrams had a knack for selling shoes as well as an eye for product. When his parents retired, he and his wife, Lorraine, didn’t miss a step and opened Daniel Evans, an upscale shoe boutique on the Upper East Side that, over a course of a decade, became a destination for ladies who lunch and ’80s-era Hollywood stars, including regulars Brooke Shields, Liza Minnelli, and Michelle Lee. Daniel Evans was also listed in the credits of several soap operas as shoe wardrobe supplier, which would often generate a viral-like rush of fans seeking the styles worn by their beloved characters.
“It was an amazing business,” Abrams says, citing the winning combination of great merchandise (brands included Yves St. Laurent, Joan & David, Perry Ellis, and Anne Klein as well as private label makeup out of Europe) and a killer location. “There was a beautiful restaurant next door, a high-end electronics store nearby, and a beauty parlor across the street where the crème de la crème went.” He adds, “It was a neighborhood where the husbands likely worked on Wall Street, had a house in The Hamptons, and their wives would buy two or three pairs every visit, which was frequent. And the stars would call ahead of time to schedule private shopping visits where they’d drop $1,000, which was a lot of money back then.”
But recessions happen. The one in the early ’90s hit New York hard, the city accounting for nearly one in five job losses nationwide. Many Masters of the Universe were no longer earning big bucks and Daniel Evans’ customer base cut back on spending. They neighborhood retail scene turned, too. “The stockbroker probably became a belt salesman at Lord & Taylor and the beautiful businesses around us became a KFC, a dive bar, and a framing store. It was tough,” Abrams says.
That’s when Abrams shifted gears, in the mid ’90s, into wholesale. First stop was Rossimoda followed by stints at Rocket Dog, Volatile (twice), Punk Rose (then a division of Skechers), and Dollhouse, before joining Lady Couture and Ninety Union about 10 years ago following a conversation with owner, Mark Kahen, at a show. He was a Queens retailer dipping his toe into the wholesale world. “He understood the bling business well, but he needed people with industry contacts,” Abrams says. “We got to talking and one thing led to another and, here we are now, with a nationwide account list and a company that’s growing rapidly.”
Abrams is built for fast fashion, having been the catalyst for sales growth at all his wholesale stops. And unlike a lot of people who slow down as they age, he’s selling faster than ever. Lady Couture and Ninety Union have caught fire, which kicked into high gear during the pandemic when Kahen bet big on inventory. Abrams was able to get into a lot of doors, and the brands consistently delivered solid results. Under his lone rep status (a second rep joined in February), sales have grown from a smattering of Jamaica Avenue independents “doing 100 pairs a year” to well into the thousands at leaders like Nordstrom, DSW, and Shoe Station. Overall sales are up about 20 percent this year, tariffs be damned.
“We’re in every channel and most majors,” Abrams proudly confirms. “Our business is great. Our boots are blowing out in both brands, and we offer a lot of wild styles with crazy heels and ornamentations that women love. We feature better materials—every pair has a little extra in them. And we recently added matching handbags in both brands that are selling well.”
In addition to great product, Abrams cites the company’s lean structure yet wide open approach to doing business as keys to its success. It’s a tight, family-owned ship—except when it comes to inventory. The company’s warehouses are always filled, and everything is open stock. “You can buy one pair or hundreds, and the size range runs 4 to 14,” he says, adding, “Our owner has a great eye for product. He knows what’s going to be good, and he buys shoes like a drunken salesman, and I mean that in the best way possible.”
Matching handbags have recently been added to select styles.
Abrams believes this overall approach makes Lady Couture and Ninety Union unique. “Hardly anyone ships a single pair now,” he says. “A lot of companies have a $3,000 opening order; ours is whatever you want to write.” For example, a retailer recently called asking how fast he could get a size 8 on a specific boot and the answer was the next day. “If you buy less than three pairs, we charge a $5 handling fee, but anything more than that, we just charge you the UPS rate,” Abrams says, adding, “Our four warehouses are jam-packed and flowing product in and out on a regular basis. We’re different.”
The company’s uniqueness has Abrams bullish about its future. The growth potential is “limitless” for both brands, and the company will be introducing a Brazilian-made leather brand, Ashley Kahen, at The Atlanta Shoe Market this February. “We’re run like a small, well-oiled independent shoe store,” he says. “Our owner is very easy to work with and rarely says no, our designer (Carlos Molina) is great, our customer service reps are our backbone, and our quality control people in China are amazing. It’s a team effort and a fun place to work.”
Business is up 20 percent despite serious external headwinds. What gives?
It all starts with our owner, Mark Kahen, who is a smart man. For example, earlier this year when the tariff rate was 100 percent-plus, he didn’t cancel orders. Instead, he stored it all in a bonded warehouse. He probably had about six containers sitting in that warehouse for a month until the rate went down to around 35 percent. We had tons of shoes ready to go. We didn’t have to wait 45 days to ship. While that cost x amount of dollars to store, in the long run we had shoes to ship immediately when many other brands didn’t. That was a huge edge. I should also note that our retailers were very sympathetic with pushing out POs. They were also very reasonable on deliveries and didn’t do charge backs. We gave gift-with-purchase tote bags as an extra, and many were happy with that.
Still, the trade war has impacted business?
Oh, it’s been terrible. Mark has been absorbing a lot of the costs. He’s been very fair with our partners. Prices have increased no more than 10 percent. We also tried sourcing in India, Vietnam, and Cambodia, but the fact is China is China, and you can’t beat the quality and turnaround times of our factory. We have established business there, so Mark’s bitten the bullet. The margins and less but the quality is still great.
In addition to betting big on inventory, what are some other factors contributing to the company’s recent growth?
Lots of reasons that add up. For example, Mark is in the warehouse every day. He’s very hands on. Before a shoe goes into production, he has samples sent in three sizes to make sure every detail is just right. Similarly, before an order is put in, we all offer our two cents and Mark genuinely listens, which is also rare. Another example involves our Ninety Union “Fuji” boot, a croc-print lace-up that’s blowing out of stores right now. The only issue is that reorders won’t arrive until January, which is when most boots are put on sale. But Mark is still buying them, believing that they will continue to sell. Who puts a boot order in for January delivery, especially in this current economy? But I agree with him that a lot of consumers will still be buying boots then, and I also think that we have the look and we’re willing to back it up. I feel that if we continue to do what we’ve been doing, Ninety Union will be a major brand in two or three years.
It’s all about heel bling with Lady Couture. Brazilian-made Ashley Kahen will debuts for Fall/Winter ’26.
How are the two brands different?
Lady Couture is dressier and more bling-y. Ninety Union is more subdued. They’re completely different customers. The Lady Couture woman wants to be noticed and likes that those styles that feature a lot of heel interests. She trends a little older, wants to be in fashion, and wear statement shoes. Whereas the Ninety Union woman is more basic in her tastes and prefers more subtle details.
Anything else fueling the brands’ success?
Our opening price point is below $100 for both brands, which I think is a more disposable income. If a young woman wants to spend between $49 and $89, it’s still within reach for her or her parents. When you get above $130, they think twice. So we try to keep our retail price points below $75 for shoes and $100 for boots.
And it’s not just a sneaker-wearing world?
Absolutely not! For example, the Ninety Union “Gloria” pump you featured on the cover of your April/May anniversary issue blew up. Buyers love that shoe, and it’s anything but a sneaker. In fact, every time we’re featured in your magazine, we get a ton of phone calls. I’m sure our “Twist” sandal coming out now is going to blow up, too. Shopping in the city recently, we saw a lot of women wearing high heels shoes and boots with tight jeans. I think that will trend into next fall.
What’s the outlook for next year?
We’ve forecasted at least a little growth, which we do every year. We have to be optimistic, right? We can’t throw our hands up and say, ‘Oh God, we’re not going to sell any shoes.’ It’s part of the reason why we’re launching Ashley Kahen. We’ve been getting a lot of requests to do a leather brand from Nordstrom, DSW, and others. So Mark went to Brazil for that. He does it right. On that note, one of my goals for next year is to hire a couple of more sales reps. I’ll continue to handle the major accounts and our rep, Kristen Garver, will handle independents across the country. But we need to hire two more reps to help her.
Do you envision a lot of growth in your existing account base as well as beyond?
Yes. We’re still chasing a few big accounts—like Famous Footwear and Macy’s, both of which we’d love to be in. There are a bunch of others we’re calling on and they’re saying there’s no room…yadda, yadda, yadda. They all have a story. But we’re going to surround them soon, and I believe they’ll eventually take notice. It’s how Steve Madden built his business. He did it right, starting out with independents and working his way up.
Ninety Union best-sellers: “Fuji,” Zippy,”and “Jloo.”
What makes for a great shoe? Is it a gut feeling at this point?
It just clicks in my head. Our Ninety Union “Zippy” black ankle boot with a front zipper and studs around the outsole is one example. I knew instantly that it’d be a home run and told Mark to buy it. He initially bought 1,800 pairs. That quickly turned into 20,000 pairs, which six years ago was friggin’ Steve Madden-like numbers for us. We’d never had a style do more than 1,000 pairs before that. If we had more, we’d have sold more. It was in every store in Manhattan, and that’s when Manhattan had shoe stores. David Z had it in every store. Village Cobbler had it. It cost $39 and was retailing for $99.
The home runs have gotten bigger since, yes?
Yes. It’s crazy the numbers we’re doing on some styles. Our recently introduced “Jloo” slide has been tremendous—25,000 pairs and counting. Our “Raddle” sandal will hit 50,000 pairs soon. Some of our handbags are approaching 16,000 units. That’s tremendous.
Does your company’s success ultimately boil down to product?
To a large extent, yes. Part of it is also luck of the draw. It’s the right time, right shoes, and right place. For example, during the pandemic we were loaded with inventory and that really helped open a lot of accounts that had been hesitant up to that point. We opened Nordstrom Rack, Saks Off Fifth, Lord & Taylor, and Ross Stores, among others. Fortunately, those shoes performed. Because as everyone in this business knows, you’re only as good as your last shoe. We’ve been really fortunate to not bomb out these last few years. We’ve had zero close-outs in our inventory. We don’t have one style that we’re looking to get rid of, which is amazing as we carry a huge collection and everything comes in three to five colors. There may a color in a style that’s slow, but there’s nothing we want to dump or reduce. We even have a few styles from 10 years ago that are still selling.
What’s your company’s position on DTC?
We sell DTC but our pricing is considerably higher than any of our online partners. Our site is really to showcase our complete collection. We don’t really want to sell DTC. We want to sell in our retail partners. We don’t want a consumer to google our brands and see a style on our site cheaper than anyone else. We have a different point of view. Also, a lot of the shoes on our site are sold out or only available in limited sizes. We carry tons of stock, but that’s because we want our retail partners to be able to replenish quickly.
This is quite different philosophy.
It is. You don’t make money selling one pair at a time. You need to sell 50, 500, 1,000 pairs, etc. at a time, and you can only do that through retailers.
Why don’t most other brands agree with this approach?
I don’t know. I have a lot of friends who sell DTC a little over wholesale pricing. I think it makes no sense. Opening your own stores make no sense to me whatsoever, either.
Is the wholesale business harder today than when you started out?
Yes, in that there’s far fewer retailers overall. When I started, I could spend a whole day just on 8th St. in Manhattan. There were 20 independent shoes stores on that one block. Now there are none. There are hardly any in all of Manhattan.
Do you envision an independent shoe store renaissance any time soon?
Not in New York. The rents are ridiculously high, and good traffic is near zero. My wife and I shopped in Manhattan recently and while there was a mob of people, very few were carrying shopping bags. The only shopping bags you see are from Trader Joe’s. Even in SoHo, it was mobbed but the only people carrying shopping bags were tourists. Maybe in the Southeast where the rents are cheaper and those consumers like to dress glitzy can sustain more boutiques, whereas with New Yorkers it’s give them a t-shirt, button fly Levi’s, and black boots and they’re happy.
Where do you envision the company in three years?
In addition to possibly launching an opening price point brand, I see our brands everywhere. We want to be in every retailer across the country. I think that our brands have enough variety in styles, colors, and patterns to sell everybody. For example, we don’t sell Nordstrom Rack the same styles we sell Nordstrom, nor do we sell Shoe Show the same styles we sell DSW, etc.
Even if they ask politely?
Our lines are big enough so that we can keep them all happy. There are enough options to sell everybody something different. We can also tweak a style—change a stitch or a buckle, or put a different heel on it. We can also do private label, if they want. We’ve done it for Aldo and Steve Madden.
What do you love most about this industry?
It’s a part of me. I’ve been doing since I was 16 years old and I still love it. Retire? Why should I? I love what I do. I love going to shoe shows. I love setting up our booths, although I hate breaking them down. I love being there. I love meeting face-to-face with my shoe family. I really missed them during the pandemic.
It’s refreshing to speak with some who has such a positive outlook on the industry and life in general.
My roots are in retail, so I must be an optimist. But it takes a lot of hard work to be successful. When I walk a show and see a lot of young reps sitting at desks with their faces buried in their laptops…it makes me crazy! You should look directly at customers. Same goes for buyers. I see how a lot of them only go into booths they already know. I don’t understand that. You’re spending money to attend the show as well as for someone to cover your store while you’re gone on a weekend, no less. Yet you don’t walk into new booths? I get it if you’re a kids’ or work boot store, but if you sell women’s shoes, you might want to take a look at ours. We have everything from ballerinas to wild heels to sneakers. It makes me crazy. That rant aside, the shoe business has been very, very good to me.
What do you love most about your job?
I love everything about it. I work for an amazing owner, and I know that from the experience of having worked for plenty of difficult people over the years. Mark is easy to work for, and it’s gratifying work. While it was hard in the beginning—getting people to have faith in our brands and give them a test—now it’s like we’re on autopilot. Ninety Union and Lady Couture are becoming genuine brands, but there’s still plenty of room for growth in more styles, more depth with existing accounts and in more doors. I think if this season performs like the early read has, then we’ll have a phenomenal 2026. •
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