Attire Accessories - Sep/Oct 2018 (Issue 72)

UP AND COMING 109 season, we have also introduced sneakers. After three years, I know my customers quite well, and I love to ask them which style, colours, etc. they like. We launch one line per season, SS and AW. What trade shows do you attend and why? We attend Scoop London. This is one of the best fashion trade shows to meet buyers from the UK and Europe. What are your current best-selling designs? Our best-seller is the Gigi pink brogues. The shape is so feminine, and the powder pink colour is able to lift an outfit instantly. The Mayfair gold sneakers are also very popular, as they are white sneakers with a twist! When was the website launched, and how does it support the business? We launched the website in the first year of trading. Selling shoes online can be difficult, but we have been lucky so far. We are very clear about the sizing and fit, and we have great high-resolution images to show all of the little details. We also have set up an online chat to answer any questions or to give advice. We offer a personal shopping service called Shoes & the City where our stylist will visit you at your office (in central London) to let customers try on our shoes. What have been the key milestones in the business? I can think of two major milestones. In 2016, we won the Footwear Friends Award from the British Footwear Association. Thanks to charity Smart Works, we took part in a major fashion show organised by Net-a- Porter. It was amazing to meet the Net-a-Porter team. How do you view the current market, and what trends – both in business and product – do you see emerging over the coming months? Customers are looking for comfortable shoes and tend to buy fewer high heels. Sneakers are and will be an important category for a while. Do you have any thoughts on how Brexit will affect your business? We don’t know what’s going to happen after Brexit. Our shoes are made in Portugal, and we also sell to EU. I hope we will still be able to trade freely without any customs charges. What are your future plans for the business? After testing the market through different channels, we have received excellent feedback about our products, and we are confident about the quality and appeal of our shoes. We want to take House of Spring to the next level and become more established in the footwear market – online and wholesale. For this, we want to increase our visibility with more PR and collaborations with influencers. HOUSE OF SPRING T: +44 (0)7481 987 285 W: houseofspring.co.uk @house_of_spring

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