Footwear News articles from August 1987

Footwear News archives from August 1987

Nordstrom on the move worries Eastern retail.
August 31, 1987... Nordstrom on the move worries Eastern retail The prospect of Seattle--based Nordstrom heading east has created rumbles of anxiety in the shoe industry, as retailers wring their hands over the prospective new competition and wonder where...

Sardan sells majority stake in Pony Sports. (Sardan Holding AG, Pony Sports & Leisure)
August 31, 1987... Sardan sells majority stake in Pony Sports Sardan Holding AG last week said it has sold its majority stake in Pony Sports & Leisure, Rutherford, N.J., to Yarsel Investment Corp., of Taiwan. The price was not disclosed. Sardan, which...

Adidas shifts personnel, plans to rejuvenate firm.
August 31, 1987... Adidas shifts personnel, plans to rejuvenate firm After disclosing a series of personnel changes last week, Adidas USA Inc. indicated it has plans to rejuvenate the company by becoming more fashionable and trendy in the consumer's mind,...

Genesco back on profit track in 1st quarter.
August 31, 1987... Genesco back on profit track in 1st quarter Genesco Inc. returned to profitability in the first quarter ended July 31, reporting earnings of $395,000 compared with a loss of $213,000 in the period last year. On a per-share basis, the...

Korea unrest hurts Reebok.
August 31, 1987... Korea unrest hurts Reebok Reebok International revealed last week that production delays in South Korea due to labor unrest would affect Reebok's third-quarter profits. The company expects third-quarter earnings to be "only slighter...

'Upbeat' U.S. Shoe avows commitment to shoe biz.
August 31, 1987... "Upbeat" U.S. Shoe avows commitment to shoe biz U.S. Shoe Corp.'s chairman reaffirmed his company's commitment to staying in the footwear business before securities analysts here last week and called reports to the contrary "absolutely...

Foreigners buy Shoe-Town stake.
August 31, 1987... Foreigners buy Shoe-Town stake Several foreign investment funds controlled by Edward C. Johnson, a Boston investment company owner, recently bought enough stock to give them a 5.2 percent stake in Shoe-Town Inc. A filing with the...

Quiet WSA mart posts steady at-once writing. (Western Shoe Associates )
August 31, 1987... Quiet WSA mart posts steady at-once writing Although exhibitors described the Western Shoe Associates' Market here last week as quiet, they said that traffic was steady and that retailers were writing orders for at-once, closeouts and some...

CHH buying habits unaltered after firm divides. (Carter Hawley Hale)
August 31, 1987... CHH buying habits unaltered after firm divides The new Carter Hawley Hale will not alter its buying operations, but it will significantly boost capital spending, chairman Philip M. Hawley advised, following CHH shareholder approval last...

Stride Rite seeks fashion edge, deeper customer awareness under Miller tutelage. (Irwin Miller)
August 31, 1987... Stride Rite seeks fashion edge, deeper customer awareness under Miller tutelage Stride Rite has long been a children's footwear brand that induces thoughts of fit and quality. But, as many domestic manufacturers have found, such...

Imports grab 83% of market in June.
August 24, 1987... Imports grab 83% of market in June Shoe imports continued to climb faster than domestic production in June as foreign shoe manufacturers increased their share of the U.S. market to 83 percent, according to the latest Commerce Department...

Rayne sold to Graham and family. (H.&M. Rayne Ltd., David Graham)
August 24, 1987... Rayne Sold to Graham and family H. & M. Rayne Ltd. has been sold to British footwear executive David Graham and members of his family for an undisclosed sum. The sale includes Rayne's factory in North London, its two shops on Bond...

July retail shoe prices off 2.1%.
August 24, 1987... July retail shoe prices off 2.1% Retail footwear prices in July declined 2.1 percent from June prices, but were up 2.5 percent from July 1986, the Labor Department reported. Seasonally adjusted, last month's footwear prices moved down 1.2...

Pusan labor situation said to be cooling down.
August 24, 1987... Pusan labor situation said to be cooling down Pusan-based footwear industry officials last week reported the inflamed labor situation in the area had settled somewhat, although scattered disputes are likely to continue in South Korea's...

PVH purchases Bass, agrees to Shoe Box sale. (Phillips-Van Heusen Corp.)
August 24, 1987... PVH purchases Bass, agrees to Shoe Box sale Phillips-Van Heusen Corp. (PVH) last Friday closed its purchase of G.H. Bass & Co. from Chesebrough-Pond's Inc., Westport, Conn., and signed an agreement to sell The Shoe Box, a 41-store Bass...

Speciality stores shine in retail profile of '86.
August 24, 1987... Specialty stores shine in retail profile of '86 Specialty stores turned in the strongest performance of the 12 footwear retailers included in Kurt Salmon Associate's (KSA) profile of the top 100 retailers of 1986. In addition, the...

Edison logs 10-week loss. (Edison Bros. Stores Inc.)
August 24, 1987... Edison logs 10-week loss Edison Bros. Stores Inc. reported a net operating loss for the 10-week second fiscal period as well as a loss for the first half of the year. Sales for both periods decreased about 4 percent. Andrew E....

James Tullos no longer Revelations president.
August 24, 1987... James Tullos no longer Revelations president James Tullos resigned as president and chief executive officer of Revelations Shoe Corp., a subsidiary of Melborn, Australia-based Pacific Dunlop, on Aug. 13. Taking over all...

Jamaica, IMF accord may hurt shoe industry. (International Money Fund )
August 24, 1987... Jamaica, IMF accord may hurt shoe industry An agreement between the Jamaican government and the International Money Fund may further threaten the island's shoe industry, already struggling to overcome a rising tide of imports, most of them...

Say bank monitors Craddock. (Craddock Terry Shoe Corp. cash flow problems)
August 24, 1987... Say bank monitors Craddock Cash flow problems reportedly continued to plague Craddock-Terry Shoe Corp. last week amid industry reports that a bank official is now monitoring operations of the company. Some vendors are refusing to sell...

Evanson is FIA's acting prexy. (Fawn Evanson, Footwear Industries of America)
August 17, 1987... Evanson is FIA's acting prexy Fawn Evanson has been named acting president of Footwear Industries of America (FIA), the domestic shoe industry's national trade association, replacing Carl Bontemps, who has retired. Evanson had been...

J. Baker plans to launch chain of shoe stores. (J. Baker Shoes)
August 17, 1987... J. Baker plans to launch chain of shoe stores J. Baker Shoes, operator of Parade of Shoes, licensed departments and wholesale operations, plans to launch a new chain store retail division, New Step in Shoes, according to Sherman Baker,...

Mexico is near at hand but difficult to deal with. (for footwear products)
August 17, 1987... Mexico is near at hand but difficult to deal with Italian shoe prices are skyrocketing. Deliveries from Brazil are difficult and late. Taiwanese factories are filling up. The shoe industry needs a new mecca. Where better to run than the...

Canada's Taurus plans distribution from N.H. (Taurus Footwear Inc.; Taurus USA Inc.)
August 17, 1987... Canada's Taurus plans distribution from N.H. Taurus Footwear Inc., Montreal, which markets Kodiak and Santana boots in Canada and the U.S., has launched Taurus USA Inc., which plans to open headquarters and a distribution center here by...

Dallas show becoming an early bird specialty. (Southwestern Show Travelers Association's Dallas Spring Shoe Market)
August 17, 1987... Dallas show becoming an early bird specialty Whether it is intentional or not, a major shift in attendance has evolved at the Southwestern Shoe Travelers Association's shoe market here, where many retailers now visit the show a day or two...

European shoe makers flock to Montreal show. (Canadian International Footwear Exhibition)
August 17, 1987... European shoe makers flock to Montreal show With an eye to the December 1, 1988 phase out of Canada's last remaining quotas on shoe imports, 53 manufacturers from Spain, France and Italy sought out new markets at last week's Canadian...

Thailand looks sweet for foreign sugar daddy. (footwear industry)
August 17, 1987... Thailand looks sweet for foreign sugar daddys Attracted by low-wages and a growing infrastructure, foreign buyers are increasing orders for leather products out of Thailand. "Thailand is looking good these days,' said a buyer for an...

Reebok to put big chunk of ad budget into TV. (Reebok International Ltd.)
August 17, 1987... Reebok to put big chunk of ad budget into TV Reebok International Ltd., Canton, Mass., introduced four new commercials and reported its intention to devote a large portion of its $30 million advertising budget to television at a press...

Consumer shoe outlays advance 6% in 1986. (column)
August 10, 1987... Consumer shoe outlays advance 6% in 1986 NEW YORK (FNS) -- U.S. consumer expenditures on footwear totaled $24.6 billion in 1986, an increase of 6 percent from the revised total reported for 1985. These figures, compiled by the Office of...

New Nike div. will market comfortable shoes. (Lifestyle)
August 10, 1987... New Nike div. will market comfort shoes BEAVERTON, Ore. -- Nike Inc. is introducing a branded division that will design and market comfort footwear. Called Lifestyle, the division will produce men's and women's shoes that cater to...

Upbeat mood overcomes show week 'run-around.' (shoe industry trade shows)
August 10, 1987... Upbeat mood overcomes show week 'run-around' NEW YORK -- "Not great, but good" was one description of last week's shoe shows that summed up the mood of buyers and vendors alike. Price became the issue of the day, with Taiwan climbing...

Burton, buyer huddle on Rayne operation sale. (Burton Group PLC, H.& M. Rayne)
August 10, 1987... Burton, buyer huddle on Rayne operation sale LONDON (FNS) -- The Burton Group PLC last week revealed it is in talks with an unidentified buyer for most of its H.&M. Rayne subsidiary. Burton said it is legally barred from revealing the name...

Gap adds footwear to mix.
August 10, 1987... Gap adds footwear to mix SAN BRUNO, Calif. -- The Gap has entered the footwear retailing industry with an exclusive licensing agreement that will supply its 700 stores. Sam and Libby Edelman, formerly with the footwear division for...

Yeutter: import curbs wouldn't help domestics. (Clayton Yeutter)
August 10, 1987... Yeutter: Import curbs wouldn't help domestics WASHINGTON (FNS) -- Arguing that certain segments of the U.S. footwear industry "will never be competitive," U.S. Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter told FN last week that import curbs would do...

Bourret group may acquire The Shoe Box. (Richard H. Bourret)
August 10, 1987... Bourret group may acquire The Shoe Box NEW YORK -- A group including Richard H. Bourret, former president of G.H. Bass & Co., "appears to be coming to the forefront" of potential purchasers of The Shoe Box, Carrollton, Tex., sources close to...

Maria Pia U.S.A. forms as independent company.
August 10, 1987... Maria Pia U.S.A. forms as independent company NEW YORK -- In what has been a period of ongoing change for Maria Pia Shoes, Ron Siegel, who had been president of Maria Pia Inc., last Thursday disclosed the formation of Maria Pia U.S.A., an...

El Greco, Pentland join forces. (El Greco Inc,, Pentland Industries PLC)
August 3, 1987... El Greco, Pentland join forces PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. -- El Greco Inc. and Pentland Industries PLC, London, last week said they have agreed in principle to a joint venture whereby Charles Cole, chairman and principal owner of El Greco, and...

Van Heusen agrees to buy Bass. (G.H. Bass and Company)
August 3, 1987... Van Heusen agrees to buy Bass NEW YORK -- In a move that took some fashion industry watchers by surprise, Phillips-Van Heusen Corp. (PVH), the shirt manufacturer, last Thursday disclosed it had agreed to purchase G.H. Bass & Co. from...

Shows accenting higher heels.
August 3, 1987... Shows accenting higher heels NEW YORK -- Buyers at this week's National Shoe Fair and Fashion Footwear Association of New York shows will find an accent on higher heels and higher prices, according to a national survey of exhibitors. With...

Senator mulls dividing textiles from footwear. (John Chafee, textile bill)
August 3, 1987... Senator mulls dividing textiles from footwear WASHINGTON (FNS) -- Sen. John Chafee, R-R.I., may introduce an amendment to the textile bill that would separate footwear import-relief provisions from the measure, giving lawmakers the option to...

U.S. Shoe purchases Divertente trademark.
August 3, 1987... U.S. Shoe purchases Divertente trademark CINCINNATI -- U.S. Shoe Corp. made its second acquisition of a footwear trademark within two weeks last week when it bought the Divertente name and brought Todd Ricci, president of Divertente, into the...

Allen-Edmonds expects big orders from Japan.
August 3, 1987... Allen-Edmonds expects big orders from Japan TOKYO (FNS) -- Allen-Edmonds Shoe Corp. is aiming to sell 15,000-20,000 pairs of shoes per year in Japan. Last year the Wisconsin-based firm sold 100 pairs, and in January, president John Stollenwerk...

Nike, others face $15 mil. suit over Beatles song. (Revolution)
August 3, 1987... Nike, others face $15 mil. suit over Beatles song NEW YORK (FNS) -- Apple Corps Ltd. and Apple Records Inc. have filed a $15 million lawsuit against Nike Inc. and others for using the Beatles' song "Revolution" in a recent Nike advertising...

Stride Rite: Rayden at the helm. (Michael W. Rayden)
August 3, 1987... Stride Rite: Rayden at helm CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Stride Rite Corp. confirmed last week that Michael W. Rayden had been named president and chief operating officer (see FN 7/27, Page 2). Rayden had been president of Eddie Bauer, Seattle, a...

2 former NYCS execs are still plagued by woes. (New York City Shoes Inc., Terry S. Rakoff, Earl Shub)
August 3, 1987... 2 former NYCS execs are still plagued by woes PHILADELPHIA (FNS) -- Troubles continued to plague two former top officials of the financially beleagured New York City Shoes Inc. (NYCS) last week, and 18 wholly owned subsidiaries of the company...