Hit or Miss
Spring 12
Topshop/Topman
Top of the shops. Every trend and a little more, as well as some of the best VM, store design and staff.
Office
Liverpool’s busiest store pulls in the crowds with good trend-led product and smiley service.
River Island
Great trend direction means product is strong but bad labelling and untidiness let it down.
Jones Bootmaker
A wide offer of quality brands and styles with enough trends to interest a variety of shoppers.
Dune
Although the window displays draw in customers, it is undermined by inattentive staff.
Schuh
Good interpretations of women’s trends but the lack of staff and an untidy men’s area disappoint.
Autumn 11
Clarks
Eye-catching styles with comfort in mind, Clarks offers good value in a well-signposted setting.
Jones Bootmaker
A good range of product in a calm setting with good service and some highly competitive prices
New Look
On trend for autumn 11, New Look offers good value and helpful staff but few real-leather lines
Russell & Bromley
Top-quality on-trend product, well merchandised, at prices that generally reflect the upmarket offer
Topshop
Totally on trend, it knocks spots off its rivals with good value product. Insufficient seating though.
Kurt Geiger
A few strong items but generally the store lacks wow factor as well as sufficient seating.
Nine West
Some good stylish product if sometimes a little tacky and overpriced. Service could be improved.
River Island
Trend-leading River Island has interesting product and ways of displaying it, but it is of mixed value.
Schuh
Attention to detail from the welcoming staff and plenty of seating, but some prices are too high.
Hit or Miss
Footwear retailers in Westfield Stratford proved they have a handle on autumn 11 trends, but only some go the extra mile to keep customers spending.
Spring 11
Kurt Geiger, Philadelphia Street, Cabot Circus
An outstanding window design sets the tone for the season and the shopfit is spectacular
Clarks, Broadmead, Bristol
A high calibre of comfort-led styles with some key trends covered and excellent customer service
Office, New Broadmead, Union Street, Bristol
Cleverly interpreted trend-driven styles served with a smile in a clean and tidy store
Schuh, Concorde Street, Cabot Circus
Visual merchandising is spot on, with a fun and funky offer but points are lost on pricing structure
Aldo, Brigstowe Street, Cabot Circus
Nice design touches on the must-have trends this season but some prices are too high
Barratts. Brigstowe Street, Cabot Circus
A good shopping experience but product mix is confusing and not everything is good value
Debenhams, St James Barton, Bristol
The store offers something for everyone but the Shoe Boudoir area is where the best styles are
Soletrader, Broadmead, Bristol
Men’s footwear can be sold in a sexy environment but it isn’t here. A highly disappointing, basic offer
River Island, Concorde Street, Cabot Circus
Great product and great value. Design details really make this footwear offer stand out
Next, Brigstowe Street, Cabot Circus
An excellent store experience with good trend-led footwear, but mixed pricing lets the offer down
New Look, The Circus, Cabot Circus
Continues to offer fantastic value but the customer service could be better
Primark, The Horsefair, Bristol
Plenty of young fashion styles piled high and sold cheap, all of which are bang on trend
Jones Bootmaker, Brigstowe Street, Cabot Circus
A great selection of customer-appropriate styles but some of the high prices cannot be justified.
BHS, Broadmead, Bristol
Bhs gives Clarks and Marks & Spencer a run for their money on price in the mature market
Marks and Spencer Broadmead, Bristol
Marks & Spencer must trade on service and step up its game but pricing architecture is bang on
Hit or Miss Footwear - Spring 11
In the first of spring 11’s seasonal surveys, Drapers pounded the streets of Bristol to inspect the footwear collections and levels of customer service in the city’s multiple retailers.
Autumn 10 Women's Footwear
Kurt Geiger, 1-2 North Street
Premium footwear retailing at its best, with product head and shoulders above the rest.
Russell & Bromley, 57-58 East Street
A great range of winter boots ensures Russell & Bromley stands out this season
Topshop, 178/180 Western Road
An impressive offer and exceptional grasp of what represents good value for money.
Jones Bootmaker, 20-21 East Street
A mixed bag, with strong styles. It’s a shame to see an autumn promotion already though.
Clarks, 51/52 Churchill Square
High-quality styles are let down by a clinical shopfit and higher pricing than competitors.
Dune, Debenhams, 95-99 Churchill Square
This Debenhams concession pales in comparison with Dune’s full autumn 10 offer.
BHS, 1 Churchill Square
Good comfort styles are undermined by bad colour choice and store environment.
New Look, 188-191 Western Road
Great product and great prices confirm New Look’s position as value market leader.
Aldo, Unit 37 Churchill Square
It may have best-in-class wedges but sky-high pricing lets the side down.
LK Bennett, 38 East Street
The store and product exude elegance but sloppy display merchandising must improve.
Primark, 169-174 Western Road
Trend-led product is strong and the in-store experience surpasses expectations.
Marks & Spencer, 195 Western Road
More in tune with its customer than previous seasons with a quality-led, on-trend offer.
Barratts, 7 Western Road
A confident offer including plenty of boots but the store is let down by poor service.
Shoe Zone, 84/85 Western Road
A good effort on military boots but the store is desperately in need of a revamp.
Spring 10
New Look, 203-207 Oxford Street
New Look has built a shoe Mecca here, but has slipped slightly in the value stakes
Topshop, 216 Oxford Street
A plethora of fashion-led styles to bolster the trend quota in young women’s wardrobes
Jones Bootmaker, 15 South Molton Street
Has upped its quality footwear offer, but still has too many styles on the shelves
Rusell & Bromley, 494-496 Oxford Street
A good effort product-wise. The standard of service does not live up to expectations
LK Bennett, 31 Brook Street
Serves up an elegant collection of footwear, which could be broadened in size
Aldo, 146 Oxford Street
A strong effort on the trend front but Aldo lets itself down with its sky-high pricing
River Island, 213 Oxford Street
This store isn’t up to River Island’s usual standard, but still delights in the trend stakes
Primark, 499 Oxford Street
Levels of service and environment are in line with Primark’s low prices, but product excels
Office, 190 Oxford Street
Office usually surprises and excites the customer and could do that more in this store
Faith, 192-194 Oxford Street
A new shopfit elevates Faith although it could do with nailing down some of the key trends
Next, 201- 203 Oxford Street
Offers an upbeat, funky range that is perhaps too young for Next’s core customer
Barratts, 297 Oxford Street
Straddles the young fashion and comfort markets, and the shopfit is an improvement
Autumn 09
News
Crocs showcases new retail concept with opening of Cardiff store
Moulded footwear brand Crocs has showcased its new retail design concept for the UK with the opening of its first store in Wales.
Footwear shoppers decline
The number of shoppers buying footwear has fallen by 13.9% between 2007 and 2011, the equivalent of 5.5m shoppers.
LK Bennett sets its sights on the US as it secures £16m funding package
Upmarket clothing and footwear retailer LK Bennett has secured a new £16m credit facility from Lloyds Banking Group which it will use to accelerate international expansion, including the US.
Sales are put on hold as sun finally shines on high street
Retailers look to be holding their nerve and not going on Sale early following a long-anticipated improvement in the weather this week.
MBT ‘has no future’ if no saviour is found for Swiss owner
The administrator of comfort footwear brand MBT has warned that if a buyer is not found for the business’s Swiss parent company within a matter of weeks, the brand will not have a future.
Bourne ramping up womenswear offer
Women’s footwear and clothing brand Bourne will almost double its clothing offer for spring 13 in a bid to secure more stockists.
IMAGE GALLERY: Christian Louboutin launches iPhone app
Luxury footwear designer Christian Louboutin has launched its first app for iPhone and iPad, to provide users with an interactive experience for the brand.
MBT UK slips into administration
Masai GB Ltd, the UK arm of comfort footwear brand MBT, has fallen into administration.
First round bids received for iconic Dr Martens brand
First round bids for Dr Martens have been submitted by private equity firms looking to snap up the British-owned footwear brand.
HoF stepping up footwear offer with World of Shoes in Oxford St
House of Fraser will become the latest department store to ramp up its footwear offer with the launch of a new concept called World of Shoes in its flagship Oxford Street store on June 1.
Base London to reclaim lost youth
Men’s footwear brand Base London is returning to its young fashion roots with the launch of an advertising campaign in June.
Clarks unveils new look Maddison Avenue store
Footwear giant Clarks has unveiled its global store design concept at its New York flagship on Madison Avenue.
Mou looks to double stockists following Ugg repositioning
Sheepskin boot brand Mou is aiming to double its number of UK stockists, capitalising on Ugg having recently axed several of its key wholesale accounts.
Kurt Geiger signs long-term deal with Manolo Blahnik
Premium footwear retailer Kurt Geiger is teaming up with footwear designer Manolo Blahnik to create and manage boutiques within the footwear departments it operates in Harrods and Liberty.
Schuh launches French website
Branded footwear retailer Schuh has launched a French version of its website today as part of its first steps into the European market.
