Operation Christmas Time
In Europe, a Christmas showcase is an event of value equivalent to a fashion show at Fashion Week. This season they are decorated by the chief designer of the company - like Lagerfeld for Chanel. The owners turn the window dressing into a show; the audience gathers for a show to open the windows of the French Printemps and Galeries Lafayette department stores. Have you heard from us about anything like this? In the Stockholm NK, four decorators start working on winter display cases in the summer. Especially for children, platforms are made to make it more convenient for them to stick their nose to the glass and look at the windows. In the Shop Design Merry Christmas project, we collected samples of the 2010 / 2011 season of Christmas showcase products - the best department stores in the world, several continents, a fantastic variety of ideas. For experience and inspiration.
New york department store Bergdorf Goodman this year decided to address the theme of time travel and created a series of compositions inspired by different eras, Wish You Were Here ("If you were here"). Behind the glass, the heroines of the Hollywood musicals of the 1940's, characters from ancient Roman mythology and futuristic objects from the first sci-fi film came to life.
Paris Printemps Store experimenting with the theme of Christmas in the castle. At the peak of popularity, graphic design elements - emblems, badges, various labels decorate all the New Year's products of the store. In the scenery of the ancient castle, each visitor will be able to find his talisman for the next year.
Linda Hewson, visual merchandising manager for London's Selfridges department store, shared her advice with those who were about to make a selling window display. Advice was received thanks to the project manager of Vitrinistika.Ru Kirill Oleinichenko.
- Start planning a storefront with a design concept and a budget.
- Always create sketches or layouts first - even before you start placing goods and racks.
- Determine how much space you have. Will all items go through all the doors?
- Decide where the main focal point will be.
- Determine which buyers you want to attract and what products you need to place on the window. Do these products fit the window dressing style?
- Make sure that the racks do not distract from the goods and do not overshadow them.
- Make sure that all mannequins are suitable for the selected products.
- Decide if you need to use labels and graphics.
- Choose a bright color palette.
- Make sure the quality of the racks is of the highest standard.
- Remember: often the simplest display cases are the best display cases.
By the way, it was Selfridges in 2009 that became one of the first stores to postpone the main holiday of the year to August - their Christmas store opened unusually early - 8 of August. In 2010, the department store relied on the trend of interactivity in window dressing. The game is their main theme. Huge monster dolls appeared thanks to illustrator Pete Fowler.
The same aliens came down to Harvey Nichols - men and women with Christmas-tree-headed balls live a very ordinary life: they open gift boxes, rejoice at food, measure new clothes. Not the most technically difficult idea, but spectacular, attractive and attractive. In general, everything, as economist Thorstein Veblen said a hundred years ago: it is not the goods that are consumed, but their impact on others. In the foreground is not the usefulness of a thing, but a signal of the amount spent.
Waste has been around for centuries, and to see in them only a pretense of window dressing is probably incorrect. Leaders, successful merchants and manufacturers, military and lawyers all the time resorted to non-functional expenses. At the same time, they did not indulge their whims, but acted more than sensibly - they created an impression about themselves with the help of the surroundings, and when necessary, wide gestures. Just like all department stores. Again, behind a broad gesture, there is also rigorous functionality: someone who does not produce guaranteed good products will not spend money on his publicity, because, having made a bad product recognizable, it is usually more difficult to sell it. Demonstrative spending on shop windows is the key to predictability and works on the trust of potential partners.
Creating an emotional connection through a showcase
Three Main Trends in Visual Merchandising Based on Events
Trade equipment in a modern shoe and accessories store
Should a shoe store spend money on digital screens?
Mistakes in the lighting of the sales area that spoil the impression of a shoe store
Store Manager: Strategic Asset or Redundant Position?
Owners of small shoe stores often juggle multiple roles: negotiating with suppliers, managing inventory, handling marketing, and even personally participating in sales. In such an environment, it's difficult to focus on strategic development and operational management. This is where a store manager comes in – a key employee who oversees daily processes and ensures stable business growth. However, many owners believe they can handle this on their own. SR fashion business management and development expert Maria Gerasimenko explains why a store manager is essential and why you can't do without one if you want to grow and scale your business.
Euro Shoes — March 4-7, 2026 at the WTC Congress Center
From March 4th to 7th, leading brands from Europe, Asia, and the CIS will gather at the WTC Congress Center in Moscow to present their Fall/Winter 2026 collections, capture current trends, and set the direction for the fashion industry.
What factors influence pricing, and how to work with retail prices for shoes
Footwear retail is one of those segments that is highly dependent on seasonality. Pricing in the footwear business, in turn, depends on a multitude of factors, from production costs to the vagaries of weather and regional factors.SR's expert in product assortment and management, Emina Ponyatova, discusses the key principles of pricing footwear products, as well as the main pressure factors and challenges facing footwear retailers in 2025, and offers recommendations on how to ensure successful and profitable retail.
Customer profiling in a shoe store. What is this technique and how can it be used in sales?
Profiling is a scientific method of "reading people," allowing one to create a psychological profile of a person and predict their actions or behavior in certain situations, or even catch them in a lie. Profiling is used in sales because the salesperson needs to understand a person's emotional state and their underlying motivations for purchasing. An expert and practitioner in sales growth in fashion, SR, discusses this method and its practical application in footwear retail.
SOHO Fashion Group: 20 years of sustainable growth and collaboration with global brands
This year, SOHO Fashion Group celebrates its 20th anniversary—a significant milestone that highlights the company's sustainable development and its contribution to shaping the Russian fashion market. During this period, the company has established a leading position in the industry, forging strong relationships with international brands and establishing itself as a reliable representative of the fashion segment.
Just a month until the Euro Shoes exhibition in Moscow!
We are counting down the days for the main international exhibition of footwear and accessories Euro Shoes Premiere Collection in Moscow! The exhibition will be held from August 27 to 30 at a new premium venue – the capital's congress center WTC on Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment.
Salvatore Ferragamo's Shoes Inspire Pastry Chefs
Italian confectioners have created cakes that are exact copies of six legendary pairs of shoes from the archives of the Italian "Shoemaker to the Stars" maestro Salvatore Ferragamo. They were presented in the 10_11 restaurant of the Milan hotel Portrait Milano, which is part of the hotel management company owned by the Ferragamo family.
Main trend themes for footwear and bags collections for the fall-winter 2025/26 season
Whatever aesthetics your collection adheres to - craft heritage, elegant minimalism inspired by traditions or, conversely, futuristic forms - if your customer strives to be fashionable and you need to regularly update your assortment with current trendy novelties, pay attention to the design trends, models and details of women's shoes and bags in the fall-winter 2025/26 season described in this article. To prepare it, the author used materials from the international trend bureau Fashion Snoops, which is a source of commercial forecasts for the seasons ahead, and current trend analytics of key events in the fashion industry around the world: industry exhibitions, shows, shows.
How Pareto's Law Works in a Shoe Retail Store
Analysis of the company's performance is an important quality of a manager. Many indicators in the retail business are subject to analysis, primarily - sales planning and inventory balances, KPI performance by employees, the effectiveness of marketing campaigns, the number of sellers, their work schedules and many other factors that affect the final result of the store. In this material, SR expert on increasing sales in shoe retail Evgeny Danchev, using the Pareto principle, understands the reasons why revenue and volumes of goods sold are distributed very unevenly between weekdays and weekends. The author is confident that the Pareto principle is indispensable in the systemic analysis of sales management efficiency and sales results. But it is important to apply it correctly and interpret its meaning.
Clarks: 200 years of quality, style and innovation
In 2025, the legendary British brand Clarks celebrates its 200th anniversary – an impressive milestone that demonstrates its enduring relevance, impeccable quality and global appeal.recognition of the brand. Since its foundation in 1825, the company has not only created shoes, but also set the standards for comfort and style, remaining a symbol of British craftsmanship and innovation.
New brand in the SOHO FASHION portfolio – BEVERLY HILLS POLO CLUB
SOHO Fashion continues to grow and develop in the Russian footwear market, and in 2025, the leading distributor's brand portfolio added a new one – the legendary BeverlyHills Polo Club (BHPC). This is an international brand that has become a symbol of the American way of life, freedom and style. Founded in the 1980s, it is inspired by the spirit of polo sport, which
associated with elitism, aristocracy and an active lifestyle.
Micam and Livetrend presented a selection of footwear trends for the spring-summer 2026 season
The Italian international footwear fair Micam presents the "Spring-Summer 2026 Trend Guide", developed in collaboration with Livetrend. The guide is based on the analysis of social networks, online marketplaces and fashion shows, as well as new technologies such as artificial intelligence and Big Data.
The Battle for the Sports Shoe Market
Fashion market experts and economic analysts predict a decline in sales of Nike and Adidas. The leadership positions of the unsinkable sports giants may be seriously shaken in the coming years, as they are being pushed out by young, bold and active competitors – challenger brands. Why is this happening, and what are the main reasons for such changes? Daniya Tkacheva, a fashion market expert and practitioner with 20 years of experience in sales management, and 13 years of experience in the Nike Russia team and fashion retail, shares her view on the situation on the market in the sportswear and footwear segment.
The cyclicality of fashion and its impact on the financial results of the fashion business
Stylists and experts never tire of telling both professionals and ordinary consumers of goods and services in the fashion industry that fashion develops cyclically. The cyclicality of fashion has a significant impact on the financial results of the fashion business, since it dictates periods of demand and decline and determines which goods will be in demand at a certain moment. SR expert in assortment planning and management Emina Ponyatova talks about which aspects of the cyclicality of fashion should be taken into account by shoe retailers in their work, and how they affect the financial performance of the business.
PETER KAISER - the best brand of 2025!
"CAPRICE Schuhproduktion GmbH has received a certificate for awarding PETER KAISER the title of "Top Brand 2025".
Shoe educational program: what shoe soles are made of
“What is the difference between TEP and EVA? What does tunit promise me? Is PVC glue? What is the sole of these shoes made of? ”- the modern buyer wants to know everything. In order not to smash his face in front of him and be able to explain whether such a sole suits him in soles, carefully read this article. In it, process engineer Igor Okorokov tells what materials the soles of shoes are made of and what makes each of them so good.
How to set prices that will earn
Some businessmen still confuse the concept of margin with the concept of trade margins and set prices for their goods, guided solely by the example of competitors. No wonder they go broke! Analyst at the Academy of Retail Technologies Maxim Gorshkov gives several tips and formulas with which you can set not only ruinous, but also profitable prices.
Sales of shoes and accessories: effective techniques for business rhetoric
Which speech modules are effective in communicating with potential and current customers of shoe stores, and which are not, Anna Bocharova, a business consultant, knows.
We form the salary of sellers: expert advice
“How do you charge your consultants for personal or general sales?” Is one of the most popular questions causing a lot of controversy and gossip on the online forums of retail business owners. Indeed, how to properly form the earnings of sellers? But what about bonuses, where to get a sales plan from, do employees allow them to buy goods at discounted stores? In search of truth, the Shoes Report turned to a dozen shoe retailers, but no company wanted to disclose its motivation system - the process of its development was too complicated and individual. Then we asked four business consultants, and finally became convinced that the topic of seller motivation is very complex, because even our experts could not come to a common opinion.
The whole truth about Bayer. Who is he and how to become one?
Bayer is no longer a new, but still a popular and sought-after profession. It’s fashionable to be a buyer. Buyers are at the origins of the emergence and development of trends. If the designer offers his vision of fashion in the season, then the buyer selects the most interesting commercial ideas. It is on buyers that the policy of sales of stores and what, in the end, the buyer will wear depends on. This profession is surrounded by a magical fleur, often associated with a lack of understanding of what exactly is the work of a buyer.
Technology Selling Issues
There is nothing worse than meeting the buyer with the words “Hello, can I help you with something?”, Because the seller works in the store just to help. Criticizing this well-established pattern of communication with the buyer, Andrei Chirkarev, business coach for effective sales and the founder of the New Economy project, shares the technology of truly selling issues with readers of Shoes Report.
Fur, and not only: types of lining
In the production of winter footwear, various materials are used that are designed to retain heat and meet the requirements of consumers: natural sheepleather, artificial fur, artificial fur from natural wool and others. All types of lining fur have their own advantages and disadvantages. Let's consider the properties of each of them.
The best models of Czech shoes of the past
In Soviet times, for shoes from Czechoslovakia sold under the Cebo brand, customers stood in line for four hours and did not regret it, because Czech shoes were considered to be of high quality, comfortable and fashionable. Shoe designer Juraj Shushka shared a photo archive of his collection with Shoes Report magazine, which contains the most interesting Cebo models from the 1940's to the 1980's.
Retail Arithmetic
Before you begin to solve specific problems, you need to find out how accurately all the leaders of your company understand the basic terminology of retail.
How to fire a worker without tears, scandal and trial
Sooner or later, any manager is faced with the need to part with an employee. Properly and on time the dismissal procedure will save the company money, and the boss himself - nerves and time. But why sometimes, knowing that a break in relations is inevitable, we put off the decision for months?
