Five Questions
The owner of the 80-yearold Jacques Levine slipper brand is putting a modern twist on some favorites.
How a heritage luxury slipper brand stays relevant.
1 How do you continue to update Jacques Levine while protecting the label’s heritage?
“Our signature 4640 slipper, a hidden wedge mule from Spain introduced 50 years ago, continues as our strongest pattern. It’s a classic indoor slipper that we’ve [elevated] by adding a leather lining. And while it still sells well, we’ve created more modern patterns with rubber soles for indoor-outdoor wear such as the Tonya, Faye and Hope, a series of [embellished] mules carried by Anthropologie and Neimanmarcus.com.”
2 What are the top trends in slippers today?
“We’re in the mule business, and it’s perfect timing for us now. I see lots of [traditional shoe] lines at my retail store, [Footnotes in New Jersey], so if I think fur is going to happen, I ask our designers in Spain and Italy to create fur slippers. Right now, I like metal on slippers. One of our newer styles, a mule trimmed with rabbit, was bought by Neimanmarcus.com, in addition to the Camilla, a version with tassel trim.”
3 As a veteran retailer and owner of Footnotes, what do you bring to the wholesale side of the business?
“We’re very careful who we [sell]. We don’t want to ship to three stores on the same block since exclusivity is big for retailers. Next, there are no markdowns ever, so we’re giving our partners almost guaranteed margins. [Our products] turn 12 months a year since people don’t wait for sales. And stores can keep filling in and reordering since we always stock. We’re also supporting our wholesale accounts by always featuring regular prices on our e-commerce site.”
4 The slipper category is typically moderately priced. As a high-end brand, how do you compete?
“We’re a big fish in a small market and are not going after [mainstream] consumers. The luxury customer wants bettergrade slippers. It’s the reason Neiman Marcus bought them. Other brands produce product in China. We’re the only ones manufacturing in Spain, and now Italy, where they make much finer slippers. We also carry narrows from size 4 to 11 and mediums from 4 to 12. Our customer is a repeat one. And our narrow-width consumers don’t buy one pair but buy six.”
5 What’s been the most effective marketing tool in connecting with consumers, old and new?
“We advertise using our website, Jacqueslevine.com, which launched in mid-2017, as well as through newspapers across the country, including the Los Angeles Times, The Palm Beach Post, Sun Sentinel and Dallas Chronicle, and it’s been working. We knew the Jacques Levine customer was older, so we figured we’d hit them [through this channel]. However, while newspaper ads have been successful, in today’s world, that’s not the way to reach mass audiences. Instead, social media is important since it helps [maintain] brand awareness.”