The Will To Thrive
When retail faced its toughest year in modern history, these six independent stores pushed forward and discovered untapped strengths.
The pandemic brought unprecedented challenges for small business. Here’s how six retailers found upsides.
Since the coronavirus hit the United States a year ago, small businessowners have borne the brunt of the economic upheaval caused by the pandemic, from governmentmandated shutdowns to seismic shifts in consumers shopping.
Many succumbed to the intense pressures early on: Yelp reported that over 100,000 small businesses closed during the six-month period between March 1 and August 31.
However, others navigated through the challenges, leaning on their communities and their teams to emerge stronger in 2021.
FN recently spoke with several independent footwear retailers about their unique difficulties and the tactics they implemented to stay afloat. Most agreed that measuring success during a pandemic is a relative matter. While almost all finished 2020 with double-digit revenue declines, the numbers don’t paint a full picture of the health of their businesses and future prospects.
Armed with new skills and sales streams — as well as battle-tested teams who have learned to innovate — these storeowners are heading into the spring season with optimism and renewed determination. Read on to learn their secrets.
Baehr Feet Shoe Boutique South Carolina
Since launching her Spartanburg, S.C.-based boutique in 2005, Duffy Baehr has used her passion for shoes to help women find the perfect pair of heels for that special occasion. But in 2020, her mission became about helping others in the community — and seeking support from fellow female entrepreneurs.
When COVID-19 health mandates forced Baehr to close her doors in March, the founder turned to online, increasing her SEO and Facebook ad budgets by 100%. As a result, dot-com revenue jumped 20% year-overyear. However, her digital message wasn’t transactional. “It would have been in poor taste to be pushing shoes for the sake of sales, when the world was scared and confused,” said Baehr. “‘We are in this together’ was our daily mantra.” Her team partnered with other local boutiques for crosspromotions on social media, and hosted giveaways to celebrate and reward essential workers.
But Baehr admitted that she faced deep uncertainty early in the pandemic and gained guidance and support from an unexpected source. “In February, I was accepted into Rebecca Minkoff’s Female Founder Collective, and I started getting all these emails from them,” she recalled. “So I jumped on every webinar I could just to see what everybody else is doing.”
Being based in South Carolina, where COVID restrictions have been less stringent, Baehr was able to reopen quickly and has seen younger customers return, especially local college students. But demand for dress shoes has plummeted. “I finished the year with sales down 32% from 2019,” said Baehr. However, she reduced inventory by 40% early last year, “so my cash flow remained strong.”
For the spring season, the retailer remains conservative in her buys. “I’m going to just chase some items, to make sure that I’m not overstocked, since we don’t know what these [coronavirus] variants are going to do,” she said. “I’m just trying to be smart about it.”
Chiappetta Shoes Wisconsin
Chiappetta Shoes, located on the banks of Lake Michigan, was able to bounce back after the spring lockdowns, posting record high numbers in June and July. “We had our best June because we were advertising a ton and a lot of people were coming up from Illinois,” said CEO Tony Chiappetta, who also hosted a hugely successful clearance sale in July, set up in tents outside.