IN WOMENFOOTWEARNEWS.COM / MAY 17, 2021POWER / @FOOTWEARNEWS Tireless champion. Ambitious entrepreneur. Ardent equal pay activist. As she builds her infl uential platform, VENUS WILLIAMS serves up a new play with K-Swiss. Partnering with YG and the talent from his 4Hunnid label, K-Swiss celebrates this next generation of entrepreneurs, showcasing one of the most iconic sneakers of all time, the K-Swiss Classic. Untitled-2Untitled-1 22-3 5/10/21 1:14 PM 5/10/21 12:58 PM Partnering with YG and the talent from his 4Hunnid label, K-Swiss celebrates this next generation of entrepreneurs, showcasing one of the most iconic sneakers of all time, the K-Swiss Classic. Untitled-1 2-3 Untitled-2 3 5/10/215/10/21 12:58 1:16 PM Untitled-4 1 4/23/21 1:06 PM FOOTWEAR NEWS // MAY 17, 2021 // FOOTWEARNEWS.COM CONTENTS 32 A Gentler Way INSIDER To tackle sustainability, Kenneth Cole will start 9 Stepping Up with Gentle Souls. To p women get candid about taking on new 32 Five Questions roles during the Independent retailer pandemic. and C.Ped Je rey 18 Seidman gets candid 12 Burning about the business. Question “GROWING UP, I NEVER A debate is brewing: 33 Ease Back In Should we label Loafers are the perfect female executives? THOUGHT I WOULD BE style transition for a return to the o ce. 16 FN Insights How these execs TREATED UNEQUALLY are promoting women FN PICK in the tech fi eld. WHEN I GOT TO THE TOP OF 34 Trail Blazer FEATURES A TV icon calls it quits to focus on other THE GAME.” creative passions. 18 Venus — VENUS WILLIAMS Unmatched The tennis legend and K-Swiss partner refl ects on the power of sport and using your voice. 23 Ready to Serve K-Swiss embarks in a new direction that embraces the past while looking to the future. THE LIST 27 Shoe of the Week Ecco modernizes the penny loafer with a lug sole and comfort tech. 28 Game On Why Cole Haan is venturing deeper into the performance markets. 30 Burning Question How have consumer expectations changed when it comes to footwear? 31 Good Taste Martha Stewart on her latest shoe collab and HERE & making life easier. ON THE COVER Photographed by MARY BETH KOETH 5 POWERED BY Twisted X only sells product through its valued retail partners. A Retail Match Made in Heaven In a competitive landscape, strong vendor partnerships can determine who succeeds in retail in 2021. At Twisted X, it’s all about putting that retailer relationship first. both retailers and the brand. The company which they would need to cancel. Those is able to focus on how it can best support its that needed to keep some inventory on retail partners, because it doesn’t have to fig- hand for their own selling purposes were ure out its own retail operations. Each party If we sell more likely to cancel on their vendors, thus provides expertise in one area and each gets direct, we become putting their merchant partners at risk of to benefit from the other’s success. not meeting their own revenue goals. This “We believe in being a true partner to competition for kind of internal competition led many in our retailers,” said Prasad Reddy, CEO of our retailers the industry to rethink their existing rela- oday’s brands have a range Twisted X. “The clearest way we demon- tionships altogether. of revenue channels to sell through, which strate that is by not going DTC. If we sell and that’s just But Twisted X has taken these circum- canT provide great opportunities for revenue direct, we become competition for our retail- stances as an opportunity to demonstrate its not right.” growth but also create competition within ers and that’s just not right. When our retail- commitment to its partners. Rather than retail relationships. When a business is trying ers have success, we have success. It really is —Prasad Reddy, cancelling orders, the brand doubled down to sell inventory through retailers, as well as that simple.” CEO of TWISTED X on its production so that it could meet the direct-to-consumer, it can be challenging to This approach is particularly nota- growing needs of the retailers that were now maintain a fair and equal strategy that works ble after the past year, which accelerated doing great business online. for both parties. So Twisted X has taken a most brands’ e-commerce expansion. With- on getting the right inventory to its select Twisted X has also made sure not to raise different approach and opted out of direct- out open stores to entice shoppers, DTC retail partners. its prices, in order to offset any losses from to-consumer altogether. e-commerce became the most appealing The pandemic’s disruption of the sup- the past year. Instead, it has turned its focus Wholesale is the most traditional form way to keep consumer connection while ply chain has created additional chal- to continually producing three collections a of retail – and for a reason. By selling all also shifting inventory. But Twisted X has lenges. Without clear timelines on when year in the spring, summer, and fall, each with its goods through vetted retailers, Twisted X made an active choice to remain strictly new stock would arrive, brands had to fig- a large breadth of styles, in order to keep its is able to create a retail model that rewards wholesale, so that the sole priority could be ure out which orders they could fulfill and merchants with a healthy supply of fresh 6 FNLABS_TWISTED.indd 12 5/13/21 10:41 AM product and fashion-forward designs. by increasing our product inventory and Prasad Reddy, FN spoke with Twisted X CEO Prasad making them easily accessible to retailers CEO of Reddy about the company’s partnership the moment they needed a replenishment. Twisted X. The building, ethos, its independent path forward and When Twisted X decided to do this about what to expect in the coming months. a year ago at the peak of the shutdowns, strengthening, we knew it might be a risk. However, it was FN: How does Twisted X approach one of the best ways to support our retail and continuation its retail relationships? partners and it ended up helping us fur- of our retail Prasad Reddy: The building, strength- ther our relationships with the retailers who ening and continuation of our retail rela- constantly help us. relationships, tionships, no matter the situation, is our no matter the underlying philosophy. We think of our retail FN: Twisted X very much takes its partners like family and tailor our support own approach compared to the situation, is efforts to each one based on their individual larger market. What made you want needs and challenges, rather than offering a to pave your own way and how has our underlying broad, one-size-fits all approach. We offer all it proven to be successful? philosophy.” PR: kinds of assets, layouts, web designs, emails Twisted X is an independent company. —Prasad Reddy, and whatever they might need to help them We’re different than others in our market, CEO of TWISTED X tell our story as well as theirs. because of the values that we strictly stand The world of e-commerce has increased by like no direct-to-consumer selling, sav- massively this past year, but we felt a stron- ing our environment from first stitch to ger desire to continue supporting our retail- final product, supporting the community of wholesale? retailers, trying to get feedback of what ers by working alongside them instead of we serve, and increasing our overall brand PR: If there’s trade, there will be wholesale. they’re needing and how we can support competing with them. We have chosen to leadership, as well as value in the industry Every brand has its own values that consum- them. Twisted X works hard to try to pro- sell Twisted X products through our retail- beyond sales. This mindset allows us to do ers can relate to and every brand should strive vide them with these assets, whether it’s the ers because they have been with us since day what we feel is right in the long run, includ- to provide an assurance of quality and com- product, merchandise, or marketing. Retail- one. Without our retailers, we wouldn’t be ing the continued support of our retailers fort that customers are looking for. Brands will ers need consumers to come to them and we where we are today. and also the innovation of our products be here forever as long as the consumers are want to find a way to bring the consumer to and technologies so that we stay ahead of still at the forefront trying to buy from them. the retailers. We see ourselves to be in ser- FN: How has the growth of e-com- the curve. We’re always looking at what’s vice to retailers, where our job is to make merce and DTC changed the land- next and that makes us successful. FN: What makes the Twisted X- footwear that makes us and our retailers suc- scape for retailers and how has retailer relationship unique? cessful together. The more successful they Twisted X responded to this? FN: How do you see the future PR: We are constantly talking to our are, the more successful we are. PR: There’s no doubt e-commerce, espe- cially amidst the pandemic, has grown sub- stantially. Retailers were forced to find new ways of capitalizing on that and had to shift and do omnichannel selling: brick-and-mor- tar, online sales, shows, events, and everything in between.