Now people over the age of twenty or thirty know that there are many leather shoe stores on the streets for more than ten years. Especially in some pedestrian streets, there is a leather shoe store three or five steps away, all kinds of men's shoes, women's shoes, dazzling, abundant. At that time, the output of domestic leather shoes showed a steady increase trend year by year, data show that in 2013, the national leather shoes and boots production entered the peak, a total of 4.925 billion pairs, accounting for more than one-third of the total output of footwear.
In the following years, although the production of leather shoes declined, it remained at the level of more than 4 billion pairs per year. Since 2017, the booming business of leather shoe stores has begun to decline, and the number of customers has decreased year by year. Domestic leather shoe giants such as Aokang, Red Dragonfly, Yierkang, etc., have seen their revenues and profits decline year by year. Aokang Shoes, known as the "first stock of men's shoes", has lost four or five billion yuan in the past two years. In the past, Fuguiniao, which was the third largest leather shoe giant in China, was directly delisted and bankrupt.
In the past, the prosperity of a leather shoe store in three or five steps on the street is long gone, and the phenomenon of shoe stores closing down, transferring, and closing down abounds. What is the reason why the once popular leather shoes have become so unpopular? Some bosses who have been in the leather shoe business for many years have expressed their opinions, and these 4 reasons are very realistic!
1. Poor comfort of leather shoes
In terms of comfort, leather shoes are not as good as beanie shoes and sneakers, and they are cheap and durable, but they are not as good as board shoes and canvas shoes. Everyone's foot length, forefoot width, forefoot circumference, instep height, ankle circumference, ankle height data are different, and the leather shoes on the market are generally produced on the assembly line, such as foot breaking, instep pressing, squeezing toes, grinding ankles, stuck heels, etc., these are the problems of leather shoes.
In particular, the problem of grinding heels is one of the most common. If the heel of the newly bought leather shoes is not well protected, a layer of skin will be worn off after a while, and it will be painful to walk an inch.
There are also some leather shoes, although the heel is not hollow, but it is also very hard, and after wearing it for a day, the soles of the feet are sore, and the whole body is weak. The older generation of consumers can still endure the problem of leather shoes, and the current young people can't bear it at all, as long as the shoes are uncomfortable, they will change to a comfortable pair.
If you want to choose a pair of leather shoes that fit, you can only go to the shoe store for customization, but the price is much more expensive than the shoe store, which is not very suitable for ordinary people.
2. Lack of innovation in style
Over the past 100 years, there has been little innovation in the styling of leather shoes. If you are interested, you can take a look at the old photos of wearing leather shoes in the past, and whether they have not changed much from the current style. To paraphrase an Internet buzzword: you can't say exactly the same, you can only say that it's exactly the same.
Compared with the innovation and creativity of sneaker products, leather shoes are really limited in innovation, which affects the experience of consumers, which is also a major reason why it is abandoned by consumers.
3. The financial attributes of sneakers
Compared with the loneliness of leather shoes, the sneaker market is unprecedentedly hot, and the phenomenon of shoe speculation and collection of limited edition sneakers is very common among young people. For example, it is too common for some sports stars' signatures to be sold for hundreds of thousands or even millions of yuan, and some sneakers also have financial attributes.
Especially when it comes to the release of limited-edition new shoes, it is not uncommon for young people to line up with tents overnight. In the field of leather shoes, such a situation basically does not appear, and few people are willing to collect leather shoes. It is not so much that leather shoes are abandoned by the times, but by young people.
4. The change of consumption concept
Most of the people who still wear suits and leather shoes every day are salespeople who sell insurance and houses. A few years ago, a certain bigwig appeared in public wearing cloth shoes and eating popsicles, followed by a large group of people. No one thinks the big guy's dress is inappropriate, but it is considered to be free and easy.
When you walk into an Internet company, no one cares if you're wearing leather shoes or sneakers. As more and more post-00s enter the workplace, they pay more attention to self-expression and comfort, especially in dressing, choosing to pursue nature and authenticity, and wearing leather shoes has become alternative.
It is foreseeable that although leather shoes will not be eliminated, it is destined to be difficult to return to the heyday of the past. You can do without leather shoes, you can't do without. After all, on some formal occasions, leather heels, suits, and ties are a must.