For a long time, shoes were one of those things people hesitated to buy online. Every

brand (and sometimes even individual models) has slightly different fits, so no matter how

confident you were in your shoe size, you would still want to try them on before you buy.

But then Zappos came along and changed everything. With free shipping and returns, and

a focus on outstanding customer service, Zappos single-handedly built consumer trust in

online shoe sales and was so successful that Amazon spent $1.2 billion to buy the company

in 2009. Today, Shoes on Amazon is a multi-billion-dollar product group, growing at a rate

far outpacing brick-and-mortar stores.

Shoes: The Amazon EffectBy Nathan Rigby, VP Sales & Marketing at One Click Retail

Last Tuesday, Amazon launched The Fix, a new private fashion brand

specializing in shoes and handbags. Combined with the rollout of the

Prime Wardrobe service which allows Prime members to try on shoes,

clothing and accessories for free, this is a clear indication that Amazon is

positioning itself as a major player in the footwear industry at a time

when brick-and-mortar stores are struggling to retain customers, with

even the major chain Payless filing for bankruptcy.

Though some chains are barely staying afloat, most shoe stores in the US

are doing okay. A 5% YoY growth rate for shoe-specific stores is actually a

little bit higher than the domestic growth rates for most other retail

sectors. As usual, however, brick-and-mortar can’t keep up with Amazon,

which saw shoe sales grow by 35% percent YoY in 2016. Even before

launching The Fix and bringing Nike on board as a first-party seller, 2017

is already shaping up to being a strong year for shoes on Amazon, with a

growth of 18% YoY during the first two quarters:

Key Shoe Trends

• Shoes

Believe it or not, one of the key trends driving the Shoes product group on Amazon is… shoes. The Shoes product

group includes both footwear and accessories, and it’s the accessories that have shown the least growth in the past

18 months. In the UK, for example, when looking at the entire Shoes product group, we see a growth rate of 7%, but

when we remove everything except for actual footwear (shoes, boots and sandals), that growth rate balloons to 20%.

The difference is even more stark in the US: the Shoes product group as a whole grew by only 5%, but with

accessories removed that growth is 35%. Let’s face it, shoes can be a little bit pricey and owning multiple pairs is a

luxury, but today shoe sales are on the rise because people have more disposable income and have more faith in

economic stability than they have had in over a decade. In particular, Amazon’s core demographic, millennials, are

earning more than ever before.

Key Shoe Trends

• Less Competition

Prior to filing for bankruptcy in April, Payless ShoeSource was one of the largest shoe

chains in the world with over 4,400 stores in 30 countries. Along with their bankruptcy

announcement came the closure of 400 stores, followed two months later by the

announcement of the gradual closure of up to 408 additional stores. Even Foot Locker,

currently the number one seller of Nike brand shoes in the US, is poised to lose a great

deal of business to Amazon in the near future: Nike has just announced a new partnership

with Amazon to become a first party seller.

Key Shoe Trends

• Adidas

So far in 2017, the biggest driver of growth has been women’s sneakers from

Adidas. One of the biggest shoe brands worldwide, Adidas has had a stellar

year on Amazon, with 5 different variations of the Women’s Superstar

Foundation Casual Sneaker appearing in the 6 fastest-growing items on

Amazon.com, ranging from 480% to 890% growth.

Key Shoe Trends

• Men’s Insoles

The only brand stopping Adidas from getting a clean sweep of the top six items is Sof Sole

insoles, two variations of which join Adidas to complete the eight top-growing items in the

first six months of 2017, growing by 300% and 630%. Despite this growth, Sof Sole only just

barely made it into the top 10 items, behind nine different variations of Superfeet Insoles.

That’s right: each of the 10 bestselling items YTD are insoles, with the top nine coming

from Amazon’s insole king, Superfeet.

Key Shoe Trends

• Emerging Brands

Adidas’ rise in the ranks of Amazon’s shoe sales reveals that the product group is not being dominated

by longstanding incumbents – it is still very much open to competition. Nevertheless, Adidas is a major

global brand, so we need to look past the likes of Sketchers, ASICS, New Balance and other industry

heavyweights to identify the true emerging brands. Leading this category we find two companies

founded in the early 2000s, Keen and Crocs, which are both known for their innovative approaches to

the sandal. Consistent with this, the top-selling shoes from emerging brand are overwhelmingly in the

Comfort and Outdoor categories, in contrast to athletic focus of the leading incumbent brands.

UK Shoes Comparison

The UK has experienced a growth similar to that of the US. Total

Amazon.co.uk Shoes sales were £67 MM, representing 7% growth in the

product group and 20% growth in sales of footwear specifically. Sales were

driven by Sandals and Boots, the leading subcategories in both Women’s

(£22 MM) and Men’s (£15 MM) shoes, while Sports Shoes (£14 MM) came in

as the third largest category, with all other categories trailing far behind.

UK Shoes Comparison

The top brands in the UK are vastly different from those in the US, with no

representation from Adidas or Superfeet in the UK’s bestselling or fastest

growing items. Timberland’s Women’s Hiking Shoes line provided two of the

top 5 bestselling items of the year so far, including the #1 item, and both

Vans and Converse has two items in the top 10, all classified as Outdoor

Multisport Training Shoes.

UK – Top Shoe Categories & Subcategories

2017 is just getting started – we’re bound to see a major increase in shoe

sales during Q3 and Q4. As we approach back-to-school season, we’ll see the

expected spike in Kids’ Shoes, while Nike’s recent partnership as an Amazon

first-party seller as well as the launch of The Fix, Amazon’s private shoe line,

are going to drive sales growth. In light of the eCommerce giant’s renewed

focus on shoes and fashion, now is the time for brands to update their

Amazon strategy to make the most out of the fastest-growing sales channel

in the industry.

“The Amazon Effect” series breaks down specific

product groups, compares Amazon’s performance in that

category to total retail sales (online and offline) and

considers the effect Amazon has on that specific industry

as a whole.

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