A Conference Note From Lois Sakany

Expansion of Lifestyle Sneaker Launches: It's no secret that athletic footwear is a leading fashion trend, with even couture houses like Chanel S.A. and Christian Dior S.A. featuring them in recent runway shows. Nonetheless, it was still an eye-opener to see the number of brands that are either expanding into lifestyle offerings or relaunching after a lengthy exodus. Athletic shoe brands with an expanded presence at the shows compared with last year include Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s Brooks Sports, E. Landworld Ltd.'s K-Swiss, Sharp Gain Profits Ltd.'s Pony and Rocky Brands Inc.'s Creative Recreation.

While athletic footwear is a leading trend in 2014, it won't be easy for new entries to gain traction with the top-tier athletic-themed retailers. Established brands that do well with lifestyle offerings like Adidas AG, Nike Inc., Adidas' Reebok, Skechers USA Inc. and VF Corp.'s Vans have spent a tremendous amount of money investing in their brand's equity through a variety of sales and marketing efforts. Also, given the tepid retail environment with brick-and-mortar sales being challenged by ecommerce and direct-to-consumer brand sales, buyers have shown a reluctance to add brands with patchy track records and low consumer recognition.

Still, retailers may be willing to give them a shot if they already have a relationship with the brand and can be guaranteed the option of returning unsold product. If the terms are right, some of the reentry brands may gain space in the value channel, especially among those who either don't receive access to top-tier athletic brands at all or have allocation of their less-prestigious styles. All told, the explosion in brands offering lifestyle sneakers may cause some sales dilution for established athletic footwear brands but probably more so in the value channel and with brands that have a more wobbly equity, like Reebok and Skechers. 

In athletic shoe color stories, there has been a lot of chatter about the return of classic white sneakers. This trend has largely been centered on retro basketball and tennis shoes and less so on technical running shoes. The return to a more basic lifestyle color story for men has been driven in part by a trend away from a 100% denim bottoms story to one that includes khaki, twill and cotton-poly-blend jogger pants. For women, as leggings morph from strictly black to a wide array of colors and patterns, there has also been a trend to less-statement-making sneakers. 

1) Stutterheim raincoat; 2) Brooks Sports lifestyle offerings; 3) Menswear-inspired boots;
4) Menswear-inspired footwear; 5) Pony lifestyle offerings; 6) Sport-themed fashions
Photos: OTR Global

Unisex Dressing: As part of the rise in wearing athletic clothes and shoes, there has also been a trend of unisex fashion. It's been more clearly expressed by young women whose fashion choices reflect a desire for clothing and shoes that are as comfortable as they are stylish. Therefore, we see women in their down time wearing athletic-themed outfits and shoes, and even in the work environment, women are opting more for slacks over dresses and menswear-inspired flat footwear over heels. On the men's side of the equation, while fashion silhouettes remain traditionally masculine, young men have shown a greater willingness to experiment with color and prints traditionally associated with women's fashion. Women's embrace of more comfortable fashion has weighed on contemporary department stores and footwear chains that are dependent on a dressier business -- a trend that looks like it will continue at least through 2014. 

Return to Seasonal Dressing: After several seasons in a row of mild winters, outerwear looks like it's ready to bounce back as an apparel item, buoyed by refreshed design ideas with an extra tailwind provided by this year's unusually cold winter throughout most of North America. Taking their cues from fashion runways and street style, notable brands -- including Woolrich Inc. and VF Corp.'s The North Face -- as well as several smaller independent brands are showing coats and jackets featuring slimmer silhouettes, the latest technical fabrics, a wide array of color themes, prints and fabrics, plus trendy details like quilting and fur. They're attractive enough that even without a repeat of the brutal winter experienced in the Northeast and Midwest this year, style lovers should be enticed. The trend is still in its early phase, so it's difficult to know how it will play out in 2H14, though some believe there could eventually be a pushback on the popularity of fleece, which has taken a lot of share from outerwear during the past three years. The trend -- if it does go full bloom -- would most benefit the pure player brands and retailers that are known for making or selling outerwear.

Slicker raincoats are an emerging trend that are also a part of the seasonal dressing trend. The trend started showing up on a variety of men's runways in 2013 and received further momentum when influential rap artist Kanye West was photographed wearing a Stutterheim raincoat in Paris in the spring. The trend may or may not prove to be a big needle mover, but it has potential, at the very least, to add newness to fashion-forward men's department stores and chains in the fall.