Then & Now: Mary Vescio

Ragtrader regularly catches up with a previously profiled label to charts it development over the intervening years. Here Tracey Porter talks to Hush Puppies brand manager Mary Vescio.

COMPANY Hush Puppies
BRAND MANAGER Mary Vescio

What were the key issues or challenges for your company five years ago? What are they now?
Five years ago we where re-establishing ourselves as a relevant brand with in the comfort footwear category. We had lost significant market share to our competitors and needed to make our brand relevant to the consumer again. Our biggest challenge now is to continually challenge ourselves in the area of design and marketing to ensure the brand is constantly evolving.

What was the range like five years ago? What is it like now?
Five years ago we had a very tight range focussed predominantly on comfort casuals aimed at an older customer. Today the range is much broader having expanded into the dress shoe and sports shoe category. The brand appeal has extended to a wider age demographic. Colour and materials have become an important part of the range, where as a few years back we where predominantly a black leather brand. Now we do everything from metallics, to patents to pastel leathers, giving the consumer a much wider product range and choice.

How many stores/wholesale accounts did you have five years ago? How many do you have now?
There has been very little change in the number and types of accounts we had five years ago to today.

What was the retail climate like for your business five years ago? How has it changed?
Five years ago most of our major customers where very brand focussed, where as now, a significant number of them have become vertical retailers. Most retailers are now spending a significant amount of resources and OTB on building their own house brands. This has meant that the landscape has changed for us making us more focussed on uniqueness of product and speed to market.  We need to always ensure that we are ahead of the game in a development sense and that every season we offer fresh new product that excites the retailer and the consumer.

What was your approach to marketing and promotions five years ago? What is it now?
Five years ago we where focussed on getting the brand back in front of the consumers , where now our focus has changed to showing a breadth of range and trying to change the consumers assumption of what the brand stands for.

What was your approach to staff training five years ago? How has it changed?
We have always been very active in training staff in regards to the features and benefits of our products and that focus has not changed.

How many staff did you employ five years ago? Now?
Staff numbers have remained consistent

What was your greatest moment/most significant development in the past five years?
Taking Hush Puppies from an old and almost forgotten brand back to being a relevant and contemporary brand has been a great achievement for every one at Hush Puppies over the past five years. 

What has been the worst experience of the past five years?
Nothing, working at Hush Puppies over the past five years has been fun and challenging. Every season offers a new challenge and every season we set out to make the best shoes we can and every season we do it a little better than the season before.

By Tracey Porter