“Saysh is the first female, black-owned footwear brand ever to be carried at @footlocker, and we’re really proud of the change we’re creating. Find Saysh Two IRL only at @footlocker.”
I’m a fan of Allyson Felix. Her accomplishments inspire my daughter’s participation in track and field. As the greatest track and field athlete of all time, the way she has handled her mistreatment by Nike and how she returned from motherhood to help the U.S. represent at the Olympics and this year in the World Championships is proof of her competitive nature, but all of her greatness does not absolve her and the Saysh team from making poor decisions in the direction of the brand.
The excitement of seeing your sneaker inside of a retail location is intoxicating. I partnered with a local boutique when I released my first casual sneaker from arch. I was so excited, but I should have removed the emotion from the moment. The boutique was perfect for my product, but I didn’t have the correct marketing strategy or visual merchandising to assist the owner. My kicks sold, but it was always at a discounted price. I dropped the shoes into the store sans storytelling. arch was an unknown. I relied solely on the sneaker to sell itself. I wasn’t in there all day to explain who I was and why I created the sneaker. Saysh has investors and an amazing story, but the decision to deliver a casual sneaker from one of the most amazing athletes in history was already a mistake in my opinion. This mistake is being compounded with a flawed wholesale strategy.
Misguided Enthusiasm
Performance footwear has never really gone away. Even when analysts stated running shoes and performance was slow, they were wrong. What they hadn’t considered was the lower tiered lifestyle offerings from companies like Nike were being used as performance footwear and those sneakers were becoming gateways to true performance products. The recent performance of Hoka, Brooks and On Running are all rooted in the way the sneakers offer support and comfort for walking and running. Allyson Felix launched Saysh during the Olympics. Running footwear spikes/increases in sales during high profile track and field events. The Saysh One was a casual sneaker and the Saysh Two follows suit. Why would their team deliver a casual model vs a right priced performance model is beyond me. Athleta’s sportswear benefited from her partnership, a lightweight training sneaker at $110 dollars would have been consumed immediately. I was hoping for a track and field inspired gear from Saysh. Instead, the gear seems more suited for Felix’s post career than a celebration of her accomplishments and skill. The Saysh Two is priced at the high end of the spectrum placing the sneakers against performance as casual models like the UltraBoost and Invincible Run from adidas and Nike respectively. The Saysh Two with its premium leather build is better suited for a casual night on the town, when the market that might purchase the sneaker doesn’t shop at Foot Locker and is more focused on gym runs and yoga night outs. Foot Locker itself lacks the sales leads and time to educate the people in store on the Saysh story and the photo presents evidence of the problem.
In the initial photo, while Allyson has the other models cropped out slightly, but you can see clearly red discount tags for performance product. Foot Locker tends to do a poor job of visual merchandising for brands not named Nike. While the Saysh Two has a display box, they need to give the product a dedicated table placement. Placing the product on the wall in the performance running section when it’s a lifestyle shoe is a mistake. Placing the model next to a wall that probably features five different brands all being discounted is bad for Saysh. Foot Locker does not have the capacity to educate the consumer. The store relies on brand storytelling. When all of the sales tags on sneakers are priced much lower than a full priced new entry, those models take thought and eye line share. I’ve wanted to celebrate Saysh the brand isn’t on the correct path. Allyson Felix should be initiating track and field initiatives for girls across the country. She should be discussing what it’s like to be a woman athlete who has to deal with periods and training, and motherhood and training. She should be appealing to older women attempting to find fitness as first-time athletes. Her gear should be for athletes, both young and old and those in between. Instead, she’s done an exclusive partnership with a store having a difficult time selling bigger more established brands. A chain that cut its Nike allotment, but still creates more content on IG for Nike and Jordan Brand. Is there a solution for Saysh? Yes, but let’s hope I’m completely wrong here.
