"Because it's there."  The famous response as given by George Mallory in 1924 when he was asked why he wanted to attempt to climb the planets tallest summit serves to prove the point that, when it comes to the crunch, mankind has a pretty irrepressible spirit. 

Last month (heck - the last three months) it has been nigh on impossible to read a newspaper, digest the content of a current affairs blog nor casually overhear a topical issues broadcast without hearing words and phrases that six months ago would have remained comfortingly meaningless but which are now rapidly becoming part of a common everyday lexicon across the land:

Astonishing statistics were revealed at the end of 2007 which reported a staggering 25% of boys and 33% of girls aged between 2 and 19 years of age were considered overweight or obese with little sign of this trend slowing down. Aside from the fact this is costing the UK over £2 billion and shortening lives by up to nine years, some health experts are predicting parents will be outliving their children, a shocking thought! With the average weight of adults creeping up and obesity on the increase, parents are becoming more and more desensitised to the fact their children are obese and fail to recognise the signs leading up to this.

It's Feb already and before we get the chance to smarten up for our Valentines Day dinner, we have a heck of a lot of buying to get through! Yes it's that time of year again, with two of the UKs largest footwear exhibitions taking place: Moda and Pure.  Pure has upped its selection of footwear with a staggering 125 footwear brands on show, Pure has seen a 50% increase compared to August 2007, and an impressive 65% more new footwear brands on show.

Happy New Year everyone and it looks like this year we really might have something to celebrate!
Although growth in the value sector has continued this season, a report by Verdict Research, part of the Datamonitor Group suggests that the takings of the value sector in retail will significantly lower this season. 

Phew! I can almost hear your gasps and sighs of relief as we finally wave goodbye to a season that for some of us has been as difficult to sell as a Northern Rock Savings account.
Amidst reports of troubled buyers failing to commit to reams of summer stock after the dismal season we had this year, I was rather concerned about this show season.

It is October..just a few more exhibitions to go and we can wave goodbye, for the very last time, to the Spring/Summer 2008 buying season. The season has been hectic, with visitor and exhibitor numbers up at GDS, Midec in Paris and the giant Micam. It seems perhaps that buyers are not so much scared off completely by difficult trading times due to the damp and dismal weather we had this summer,on the contrary they are simply more cautious and brands need to go out of their way to win them over.

Second month back into the job and yet again there is no sight of a slow ease into the new season..no sooner do we wave goodbye to Autumn/Winter sales season when up pops the Spring/Summer 2008 season.. with aching toes and a pounding head I have desperately tried to get a grasp on the highlights of Pure and Moda but I have also managed to wrap up the largest international shows in the MICAM and GDS previews too.

Just in time for the show season and up pops a familiar face! I just couldn't keep away and have decided that amongst my other footwear antics I would like to get back on track and pick up where I left off here at Footwear Today.

Wednesday 16th May, The Hilton on Park Lane. A night of glitz and glamour to honour the stars of the industry. Congratulations to all the winners as well as the nominees and well done to the whole industry for getting together for a great night. Our thanks also go to Drapers, the organisers, a superb night as always!

In my line of work I always make a point of going into any footwear retailer on a regular basis particularly in my local area of Tunbridge Wells in Kent. It is with some sense of trepidation that I venture into retailers new to the town. All too often I am greeted by a disappointing offering that you just know will be displaying closing down sale signs a year later.

After the stress and strain of Christmas its quite amazing how the seasons show offerings can creep up on you, but it is February, Bread and Butter has been and gone and we now look ahead to two of the most important events in the Footwear calendar, MODA and Pure.