The Society of Shoe Fitters are delighted that any ladies working in England pursuing their Technical Footwear Training/ art of shoe fitting starting October 1st 2008 will receive funding of up to £500 toward their full qualification course.
Knowledge and recognised qualifications are in greater demand now than ever before. Since production switched to overseas, with fewer factories in the UK, the pool of experience and wealth of knowledge within our industry has been in decline. The ‘stack them high/sell them cheap' self-service and online sales have not necessitated any information or service and that has not been good for the nations feet with chiropodists/ podiatrists now numbering over 11,000, working hard to right irreversible wrongs.
However, ‘what goes round comes around' and in the threat of recession, ‘buying fewer but buying better' is already in evidence. Rather than a quick fix throw-away impulsive purchase with high risk of return, people are already thinking about longevity of product and the need to know more about it.
The Society of Shoe Fitters has worked hard for nearly 50 years to keep footwear and foot health information in the public and private domain. "Because we continue year on year helping and advising the trade and public, it is taken for granted that we will always be here to help" says Laura West, Secretary of nearly 20 years. "Unfortunately this is not the case, as costs of print, utilities etc. increase annually, and it is only our courses that allow such a huge amount of knowledge and information to keep us and what we offer available". Membership costs are kept low - ‘because we aim at individuals and not businesses or wealthy proprietors, we wish to be
inclusive rather than exclusive' says Laura, ‘retailers and suppliers are not always aware that we are not a commercial venture and plough our money back into helping our members, the trade and public -those that are aware and do not use our services should consider how important it is to support us so that we in turn support our industry'. The organisation offers training from ‘taster' One Day Courses to full qualification and membership Courses. Only a member of the SSF can say they are truly qualified to fit shoes.
If you would like your staff to become qualified shoe fitters or receive training, or quite simply would like to assist the SSF in their work by making a donation, please contact Laura West at: secretary@shoefitters-uk.org or tel. +44 (0)1953-851171.
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- 18 - 21 January, 2009
CHIC - UK
