Steve Madden saw growth in footwear across its brand portfolio in the third quarter, according to chief executive officer Edward R. Rosenfeld.
Rosenfeld told investors in an earnings conference call Thursday that its “flagship brand Steve Madden led the way with strong growth across footwear, accessories and apparel, as well as in both wholesale and DTC (direct-to-consumer) channels.”
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He said that in footwear, the brand had “exceptional growth in casuals, along with strong performance in booties and heels [that] more than offset a decline in tall shaft boots.” The brand also saw success across a wide range of shapes in its handbag category. And in apparel, he said the brand had a “successful launch of denim and drove strong sell-though across categories including dresses, tops, bottoms and jackets.”
The CEO also noted that Madden Girl and the brand’s men’s footwear line are both “showing strong growth this year versus last year.” He noted men’s is benefiting from the fashion shift as more men are “deciding that they’re going to get out of their sneakers and wear maybe loafers. And so, we’re doing phenomenal with loafers. We’re doing phenomenal with updated dress shoes.” And Rosenfeld added that men’s still has some sneaker styles that “are good.” With the company investing more in marketing in men’s and the upgrades to the product, he said it can be a “growth opportunity for us going forward.”
At Kurt Geiger, Rosenfeld spoke about the limited edition collaboration with Paddington Bear, and the opening of the full-price store in N.Y.C.’s SoHo neighborhood, as well as the premium outlet in Desert Hills, Calif., and the handbag and footwear shop-in-shops in Macy’s Herald Square and at 13 other locations. He noted that there could be a chance that number to get “up to 40 or maybe even 42 for spring of ’27.”
He also said Kurt Geiger business “continues to perform [and that] it’s making money.” What has been lagging and why the overall business for Kurt Geiger is slightly down is due to the “concessions business being lower.” He added the company will know more about the range for margin targets at Kurt Geiger later pending an understanding of the go-forward tariff regime.
And at its other lead brand Dolce Vita, the footwear styles that resonated with consumers included ballets, loafers, mary janes and wedge mules. And across both shoes and handbags, on-trend materials such as sued and animal print, as well as seasonal colors that include oxblood, jade and chocolate brown did well in the quarter, Rosenfeld said.