After opening a store in the Design District, Miami, Birkenstock plans to open new stores across Austin and Nashville.
Many fashion brands have been opening their stores in Nashville and Austin in recent years and Birkenstock has a huge opportunity to expand here, says David Kahan, CEO, Birkenstock Americas. The brand currently has stores across five other locations in the US. It will launch the Austin store on South Congress Ave in June, while Nashville will be launched later in the year.
According to Kahan, besides New York and LA, other cities in the US are also becoming hubs for fashion, innovation and creativity.
Birkenstock has introduced a self-service hybrid retail model that allows customers to shop independently to find their own style and size. The store also has staff on site to assist with fittings.
The first of these hybrid stores have been opened in Sevierville, Tenn, while another in Westgate, Arizona will debut later this month. The two locations were chosen for their reputation of being outdoor lifestyle centers, adds Kahan. This model helps the company to meet more consumer demand for accessibly priced product. For example, these locations will be used to stock Birkenstock’s EVA collection — which retails form $35 to $60.
The 250-year old German footwear brand also continues to build its digital business and strengthen relations with wholesale partners. Its Q1 FY24 revenues grew by 22 per cent to € 302.9 million from €248.5 million ($269.4 million) the same time last year.
As a part of its recent ‘Make Room for Shoes’ campaign launched in partnership with Nordstrom, Birkenstock plans to sell four silhouettes and color combos through Nordstrom.com, Birkenstock.com, and Nordstrom and Birkenstock stores in the US — for a limited time.
