What do you think about a vegan shoes brand for Men

[mementomori]

What do you think about a shoes brand who offers vegan & environmentally friendly shoes for Men.

For Men who love nature, who want to wear stylish shoes, but at the same time can contribute by their consumption to the preservation of the environment and can minimize the killing of animals.

 

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[JAJT]

It doesn't really matter what we think - it's what your target audience thinks.

Also, like everything - it's the execution that matters.

If you launch your vegan shoe brand on a website that looks like it time-warped from 1997, do half-assed advertising, have an ugly product, cut corners on quality, and a million other sub-par things - it doesn't really matter how good of an idea it is because the execution was garbage.

I know some very successful folks on here with very pedestrian products. But they are doing very well for themselves because the execution was on point.

So what do I think?

I think if you have a great product at the right price and get the word out in a great way and it resonates with your audience and you can make an acceptable profit - then it's a great idea.

 

[Empires]

I think if you have a great product at the right price and get the word out in a great way and it resonates with your audience and you can make an acceptable profit - then it's a great idea.

Agreed. I think the longer you are in business, you start to realize that you never needed a unique idea.

If you have a product or service that people want or need, and can do it/sell it really damn well.. you will have a good business.

So the next question for you @mementomori is, how would you get people to buy them?

Having a website and throwing up some facebook ads isn't going to cut it.

 

[James90]

-I love nature

-I like stylish shoes

-I don’t compute wearing vegan/eco shoes as a contribution to “preserve” the environment.


Perhaps explore this thread

IDEA - A guide to validating your business idea in a weekend or less

I don't know about you but I am quite risk-averse, usually broke and almost never ready to invest 10,000 $ in my next business idea. To make sure that a new venture has at least some market value and potential I found a quick and easy way to test this. Obviously, it's not perfect, but it beats...

www.thefastlaneforum.com

 

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[Brrr]

About 10-12 years ago, Tom’s were very very on trend in the UK. They fit in with the style of the time and were very ethical in that they used to donate a shoe for everyone you bought (I think now it is £1 donated for every £3 they make).

I totally think enough time has passed for consumer memory to have forgotten about all this and as we know fashion and trends are very cyclical. Desire for eco friendly alternatives has only gone up since then and is still going up.

As others have said, executing on this is a whole different story. My guess is that something like this would be TikTok led and explode via some kind of vitality and amazing marketing. It’s a very go big or go home business IMO. It also needs to be genuine, it will all collapse if it is a money grab.

Are you up to the challenge?

 

[sparechange]

Agreed. I think the longer you are in business, you start to realize that you never needed a unique idea.

If you have a product or service that people want or need, and can do it/sell it really damn well.. you will have a good business.

So the next question for you @mementomori is, how would you get people to buy them?

Having a website and throwing up some facebook ads isn't going to cut it.

Hard Sell: A History of the Pet Rock

The Pet Rock was the brainchild of copywriter Gary Dahl, who thought America needed a laugh during the largely humorless post-Vietnam and Watergate era.

www.mentalfloss.com

Unique ideas........ how about selling something you find at the beach for a few million?

 

[Niptuck MD]

im hearing more and more vegan this and that, but ultimately, what type of market would you cater to and serve? real conneussiers and sartorial specialists will have nothing of the sort, as good leather is just plain and simple. good rel leather. Many father and son boutiques in italy survive on this precipice (think paolo scafora etc)
I know this will be hugely debated going forward into the future, but usually the top tier leatherworks and houses (think in northwest and mid central italy and in the USA horween in chicago etc) are all set in stone leatherhouses that practice (or made it a point) to cater to the notion of ethical handling of steers...) however i think synthetic forms of footwear would not cater to the older more established crowd that has better understanding and sense but definitely the younger crowd that are more open to bio-friendly options. I think the ladies market has done well with this as their use of PU leather and pleather for name brand shoes have been mainstreamed. With mens shoes market validation is your key. Are you targetting middle class or upper middle class types or folks that can buy it bespoke or something? When decent quality shoes for the average joe from paulevans for example are available (actually made in italy) then you have to know who will buy these brands. Lifestyle people obviously. Lifestyle people who may or may not be price conscious because now these people care more about other factors that their forefathers would not even begin to question or think of....
hope it works out though, i think cows are great and all but with the population explosion and demand their may need to be a better way to treat and or manage our bovine commodities.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

As a vegan myself, I don't think "vegan shoes" are a good skew, at least as a primary attribute. Your shoes can be free of animal products and good for the environment without being labeled "vegan" -- IMO, slapping that label on it will likely constrain the size of your target audience.

Why not produce great quality shoes with a great story behind it? Two auxiliary skews can be sustainability and free of animal products.

 

[MattR82]

I knew wedding planners in Bali that offered vegan weddings as part of their services. I was surprised to learn that the people wanting these also often said the shoes need to be vegan.

 

[Guest-5ty5s4]

Are you going to eat them?

LOL. Just kidding. What they all said above^

 

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[stavedeve]

It doesn't really matter what we think - it's what your target audience thinks.

Also, like everything - it's the execution that matters.

If you launch your vegan shoe brand on a website that looks like it time-warped from 1997, do half-assed advertising, have an ugly product, cut corners on quality, and a million other sub-par things - it doesn't really matter how good of an idea it is because the execution was garbage.

I know some very successful folks on here with very pedestrian products. But they are doing very well for themselves because the execution was on point.

So what do I think?

I think if you have a great product at the right price and get the word out in a great way and it resonates with your audience and you can make an acceptable profit - then it's a great idea.

I love this response.

 

[Rabby]

Eco friendly, sustainable, made by people who aren't slaves, all of these things appeal to me. "Vegan" sounds off for shoes though. I even like vegan food and have vegan friends (although I am not myself vegan), but when I hear "vegan shoes" I inevitably think "where do your shoes get the protein they need?" Are they made of avocado skins, textured soy, or what? Maybe I'm the rare person who associates "vegan" with caloric intake, but I don't think so. I would experiment with the vocabulary. Also, make sure the shoes are fantastic. People who buy the cheapest shoes don't care if they're made from plastic and Styrofoam by slaves. People who want sustainable, good, fair, humane shoes do care, and they'll be very disappointed if the shoes don't work as shoes.

 

[GIlman]

These exist already, look at vivobarefoot (great shoes BTW). Question is if people care about them being vegan (I don't) as opposed to having zero rise natural posture (which I do) or some other style or design feature.

Vegan shoes| Barefoot shoes | USA

Vivobarefoot | USA

www.vivobarefoot.com

Not all their shoes are vegan but they have a specific segment that they show as being vegan, which is the majority of their shoes. For me personally, I found the label more confusing than anything, since it seems most shoes without leather are vegan? But maybe it's some sort of nod to something I don't understand...in this regard I would have to agree with MJ that maybe there is a better marketing angle.

Obviously shoes are a huge market, there is lots of room to innovate. It seems the natural shoes such as vivobarefoot and xero shoes are charging premiums and doing quite well...so it's likely a goldmine if you can hit the right sweetspot.

 

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