program with several brands. It really comes down to keeping things clean and dry.”
duces, and that companies generally do a good job of preventing issues.
As footwear manufacturing has moved almost entirely overseas in the last two decades, Musial says issues with mold are on the rise, especially in hot and humid Asian countries like India, China and Vietnam.
“[The footwear industry] has broadened the base of its supply chain so that you’re not just sourcing locally, but from all over the world,” he explained.
For footwear companies, a moldy shipment can have dire consequences. NuShoe not only saves the shoes, but has often prevented brands from losing accounts worth millions of dollars. “I’ve heard people say, ‘If we don’t get the shoes out in the next three weeks we’re going to lose the quarter,’” Neuner said. “These days your factories are thousands and thousands of miles away, and months away from something being produced and getting to you, so basically we allow brands to have a sort of mini-factory in the U.S.” Mold isn’t the only common issue though. The factory also works collaboratively with brands to come up with solutions for defective product. “Recently a sandal brand came out with new sandals with straps, but found it needed some sort of Velcro, so we sourced with the factory and they cut and produced the Velcro and shipped it all to us. That was 20,000 pairs.” Still, despite the size of these numbers, Musial says the mistakes represent only a fraction of the total number of shoes the footwear industry pro-
“Despite how large the industry’s supply chain is though, it’s amazing how few mistakes make it through to NuShoe. Some big brands who make 10 million pairs—only 10,000 may be defective.” Aside from working directly with brands, in recent years NuShoe has “dramatically” increased its client base with factories, developing a presence and awareness among the Asian factories in particular. “They know who we are now and they know they can call us if things go wrong,” said Musial, who spearheads the efforts to get more factories on board. As sustainability continues to become an industry-wide trend, NuShoe is in part positioning itself as a green company, helping to prevent B-grade shoes—shoes that don’t meet brand’s standards of quality—from ending up in landfills.
we believe in giving them to people who need them,” Neuner added. “We want to maximize value to the brand, through return to stock or in helping them find the most socially and fiscally responsible route possible.” Aside from growing donations, NuShoe is also starting to receive requests for handbags and other accessories. Neuner said he sees apparel and handbags as natural “next steps” in terms of growing the business. But NuShoe hasn’t totally forgotten its roots either. The company is still in the consumer repair business, but like everything else, they’ve moved online. For under $100, customers can now mail their worn-out hoofs to NuShoes for repair. Neuner said his responsibility for his employees is what keeps him passionate about the shoe repair business, “There are families that depend on me waking up every morning and doing what I do.” •
“I’ve seen firsthand in shoe factories that brands don’t know what to do with them. No one wants to buy them because they’re old styles, so to close that sustainability gap is something I’m really excited about,” said Musial. “We don’t believe in filling trash dumps with shoes, VAMPFOOTWEAR.COM / AUG 2016
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