Title:
Fleet Feet: Passion first, shoes second
Source:
Crain's Chicago Business.
35.40 (Oct. 1, 2012): p0018.
Full Text:
COPYRIGHT 2012 Crain Communications, Inc.
Full Text:
Byline: Lisa Bertagnoli
About four years ago, when minimal and barefoot running shoes started to become popular, David Zimmer, owner of two Fleet Feet Sports stores in Chicago, didn't rush out to stock them. Rather, he started to hold minimal-shoe running classes for his customers. "We didn't feel we could bring (the shoes) in without getting a feel for them," says Mr. Zimmer.
More than 3,000 people have taken the class, and many have credited it--and, by proxy, Mr. Zimmer--with shaving minutes from their marathon miles, clocking personal bests and, best of all, making running more fun.
That customer focus governs most everything that happens at Fleet Feet. In
addition to selling lots of shoes--Mr. Zimmer's Old Town store is the
top-grossing in the 95-store Fleet Feet franchise system--Fleet Feet Chicago
sponsors 350 events and races a year. It holds meditation and yoga classes
and women's running groups. Staffers hand out free water and
Gatorade--325,000 cups this year, Mr. Zimmer estimates--at local races.
"I don't want happy customers; I want 'raving fans,' " says Mr. Zimmer.
Mr. Zimmer, 47, who owns the stores with his wife, Lisa, also 47, crafted his service philosophy 25 years ago, when he sold loans to first-time homebuyers at Citibank. "I realized I was helping people achieve their greatest dream," he recalls. He has taken what he calls an "It's a Wonderful Life" approach to the sports-gear business. "I am helping people fulfill their dreams," he says. "Shoes are a byproduct of that."
THE EXTRA MILE
The 70-person staff knows running intimately, beginning with Mr. Zimmer, a
marathoner who runs 15 to 30 miles a week. Staffers are all physically active
and look it. "Being fit is part of the application process," says
Mr. Zimmer.
The stores get about 250 applications for every five job openings; 80 percent of those applicants don't make it to a first interview. Those who are hired train for three to six weeks with full pay, learning running shoes, clothing and accessories inside-out. Salespeople don't work on commission, and unhappy customers can get a full refund, at any time. Shoes that don't work out, no matter how muddy or banged up, "are our problem, not yours," Mr. Zimmer says.
In retail--especially in an age when customers "showroom," or try on a product in a store, then buy it cheaper online--having the right inventory is king. "What's No. 1 is having what I want, when I want it," says Will Ander, senior partner at McMillan Doolittle LLP, a Chicago retail consultancy. "It's not the smiling greeter. That's a lot farther down on the list."
Every day Mr. Zimmer and his managers review sales history to make sure
they're carrying the right sizes in the right styles.
Amber Cussen was an online shoe shopper; she isn't anymore. Last summer, Ms. Cussen was ready to click her way to a pair of New Balance running shoes when a workout buddy suggested she try Fleet Feet. "She said, 'They'll tell you what's best for your height and weight and gait,' " says Ms. Cussen, 32, owner of Amber's Organizing LLC in Chicago. Ms. Cussen, a triathlete who logs 15 to 25 miles a week, walked away a fan. The staff at the Lincoln Square store listened to her complaints about her current shoes, fit her with new ones, then let her try them out on the in-store treadmill. The shoes felt great, "but they cost $140 and only came in electric blue," Ms. Cussen says. After telling the salesman she didn't want to look like a Smurf, he asked her to wait and disappeared. He returned with an older model of the same shoe, in an acceptable color and an equally acceptable $100 price tag.
Amber Cussen was an online shoe shopper; she isn't anymore. Last summer, Ms. Cussen was ready to click her way to a pair of New Balance running shoes when a workout buddy suggested she try Fleet Feet. "She said, 'They'll tell you what's best for your height and weight and gait,' " says Ms. Cussen, 32, owner of Amber's Organizing LLC in Chicago. Ms. Cussen, a triathlete who logs 15 to 25 miles a week, walked away a fan. The staff at the Lincoln Square store listened to her complaints about her current shoes, fit her with new ones, then let her try them out on the in-store treadmill. The shoes felt great, "but they cost $140 and only came in electric blue," Ms. Cussen says. After telling the salesman she didn't want to look like a Smurf, he asked her to wait and disappeared. He returned with an older model of the same shoe, in an acceptable color and an equally acceptable $100 price tag.
"He went the extra mile and found me these beautiful pink shoes," she says.
-- FLEET FEET SPORTS
Co-owner: David Zimmer, 47
Square feet: 8,000 at Old Town, 7,500 at Lincoln Square
Number of employees: 70
Service secret: "I am helping people fulfill their dreams. Shoes are a
byproduct of that."
Why it works: "It's hard to differentiate a store just on
product," says Will Ander, senior partner at McMillan Doolittle LLP, a
Chicago-based retail consulting firm. "Differentiating on emotions is
hard to copy and takes price out of the equation. Think Starbucks."
Copyright 2012 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Source Citation
"Fleet Feet: Passion first, shoes second." Crain's Chicago Business 1 Oct. 2012: 0018. General OneFile. Web. 30 July 2013.
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