Dkode entering the UK footwear market

"The UK has always been our target market, but it has not been easy getting in," reveals Vasco Sampaio, Chief Executive Officer and son of the founder of Portuguese footwear label Dkode. Even though there is a strong market in the country for wholesale footwear among British

retailers, Vasco feels like the majority of them are focused on satisfying their "personal taste" when it comes to selecting brands for their stores, instead of listening to the consumers wants and needs. Despite a strong demand for Dkode in the UK from its fans, not all the UK distributors were very sure of the brand says Sampaio. The family owned independent label, known for its contemporary, retro and vintage styled footwear, has managed to gain a cult following around the world via social media sites and despite not being picked up very quickly by British retailers, Dkode has its sights set on the UK footwear market.

 

Dkode

launches its Portuguese footwear in the UK

Dkode prides itself on crafting its handmade footwear, which is made in its own factories in Felgueiras with its own sourced materials, and on using unique finishes and fabrics to make one of a kind shoe designs. Although the footwear company Sozé, founded by José Sampaio in 1976, first started out making shoes for the domestic market, when Vasco joined the company in 2002, he realized the potential for them to do more. "We were producing shoes for companies such as Clarks, Hugo Boss and Kickers, who came to us for our highly technical aspects, fast response chains, sample producing, prototype making and small volume production," says Sampaio. "But when I came aboard, I thought to myself why can't we gather all the knowledge and the know-how we have and make our own label?" Which is precisely what he set about to do.

This December will see Dkode celebrate its twelfth year anniversary. Since then the brand has grown to account for half of Sozé 250,000 annual shoe production, reaching 12 million euro turnover in 2012 and exporting 95 percent of its footwear to foreign markets such as the UK, Germany, Japan, The Netherlands, New Zealand and North America. Dkode currently accounts for 50 percent of the company's turnover and Sampaio hopes that one day all the group profits will come from the brand.

Now the brand is preparing to win over the UK footwear market with its Portuguese influenced designs. "We have always worked with Portuguese designers, to guarantee Dkodes unique designs. Our current head designer Hélia, has been with us for over eight years and comes from a strong fashion background." The design team is at the core of the brand and its DNA. Although the brand does not advertise it on their site, one of the key features of its footwear design, is its comfort. "After a certain price point you need to have a plus point," points out Sampaio. "Comfort is communicated by the product when you wear it." For example, Dkode's womens footwear designs all have a thick, sturdy medium heel for daily wear. However Sampaio realizes that Dkode casual designs may not suit everyone tastes buds, especially the more sophisticated British woman. Which is why three seasons ago, the brand launched a capsule collections created in collaboration with Serbian designer Aleksandar Protic. The designer is known for his structured and sharp designs, which brings another element of surprise to the Portuguese footwear brand.

"The reason we chose to work with Protic was precisely because Dkode is not a glamour or catwalk fashion brand. It is a contemporary, casual brand. By creating a haute couture fashion inspired collection within our regular assortment we are able to connect with other aspects of the fashion world, as well as other clientele and showcase the brand in a new light." So far the collaborative collections have been well received, with positive reactions coming from both customers and distributors alike, who use the capsule collections as center pieces to show off the rest of the Dkode collection. The designer collections are set to help edge the door open into the British footwear market.

Dkode

aims to become a "total look brand"

However, international expansion and growth in the UK is not all Sampaio has in mind for the brand. "People have asked us, why shoes? Because it was our life experience, it was what we knew best and were we are the strongest. However that being said, it does not mean that we aim to stop at footwear alone. Dkode was not invented to be solely a footwear label, it is a lifestyle brand, we want it to be a total look brand. Three seasons ago we introduced mens footwear, which we have been building up since then. Once our mens footwear is on level with womens, we aim to move into the accessories sector and develop handbags, belts, purses. Then once that is successfully established, we move onto clothing."

Sampaio's father used to have a saying, which has become part of the brands DNA today: "Dream a lot with your eyes open, but keep both feet on the ground." Sampaio takes this saying to heart, he is aware that it is very hard to make the step from footwear to clothing, and notes that not many brands have made that step very successfully. However he hopes to make the step within the next five years, taking one step at a time while remaining loyal to the brands heritage and DNA. "Growth will come step by step, and we will not launch a new project until any current ones are successfully achieved."

This is part of the reason why Sampaio is in no hurry to rush Dkode expansion in the UK. The contemporary label is currently available at selected retailers such as Lilith of Avalon in Glastonbury and Bambini in Cleveland, but notes its biggest presence in the country comes through online retailers such as Amazon, Stylight, Zalando and Shoptoo. Sampaio sees plans in the future to open a Dkode flagship store in the UK sometime after 2015, but until then he is content to see how the brand fares in the country, before scooping out prime retail locations.

Until that day comes though, Dkode is undertaking is the launch of their own website, which is set to occur over the next few days. The online site will be a way for the brand to really connect with its customers around the world as well as the UK. The web store will offer its mens and womens collections and be linked to its other social media sites. Sampaio hopes that the online site will receive similar positive reactions from its British customers. "If online sales grow, perhaps we will launch country specific sites in the future, such as a web store just for our UK customers. But until then we will use our international site as our basis and see how things go from there."