Steve Madden returns to London with Geiger-operated Westfield store

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Nov 18, 2019

US footwear giant Steve Madden this week returns to open its first standalone store in London after a decade’s absence with plans for more retail units in the UK.

The 1,552 square feet store opens at the Westfield shopping centre in White City, West London, and will be operated by fashion footwear retailer Kurt Geiger.

At a pre-launch, founder and design chief Steve Madden told the London Evening Standard: “We will see how this store is received. But, if it goes well I would like to be investing in stores in possibly Oxford Street, Covent Garden, Manchester and Scotland.”

He added: “I have always loved London, there is strong customer demand here, high footfall and we have found the right partner to operate the shop for us.”

His first UK store on London’s Broadwick Street in 2007 but closed for reasons he said included not being the right location. Since then Steve Madden has traded in the UK online or within department stores, the latter being an area in which Kurt Geiger has a huge presence.

The company is seeing rising sales. Net sales for the third quarter ended September 30 increased 8.5% to $497.3m, wholesale business increased 8.5% to $421.6m and retail sales rose 8.3% to $75.7m. The group also raised its earnings guidance for the year citing “the power of our brands and the strength of our business model.”

To the end of September, Steve Madden operated 227 retail locations in total, including eight online stores, as well as 32 company-operated concessions in international markets.