Re-Post: I have republished these articles to make them better accessible for search on the blog. This article has been published first in the Newsletter No. 2/2004.
In June (2004), I spend a couple of days in Finland for the opening of the Finish Institute of Mass Customization & Personalization. During its inauguration ceremony, I had the chance to meet with the management team of Left Foot, the largest company providing mass customized men's shoes (http://www.leftfootcompany.com). CEO Risto Pentikäinen convinced my to give the system a try, and so I stopped in Left's Helsinki store on my way back to the airport to get a pair of customized shoes.
The store, next to the railway station in a small shopping center, comes with a special appeal that indicates immediately that this is not you regular shoe store. On one side, a number of sample shoes are lined up, otherwise, the store is rather empty, giving it the touch of a fashionable shoe boutique. However, the main wall in the store is covered with a huge CAD-model of a shoe and the bold words "custom made shoes. perfect fit" so that shoppers know immediately what to expect. Behind a wall, the 3D foot scanner is installed.
Here, my buying experience started. My feet were 3D-scanned using a regular scanning device. During the process, the sales clerk explained me very nicely the screens and what my measurements doe mean.
Secondly, it was design time. I chose from one of the roughly 15 different basic designs, ranging from rather sportive models to more classic ones. All shoes come in a variety of leather qualities and colors, and you can also select the outsole (full leather, full rubber, mix etc.). After selecting my model and design, I got two matching pairs of basic sample shoes. The company seems to work with the typical match-to-order system. This means that shoes are not produced based on customized lasts, but that the measurements of a customer are matched to an existing last. The same approach is followed, e.g., by Adidas or Selve. The system provided the right sample shoes from the beginning, so there was no further need for additional try-ons.
After I provided my customer data and delivery address, I paid (the shoes are priced in-between 180 and 220 Euro), got a print of my shoes and my customer ID, and departed to the airport. The whole selling process lasted about 20 minutes.
During the sales process, customers do not interact with a computer system, but only with the sales clerk. In my opinion, especially given the tech-savvy target group of Left, the buying experience could be enhanced if customers would get the opportunity to build and see their shoes in exactly their specifications on the configuration systems. In the moment, the configurator is just used as a back-office tool for order taking and submission.
The left foot concept is owned by Pomarfin Oy, the leading shoe manufacturer in Finland. The company was established in 1960 and has currently two factories - one in Finland and one in Estonia. Pomarfin's standard collection provides men, women and children with an extensive selection of comfortable high quality casual shoes, walking shoes, and boots.
In 1998, Pomarfin started to develop a unique mass customization solution to satisfy the increasing demand of men's individual high quality business shoes. Three years later, in 2001, the brand name of "left" and the "left foot company" business model were introduced to the markets. Currently, stores can be found in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Birmingham and Moscow. A new shop in Osaka, Japan, was opened on July 9, 2004, and plans are made together with the local partner to open also in Tokyo as soon as suitable location becomes available.
Later in the year, several stores are to be opened in Germany. Expansion in the UK is on the agenda, and Italy is next on the list, as sales manager Niina Gamzu told me. North America is seen as an interesting option, and expanding there is only a matter of finding the right kind of partners, as Left prefers to operate on a franchising or licensing basis.
Already, today, some of the shops are run by an independent partner. As the product concepts are rather simple, this may work, and according to company information, Left has also enough capacity due to its ownership of the manufacturing. This helps to overcome the manufacturing problems other mass customizers in this industry face. CEO Risto Pentikäinen also wants to widen the product range and is now looking for suitable licensing partners to use the technology to manufacture for example ladies shoes and golf shoes.
And my shoes? After 10 days only, the custom-made shoes arrived in my office. The fit was perfect from the beginning, the color and model were as expected, and the quality of work is really good. But most important: While the left shoe is labeled "left" with the company brand, the right shoe has my name and customer ID printed on the insole an important psychological detail to show what is special with this pair of shoes. Overall, my personal buying experience was very pleasurable, and I will consider to re-order.
Left Foot has integrated its online shop seamlessly in its selling system. After the customer's feet have once been measured, he can re-order shoes very easily. According to a survey conducted by the company, a vast majority of the customer target group, i.e. 35-55 years old men with high education, good income, and fashion consciousness, prefer to do other things than shopping for shoes. So this approach may suit them perfectly by giving them more leisure time.
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