Old shoes blues - The Signpost

"shoes" - Google News

Old shoes blues - The Signpost

Old shoes blues - The Signpost
Opinion: Why You Should Think About Uighurs Next Time You Put Shoes On - NPR
For This Fashion Entrepreneur, Making Shoes with Disney 'Like a Dream' - Babson Thought & Action
Today’s the day to get this pair of Jordan golf shoes (but you’d better act fast!) - Golf.com
Nike shoes and clothing up to 40% off during pre-Black Friday sale - New York Post

Posted: 22 Nov 2019 04:13 PM PST

"The admonition to walk a mile in someone else's shoes means before judging someone, you must understand his experiences, challenges, thought processes, etc. The full idiom is: Before you judge a man, walk a mile in his shoes. In effect, it is a reminder to practice empathy." -Grammarist.com

BELLA AND KALIE PHOTO ESSAY 2 (2 of 8).jpg — Walk a mile in others' shoes. (Bella Torres / The Signpost)

Twenty-six years ago, I had shoes without laces. I can't remember any of it, but photos would prove I wore a steady wardrobe of white socks with pink plastic beads. Growing up, through the terrible twos, I spent most of my time barefoot. I'd refuse to constrict my feet in the confines of polyester and to avoid the screaming, my parents would concede. One day, I discovered jelly shoes. The sparkly pink rubber sandals called to everything my three-year-old brain wanted. Through the blisters and the bandaids, I found a shoe I was excited to wear.

BELLA AND KALIE PHOTO ESSAY 2 (6 of 8).jpg — (Bella Torres / The Signpost)

Ten years ago, I pulled my shoes on without untying the laces. My mother complained. I ignored her. As I ran out the door, she told me that other people weren't so lucky. That day, in the already demeaning halls of high school, I noticed five separate people with holes in their shoes. I've never stopped wondering if the holes were there by choice or if they were the only shoes they could afford to have.

BELLA AND KALIE PHOTO ESSAY 2 (1 of 8).jpg — )Bella Torres / The Signpost)

Today, I pulled on my shoes without untying the laces. I may have been in a hurry, or maybe I've learned how to cut corners that don't matter. Still, I had to pause and think about the menagerie of shoes I've seen throughout my life: sandals in the summer and snow boots in the winter, things I often take for granted. How often have I complained about cold feet when they were wrapped in a priceless amount of fabric and rubber? I get wrapped up in the way my shoes look when people can't even get wrapped up in the concept of having shoes.

BELLA AND KALIE PHOTO ESSAY 2 (7 of 8).jpg — (Bella Torres / The Signpost)

In a year, you might not even have to lace your own shoes. They did it for Marty McFly and then for Michael J. Fox, too. Unless you're looking at someone else's feet, you could go a whole day without seeing what's on them. You throw them on before you walk out the door or you may work long hours in the same pair of work boots every day.

BELLA AND KALIE PHOTO ESSAY 2 (3 of 8).jpg — (Bella Torres / The Signpost)

Maybe you wear the same pair of shoes every day for two years, or maybe you're fortunate enough to buy a new pair whenever you wish. Some people buy shoes for fashion, others for function. Companies make a living selling flashy, over the top styles, and some businesses mass-produce the same style and color every day.

If you look closer, maybe you'll see things you wouldn't notice otherwise. Are they covered in dirt? Do they have rocks stuck to the tread from places far from home? I want to take a microscope to the edges and examine the dust that hides between polyester threads. If only we could walk the same places the soles of these shoes have. They have seen red rocks of southern Utah. They have walked the streets of Rome, Venice and Milan. Sometimes I think about how these shoes have seen more of the world than I have.

Opinion: Why You Should Think About Uighurs Next Time You Put Shoes On - NPR

Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:54 AM PST

A container dock of Yangshan Port in Shanghai. Anonymous/AP hide caption

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Anonymous/AP

A container dock of Yangshan Port in Shanghai.

Anonymous/AP

The forced imprisonment of more than a million Muslim Uighurs in detention camps in the Xinjiang region of western China may make Americans feel outrage and sadness. But many may just shrug and ask, "what does that have to do with me?"

Look down at your shoes.

Ninety-nine percent of the shoes sold in America are made overseas, with China the largest manufacturer by far. Nike, Naturalizer, Dr. Scholl's, Hush Puppies, Keds and many other American companies make shoes in China, where the costs of production are far less.

Or look at any shirt, socks or pair of pants you might pull on today. China is the largest exporter of clothing textiles to the United States. The Levi jeans you might wear, with all-American-looking brass rivets, may well have been made in China.

In fact, more than 80% of the cotton used in Chinese products is grown in Xinjiang. The United States has put sanctions on 28 Chinese companies in Xinjiang for using forced labor, but U.S. companies find easy loopholes to continue to do business there.

Most of the toys for sale this holiday season are made in China, including Barbie, that American icon. Melissa and Doug's wholesome wooden learning toys are designed in Connecticut, but mostly made in China. American Girl Dolls — Blaire, Luciana, Julie, Kaya and Felicity, in their authentically-detailed historical American wardrobes — are made in China.

So are so many of our phones and laptops, dishware, chairs, batteries and other items of everyday life in America. This can be good. The products are often well-made and well-priced. The trade between the countries gives America and China a stake in each other's success.

But the nation that is our largest trading partner, which helps Americans live better, has more than a million people in reeducation camps, and is now reportedly destroying mosques in Xinjiang. The Chinese government imprisons dissidents, including writers, reporters, human rights campaigners, women's advocates and religious groups, and runs a surveillance state that represses opposition.

Would Americans be willing to pay more, or use billions of dollars in trade to bargain for more human rights for the Chinese people who provide Americans with so much?

What does it have to do with us? Look down at our shoes, our phones, and our toys.

For This Fashion Entrepreneur, Making Shoes with Disney 'Like a Dream' - Babson Thought & Action

Posted: 22 Nov 2019 08:36 AM PST

Take fashion entrepreneur Ruthie Davis' picture, and she'll have an important question for you: "Did you get the shoes?"

Indeed, it is all about the shoes for Davis MBA'93, the entrepreneur, founder and designer behind the eponymous shoe brand favored by A-list celebrities such as Beyonce, Ariana Grande, and Lady Gaga. Davis' shoes are bold, beautiful, and distinct, the kind of eye-catching designs that make you wonder how she came up with them in the first place.

But Davis is quick to point out that having a vibrant fashion brand is about so much more than just designing show-stopping shoes. "The thing that is tricky is keeping the brand valid in the marketplace," she says. "In fashion they say, one minute you're in, the next minute you're out. It's a real challenge to keep fresh. I am constantly marketing every single thing I do, in some way, shape, or form."

That means attending red carpet events and fashion weeks. That means having her picture taken continually and making sure that, yes, the shoes are in the photo. That means always posting to social media and communicating with the brand's fans.

And that means seeking out high-profile collaborations. In recent years, Ruthie Davis has become a licensee of Disney and collaborated with them on the Disney Princess x Ruthie Davis shoe collections based on various Disney Princesses. Her latest collection goes beyond the Princess franchise and is launching this month in tandem with Disney's newest movie, "Frozen 2."

"One of the ways to increase your relevance is to do these high-level collaborations," Davis says. "Working with Disney has been like a dream."

Being a Fashion Entrepreneur

The first thing you might notice about Davis' shoes is how high the heels are. She is constantly asked by strangers how she manages to walk in them, but Davis, frankly, likes her shoes that way. "As a woman, I like to feel strong, and I like to look at a man eye to eye," she says. "I'm 5-7, and so with my shoes, I'm pretty much the height of most guys."

Her shoes, she says, aren't just about looking good. "It's about empowering the woman who wears them to feel confident and strong," says Davis. As a proud Babson alumna, Davis has remained involved with the College, and with many of its students interested in fashion entrepreneurship, she offers internships and takes time to meet with them and answer questions. That message of empowerment is something she passes on. "A big part of the Ruthie Davis brand is about giving back, inspiring people to go after their dreams, to think big," she says.

In a meeting at Disney, Ruthie Davis was told, "You're like a modern-day Disney princess, working hard to go after your dreams."

Davis is certainly thinking big by collaborating with Disney. Seeking to sell adult fashion, Disney was interested in working with Davis, not just because of her distinctive shoes, but also because she is a rare female shoe designer and fashion entrepreneur. "They loved the idea of the Ruthie Davis who's a woman designing for women," says Davis. In a meeting at Disney, she was told, "You're like a modern-day Disney princess, working hard to go after your dreams."

Davis' previous collections for the company have included shoes inspired by Disney princesses Snow White, Mulan, and Jasmine from "Aladdin." In March, Davis is planning to release shoes tied to a forthcoming live-action "Mulan" movie.

While she is working with iconic movies and characters, Davis still strives to have her brand's spirited personality come through in her shoes. "I have the Ruthie look," she says. "I bring that to Disney."

No Wallflowers

For its part, Disney also is mindful of its own brand. Through many meetings, calls, and emails, the Disney team will offer Davis input. "There is a bit of back and forth," Davis says. "It's very important to them that I get the feeling behind the character, what her personality is, what she is trying to achieve in the story."

The end result is shoes that are very evocative of the characters that inspire them. For the footwear inspired by Snow White, for instance, one pair of boots features an image of the Princess on one foot and the Evil Queen on the other, while another includes the words "fairest of them all" emblazoned across the sole of the sneaker.

With the crystal stilettos, glittery ankle boots, and platform sneakers of her new "Frozen 2" collection, Davis is hoping to evoke the film's two main characters: snow queen Elsa and her younger sister, Anna. "They are going after their dreams," Davis says of the characters. "I try to create shoes that give you that feeling. These shoes are no wallflowers."

The same could be said for Davis herself.

Posted in Entrepreneurs of All Kinds

Tagged Alumni, Women-Led Entrepreneurship, Women's Leadership, Startups, Entrepreneurs of All Kinds, Arts