Naturalizer brand enters Russia and Ukraine
Russia’s MTB group is to distribute Brown Shoe Company’s Naturalizer footwear brand throughout Russia and the Ukraine through its Monarch Group subsidiary. Brown Shoe has recently opened distribution channels in the UK, Germany, Korea, and Morocco for the women’s fashion footwear brand.
Naturalizer footwear will be available in 80 Monarch outlets throughout Russia and the Ukraine, including St Petersburg, Moscow and Kiev, by late August. While the initial launch will take place within existing Monarch stores, additional stand-alone Naturalizer shops are expected to open in 2011.
"There is growing international demand for footwear that combines comfort and affordability, and we're confident that Russian and Ukrainian women will respond well to Naturalizer's combination of comfort and style," said Brown Shoe chairman and CEO, Ron Fromm.
First introduced in America in 1927, the brand offers comfortable shoes with perforated insoles for flexibility, featherweight outsoles for lightness, ergonomic heel and toe shapes for stability, extra cushioning underfoot to lessen impact and breathable linings to keep feet cool.
"The appeal of Naturalizer's combination of comfort and style is universal, and Russia and the Ukraine won't be exceptions. We will reach a wide range of consumers with Naturalizer footwear and anticipate it will quickly become very popular," said general manager, member of the Monarch Group board of directors, Evgeny Kalinin.
