Back-to-school shopping is in session! As parents look to outfit their kids for the year ahead (and pick up some fresh looks for themselves) a whole new slate of trends is emerging.
Making sure every student is starting the new school year on the right foot, Rack Room Shoes, known for stocking the hottest shoe brands, latest styles and popular color trends, is forecasting four major footwear trends this year which include retro or heritage joggers, diversity of sneakers, cool & comfy and sportstyle running.
Retro or heritage joggers, which are currently all the rage on TikTok, have the added bonus of bringing students’ parents back to their own youthful glory days. And leading the charge on the trend are styles by New Balance alongside Nike’s Waffle Racer Debut shoes.
Taking its inspiration from popular sports, the diversity of sneakers trend looks at footwear made popular by basketball, tennis and soccer. Nike’s popular Air Gamma Force, Court Vision and Court Borough shoes, Adidas’ Grand Court and the classic Chuck Taylor, for example, are all influenced by basketball. The New Balance CT300 and Nike Legacy, however, both take cues from tennis. The newest trend to dominate hails from the soccer pitch with the Adidas VL Court.
Meanwhile, for students looking to be cool and comfy this season, trending footwear includes easily slip-on styles from Birkenstock and Hey Dude, which notably share an affordable price point. Hey Dude has given a revamp to its Conway and Cody lines alongside new prints and hi-colors for their Wally and Wendy products, which experts from Rack Room Shoes are forecasting to be exceedingly popular this year. And concurrently, Crocs has taken the reigns with its spin on fresh color hues for classic models and collabs such as Hello Kitty, Minecraft and Barbie.
Another trend highlighting the increased demand for comfort is sport-style running footwear. Counting on innovation, these are an elevated version of lifestyle running shoes with standout models including New Balance’s Fresh Foam Roav, Nike’s Air Max Excee and the Adidas Kaptir all perfectly blending cutting-edge running technology with fresh colorways.
While style preferences differ based on age, Rack Room Shoes’ vice president and general merchandising manager, Brian Burnett told Fairchild Studios that similarities are found across the board with TikTok being one of the main drivers of the crossovers.
“We know that younger kids love fun, color and love the idea of easy on and easy off,” said Burnett. “Mom is focused on great price to value and quality. Our older students are more dialed into the most relevant trends, where being in style is highly important in the hallways, as well as finding the right shoe that hooks with his/her outfits.”
Some of the most popular brands Rack Room Shoes notes in the classroom include Nike, New Balance, Adidas, Converse, Crocs, Hey Dude and Birkenstocks. The company stocks a multitude of other brands to give their customers a wide variety to choose from such as Puma, Vans, Skechers, Under Armour, Reebok, Dr. Martens and Timberland.
Across all styles, Burnett notes that specific color trends for the quickly approaching school year are clean white on white, neutrals and rainbow and a spectrum of hues that include subtle blush pink and light blue to more intense colors such as Barbie Pink – which can be seen in the company’s latest campaign, “All About You.”
As students and parents prepare for the new year, Burnett said his number one tip is “getting your children’s feet properly measured ahead of the school year.” He added that, when possible, it is best to make the time to physically try on shoes, as every brand and its style differ. Rack Room Shoes features both in-person fittings and online measuring tools to help parents get the perfect shoe for their kids.
Rack Room Shoes Launches Back-to-School Campaign Featuring Real Kids
Molly Hartney discusses Rack Room Shoes’ newest campaign.
Launching just in time for the back-to-school season, Rack Room Shoes’ latest campaign, “All About You”, which highlights the retailer’s diverse customer base, showcases a variety of styles and brands carefully curated with the latest trends.
Featuring real children in its campaigns is one of the ways Rack Room Shoes sets itself apart. Working together, the retailer has learned firsthand from students and their parents about what speak to them the most and why. In fact, many of the children featured have been part of the company’s campaigns across multiple seasons, growing up and evolving alongside Rack Room Shoes’ shoppers.
“All About You” puts the consumer at the forefront, showing how Rack Room Shoes puts what suits the children’s personal needs and personalities at the center of everything. A leader within the shoe retail space, Rack Room Shoes has successfully done this in the past with its focus on its Athletic Shop and Kids Club. Also seeing the all-time high interest in sportswear and streetwear, the company has met this demand by launching its back-to-school campaign earlier than normal timelines.
In addition to highlighting its customers, Rack Room Shoes’ campaign also focuses on key trending fashion-forward shoes and colorway options for the upcoming season that will be utilized in stores and for its performance-based advertising strategies. Continuing to be consistent with their campaign is key to the company’s marketing strategies. Whether choosing to shop in-person or buy online, the message remains the same.
Here, Molly Hartney talks to Fairchild Studios about Rack Room Shoes’ latest campaign, the importance of using real children and the latest back-to-school trends.
Fairchild Studios: What are the key back-to-school trends you’ve observed for this year and how are you incorporating them into Rack Room Shoes’ new campaign?
Molly Hartney: We will see excitement around an assortment of court sneakers including platform styles, as well as heritage running brands like Nike, New Balance, Adidas, Puma and Reebok. The color trends are white on white, panda (black/white), neutrals and pops of color. We will be incorporating these trends into our campaigns by focusing on key styles and fashion-forward options for the season within our performance marketing campaigns and in-store communication.
Fairchild Studios: What was the inspiration behind Rack Room Shoes’ new back-to-school campaign? How does it differ from previous years?
M.H.: This year’s back-to-school campaign continues to ensure the customer knows it is “All About You,” loving your style and your trend, making sure you can choose what you love from a vast variety of products — it’s all about them! We want the customer to feel confident in their choice, product and style.
Fairchild Studios: Why was it important to you to have real people (specifically kids) in the campaign?
M.H.: It is important to have real kids during the back-to-school time frame, as we get to interact with kids ranging in age from 6 to 14, as well as their moms. We get to know them on a personal level and talk to them about what brands and trends mean to them. We make it all about them!
Engaging with real kids means we are hearing what matters to them firsthand and understanding how their personality can match their shoes. They are advocates for the real product we carry in store, and it makes them feel good about attending school in the fall with fresh kicks on their feet.
One of our real kids has been with us for a couple of years. His style has evolved as he has moved into different passions. Today, Sam is a member of the chess club, computer coding and enjoys swimming. He has gone from solely wearing Crocs as a kid to embracing new athletic brands like Nike and Reebok. Crocs still holds a special place in Sam’s shoe wardrobe, his favorite color is gold, and it just so happens Crocs makes a gold Croc!
Fairchild Studios: In an increasingly competitive retail landscape, how does Rack Room Shoes plan to differentiate itself and attract customers during the back-to-school season?
M.H.: We will be focusing on continuing to be relevant to the customer and consistent in our messaging. We want to ensure we are visible on all channels regardless of how they want to shop. Availability will be a huge factor, from a sizing perspective, but also from a fulfillment perspective. We will be consistent with the visibility of products, whether customers ship products direct to the home or pick them up in-store.
We will also be visible on key brands, trends, and styles, and allow some of our personalization efforts to help drive key messages. Lastly, during back-to-school, we differentiate our brand with, our Athletic Shop focus, Kids Club focus and our “All About You” campaign that incorporates our real kids.
Fairchild Studios: With the rise of online shopping and changing consumer behaviors, how has Rack Room Shoes adapted its marketing strategies to capture the attention of back-to-school shoppers?
M.H.: This year amongst footwear searches, sportswear and streetwear has seen an acceleration in demand during key back-to-school. To capture this demand, we are launching back-to-school campaigns a little earlier this year to ensure we show up for our customers whether they want to shop online or in-store.
Given that most shoppers are looking for sneakers during this time, we will be amping up our efforts around our Athletic Shop and ensuring we position ourselves as an authority in the sports and sneakers space, as it relates to athletics.
Where possible we are pushing “Toe to Head” campaigns with athletics being the focal point and ensuring we speak to trend right brands, styles, and the biggest factor, availability! To attract today’s omnichannel shoppers we want to make sure our campaigns are relevant and target the customer how she wants to shop. We will make sure the customer knows they can purchase a product however they want to shop, online or in-store.
We will leverage personalization to drive the basket and to engage with our customers on a more one on one level. We will be expanding into machine learning tools within some of our social branding buys to test and learn from this back-to-school season and we will be launching some key brands of the season on TikTok!
We will also be partnering with new key affiliate partners this year for online events, individual back-to-school trends and bestseller placements. Lastly, we will be looking into prior back-to-school events to capitalize on the success of some of our best partners during this all important back-to-school window.
