Advice for the Lovelorn From Steve Madden, ex-con

Talking shoes with Steve Madden
Thursday, November 15, 2007

By EVELYN SHIH
STAFF WRITER


Steve Madden, shoe guru, is coming to North Jersey to have a proper conversation with you.

"The art of conversation is dying," he explained. "All those things that force you not to go meet with other people is killing conversation."

Madden, a young 49, said he still needs to go into a store for his own shopping needs. "But my customers, the millennials" -- women born after 1980 -- "they seem to like shopping online."

Although Madden will be the first to tell you that "our biggest store is the Internet," he treasures social interaction. When he has spare time between designing shoes and working in his showrooms, he likes to hang out in his stores and watch what people buy.

"The customers think I'm strange," he said. "They're thinking, 'What is this 50-year-old man doing asking me about my shoes?' "

Customers who meet Madden Saturday at BP Shoes in Nordstrom at Garden State Plaza will get some face-to-face time with the designer and entrepreneur.

FAST FACTS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WHAT: Personal appearance by Steve Madden.
WHERE: BP Shoes at
Nordstrom, Westfield Garden State Plaza, Paramus. 201-843-1122 for more
information.
WHEN: 2 p.m. Saturday.
HOW MUCH: Free.

"Expect advice for the lovelorn," he joked.

Customers and fans are encouraged to bring questions, comments and things to be signed. BET veejay Julissa Bermudez will be hosting the event to give it extra pizazz.

Madden will be signing autographs and raffling off shoes, as well as showing off his latest new tricks: This year he launched a dress line to join his shoes and increasingly popular purses.

"We have really cool dresses," Madden said. "They've been selling at Nordstrom really, really well."

But of course, the man who popularized the platform in the '90s is always ready with foot fashion advice. "Right now it's all about the boots," he said. "Pants inside boots, cowboy boots, you name it. ... This is the best season for boots in 20 years."

Business is doing better than it ever has, Madden said, adding that there are now more stores and more product lines available than there were before his short stint in prison for stock swindling. After emerging in 2005, he expanded the company's offerings to include a popular purse line, coats and now dresses.

"We tried to apply the same principles that made us a success in shoes," he said.

Love them or leave them, the new pieces will be on prominent display on Saturday. The most important thing is to have a conversation.

"Come on out and see me," Madden said. "Yeah. Come see me."

E-mail: shih@northjersey.com

Copyright © 2007 North Jersey Media Group Inc.