New trends in footwear shopping in the US by 2024

According to the 2024 U.S. Footwear Consumer Survey Report, about one-third of consumers said their shoe-buying journey began on Amazon. While Amazon may not be the primary channel for consumers to buy shoes, its importance in the entire shoe-buying process is growing.

The survey found that consumers view Amazon as a search engine, filtering out the types of shoes they want based on pictures, reviews, colors and product availability. However, when it comes to actual shopping, 63% of consumers prefer to buy all or most of their shoes in physical stores. Only 10% plan to buy all shoes online, while 27% plan to buy most shoes online, 21% of consumers said they would shop on brand websites, and 16% said they would use search engines.

Although consumers still prefer to complete their purchases in physical stores, the Internet is increasingly influencing consumer decisions. In the process of finding the most cost-effective shoes, key steps such as evaluating brands, researching styles or comparing prices have shifted to online platforms.

In the highly competitive footwear market, sellers and brands can no longer rely on a single channel to attract consumers. Some footwear brands (including those that were DTC in the past ) have begun to expand their sales channels through Amazon. Last November, Allbirds launched some selected styles on Amazon, such as Wool Runner, Tree Runner and Tree Breezer. In May of this year, Rothy's launched a store on Amazon for the first time, including styles such as The Point, The Flat and The Driving Loafer.

On the other hand, abandoning Amazon's brand can also bring negative effects to itself. For example, after Nike severed its relationship with Amazon in 2019, it lost control of its Amazon platform, which gave resellers the opportunity to control Nike's price, appearance and platform exposure.

In response to consumer needs, brands should stand on their side, especially in a highly competitive market environment, where it is particularly important to build a diversified sales strategy.

Author✎ Summer/
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