Move over guys, the Ladies’ Man is here.
The Ladies’ Man, an edgy shoe design by Auri Footwear, is one of several of the company’s lines found in big-name retailers—think Nordstrom and Fred Segal—that has caught the eye of stars such as Benjamin Bratt, Jamie Foxx and William Shatner.
Shoot, even Forbes has noticed the little Laguna Beach company.
Auri, recently named one of America’s Most Promising Companies in 2009 by Forbes, is the brainchild of Chief Executive Ori Rosenbaum.
Rosenbaum, an Israel-born entrepreneur who loves cars and everything Apple Inc., is looking to build up his brand of dress, casual dress, sport and leisure shoes by playing off the cachet of Hollywood.
The shoes have been featured on a segment of “Extra TV” and worn by Bratt in an episode of the recently canceled show “The Cleaner.”
Along with Nordstrom and Fred Segal, the shoes are sold at Gary’s at Fashion Island, DSW, The Walking Company, Footwear Etc. and Zappos.com.
They sit on shelves along with big labels such as Cole Haan, part of Nike Inc., Salvatore Ferragamo and Canali.
The company’s closest competition might be Adidas AG’s Rockport brand, which makes comfortable, stylish shoes in the $100 range.
Splash
But Auri’s shoes come with a bit of spunk and splash. They have names
such as The Ladies’ Man, Stingray, Gigolo and Cougar Bait. They sell for $145 to $180.
Rosenbaum’s goal is to design shoes cool enough for hipsters but comfy enough to wear all day. They’re designed almost well enough to run in, he said.
“We saw that was the segment of the market, the middle segment—between the high-end dress shoe and white athletic shoe—that was not only the biggest but the fastest-growing,” he said.
Shoes are off the beaten path for a guy whose other businesses have included auto products, a stereo equipment company and a consulting business. He sold the two companies several years ago and shuttered his consulting business in 2007 to start Auri.
His “ah ha” moment came while he was racing, he said.
Rosenbaum, an avid racecar sportsman, was driving at a private road race function. His driving shoes were great for driving but awful to walk in. When he went out later that evening, his dress shoes hurt even more.
That’s when it him: a fashionable guy’s shoe that wouldn’t kill your feet.
“I looked at the footwear industry and thought it was lacking,” he says. “It was so homogenized.”
Auri is small with yearly sales of less than $1 million. The company just started to turn a profit, according to Rosenbaum.
“We know the brand makes sense,” he said. “We know the technology and style work. It’s just a matter of doing our due diligence and properly executing.”
That’s led the company to a women’s line. Sandals with wedges, flats, walking styles and fashion sport shoes for women are due early next year at Fred Segal on Melrose, joining the crowded shelves
along with Prada, Christian Louboutin and Jimmy Choo. They’ll sell for $140 to $180.
There are about 12 to 15 patterns for the women’s line. The men’s line has about 35, and it targets a guy in his 30s to 50s.
“At one of our retailers, I was out on the floor and I met with a customer,” said Andrew Tastad, vice president of sales for Auri. “He was 55 years old and going on a European vacation and didn’t want to pull out a pair of white sneakers to wear with his shorts while walking around the cobblestone ground in Venice.”
Production of 5,000 pairs of Auri shoes takes about 90 days. The shoes are designed in Laguna Beach and made in China. Leathers are shipped in from Italy.
The company has four workers in Laguna Beach.
Its advisory team includes Charles “Buck” Lauer—who has some 30 years in the shoe business and launched a casual unit at Reebok International Ltd., part of Adidas—and Victoria M. Foley, a podiatric surgeon. Head of sales Tastad has been in the shoe business for 20 years now.
Global Sales
Auri is eyeing global sales. It’s dipped its toes in Canada and has samples out in Japan and Australia.
Even with the recent Forbes exposure—which most small companies would kill for—things haven’t always been so easy for Auri.
Rosenbaum said he spent some $2.2 million of his own money to start the company. Friends and family also contributed big sums.
The company is eyeing about $2.5 million in funding from investors.
Starting the company during the worst retail downturn in recent memory forced the company to make adjustments, according to Rosenbaum.
Salaries, rent and sales expectations
were lowered, and legal fees and public relations expenses were cut, if not done away with.
“The good thing about being a small and new company is we can react rapidly,” Rosenbaum said.
Gomez is a freelance writer based in Long Beach.
