Everyone has walked in Steve Madden’s shoes—literally. Ask any Fashionista or Fashionisto and they will quickly let you know their favorite Steve Madden style. Everybody has a Steve Madden story; including, the businessman and designer himself.
Steve Madden started his namesake company with less than $1,500 by selling shoes from the trunk of his car. Fast-forward over 26 years later, and Steve Madden is a leading footwear and accessories brand around the world.
Steve Madden is sharing the secrets of creating a lasting iconic brand and business. Join us on April 12th from 1-2PM at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC for this empowering conversation between Steve Madden and our Founder and CEO, Amy Levin. RSVP at rsvp@collegefashionista.com.
For those of you who don’t live in the NYC-area, check out a little sneak peek of Steve Madden’s words of wisdom below!
CollegeFashionista: You started your business with $1,100 and grew it to the empire that it is today. What were the initial steps involved in taking your business from selling shoes out of the trunk of your car to the next phase of the company?
Steve Madden: It took a lot of courage, and luck. I had a lot of experience under my belt from working in stores to creating my first shoe, the next natural step was opening our first store in New York.
CF: Do you think it is more important to be a strong designer or a strong business leader?
SM: I think both play into each other. This company certainly wouldn’t be what it is today if it wasn’t for all the amazing people that we have in place. I am very thankful for our CEO and other’s here on our team helping to do the daily things required to run this company. I love design though, it has always been something that has interested me – I learned a lot about women’s shoe needs when working in the store.
CF: What shoe has been your biggest ‘hit’?
SM: Our biggest hit, the style that really put us on the map was a Mary-Jane platform heel. That and of course my first style the MARLYIN. A great mule that you couldn’t tell was a clog when you had jeans on.
