Brantano
Encyclopedia
Brantano Footwear is a Europe
an chain of retail
stores specialising in footwear
for men, women and children.
. The Brantegem brothers were sons of a cobbler
. They specialised in ladies' shoes which they sold to wholesalers and retailers in Belgium
. Eventually the brothers separated and in 1962 André intitiated a retail outlet
at the factory
. This evolved into the Brantano chain
of shoe shops.
The group is divided into different parts, including:
Brantano closed its Dutch
and Danish
stores in 2005, and subsequently liquidated
its French
stores.
In early 2008, the Macintosch retail group purchased Brantano NV.
along with Sigmund Freud
and Carl Jung
. She is supposed to have discovered the 'sling-back synapse'; an imaginary part of the female brain which reveals what women want from their shoe shopping experience. It also describes the condition "shoe rage".
Changes included:
In 2009, Brantano UK launched their new concept of shopping by style rather than size in their new Birmingham Highstreet store and also their existing Peterborough Serpentine Green store.
Brantano are continuing their re-development throughout 2011, having re-fitted a large number of stores. They are also converting more stores to their new concept including their Edinburgh Straiton Store.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an chain of retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
stores specialising in footwear
Footwear
Footwear consists of garments worn on the feet, for fashion, protection against the environment, and adornment. Being barefoot is commonly associated with poverty, but some cultures chose not to wear footwear at least in some situations....
for men, women and children.
Origin
The company originated from a small factory run by André Brantegem and his brother in Lede, East FlandersEast Flanders
East Flanders is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on the Netherlands and in Belgium on the provinces of Antwerp, Flemish Brabant , of Hainaut and of West Flanders...
. The Brantegem brothers were sons of a cobbler
Shoemaking
Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand. Traditional handicraft shoemaking has now been largely superseded in volume of shoes produced by industrial mass production of footwear, but not necessarily in quality, attention to detail, or...
. They specialised in ladies' shoes which they sold to wholesalers and retailers in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. Eventually the brothers separated and in 1962 André intitiated a retail outlet
Outlet store
An outlet store or factory outlet is a brick and mortar or online retail store in which manufacturers sell their stock directly to the public. Traditionally, a factory outlet was a store attached to a factory or warehouse, sometimes allowing customers to watch the production process like in the...
at the factory
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
. This evolved into the Brantano chain
Chain
A chain is a sequence of connected links.Chain may also refer to:Chain may refer to:* Necklace - a jewelry which is worn around the neck* Mail , a type of armor made of interlocking chain links...
of shoe shops.
Business
Brantano NV is the parent company that is in control of the rest of the Brantano group.The group is divided into different parts, including:
- Brantano (UK) Ltd, its British subsidiary, which operates 150 stores in the United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and in the Middle EastMiddle EastThe Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
; - Brantano Luxembourg SA, which controls stores in LuxembourgLuxembourgLuxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
; - Brimmo NV, which controls stores in BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
; - Muys NV (taken over by Brantano in 1996), which has stores in FlandersFlandersFlanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
.
Brantano closed its Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
stores in 2005, and subsequently liquidated
Liquidation
In law, liquidation is the process by which a company is brought to an end, and the assets and property of the company redistributed. Liquidation is also sometimes referred to as winding-up or dissolution, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation...
its French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
stores.
In early 2008, the Macintosch retail group purchased Brantano NV.
Brantano (UK) Ltd
Brantano (UK) Ltd have recently launched a nationwide advertising campaign in a bid to change the public's perception of Brantano from a discount warehouse, to a high fashion, affordable shoe megastore. However a recent statement from the MD have commented on Brantano's failure of this rebranding and of the high fashion approach. Instead it has decided to increase 'in-house brands' and drop the high fashion megastore approach. It has recently been stocking more fashionable and affordable brands but the styles are not high fashion as this is more in keeping with its customers needs and tastes.Television advertisement
This campaign included the introduction of a television advert which features a fictional psychologist called Anne-Marie Brantano, portrayed as one of the giants of twentieth century psychologyPsychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
along with Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
and Carl Jung
Carl Jung
Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as "by nature religious" and make it the focus of exploration. Jung is one of the best known researchers in the field of dream analysis and...
. She is supposed to have discovered the 'sling-back synapse'; an imaginary part of the female brain which reveals what women want from their shoe shopping experience. It also describes the condition "shoe rage".
Re-development
Brantano will shortly be re-fitting some of its stores to bring them up to date.Changes included:
- New wooden floors
- re-arranged layouts
- Less old stock on display
- New posters on display around the shop detailing new lines or shoes on special offer.
In 2009, Brantano UK launched their new concept of shopping by style rather than size in their new Birmingham Highstreet store and also their existing Peterborough Serpentine Green store.
Brantano are continuing their re-development throughout 2011, having re-fitted a large number of stores. They are also converting more stores to their new concept including their Edinburgh Straiton Store.