“This man is probably the most extraordinary man I’ve ever met,” Donna Karan gushed over Kenneth Cole onstage at the 2024 FN Achievement Awards. The legendary designer presented Cole with the Lifetime Achievement Award on Wednesday night in New York.

“You’ve been ahead of the curve your whole life, in every aspect of your life, in the way you create, collaborate and communicate to sheer perfection,” she continued. “You call, we come.”

Karan and Cole have worked together, not only in fashion, but through their philanthropic efforts through the years. In 2019, the two were honored as the Icon Award for Social Impact winners at the FN Achievement Awards for their mission to help support the country of Haiti.

But that’s just one of Cole’s many humanitarian and charitable works. For more than four decades, the designer has been committed to using his platform to support a range of social justice movements, including HIV/AIDS awareness, gun control, climate change and, most recently, ending mental health stigmas.

“I have always believed that fashion is more than how we present ourselves in the world, but also a vehicle to positively impact it, and a powerful and creative way to respectfully communicate our commonality as well as our differences,” he said while accepting the award. “My story is the story of an American designer slash Shoe Dog — (and I hate that term, but as they say, if the shoe fits) — who uses the platform he has to make the difference that he can. It has taught me today that this is absolutely not a dress rehearsal, and that what we stand for will always matter more than what we stand in.”

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For 38 years, the annual FN Achievement Awards — often called the “Shoe Oscars” — have celebrated the style stars, best brand stories, ardent philanthropists, emerging talents and industry veterans. The 2024 event is supported by sponsors Listrak, Marc Fisher, Nordstrom and Vibram. 

On Dec. 4, Kenneth Cole will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 38th annual FN Achievement Awards. Below is an article from the magazine’s Dec. 2 print issue about his career and impact on the fashion industry.

It’s one week after the 2024 U.S. presidential election — and Kenneth Cole is opening his tried-and-true playbook to plot his next move.

While the country has never been more divided and the new administration will bring more uncertainty, the veteran designer remains undeterred in his commitment to stand up for the burning social issues that matter. As Cole often says, “It’s great to be known for your shoes, but it’s even better to be known for your soul.”

That mantra is certainly top of mind right now for the executive, one of the few fashion players who was vocal during this election cycle — whether he was speaking out about abortion, climate change or a host of other hot topics.

“We don’t talk about political issues. We talk about important social issues that influence the products we bring to market and overwhelm us as consumers and individuals every day,” he said. “It’s what I’ve always done. There’s no reason we shouldn’t do it — and more going forward in light of the vacuum we’re likely to see.”

Four decades after he founded his namesake brand, Cole continues to be known for his activism. He’s lent his name to big, and controversial, issues since the 1980s, most notably HIV/AIDS.

At the time, the epidemic was something no one would touch — not even President Reagan, who did not give a major address on the crisis until 1987. But Cole became a voice for the voiceless and brought awareness of the disease to the masses through provocative ads.

For the company’s first advertisements supporting amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research — a nonprofit Cole was active in for 30 years — the designer enlisted photographer Annie Leibovitz to shoot supermodels of that time and children, to destigmatize the disease and show it could affect anyone. They went barefoot to avoid being seen as exploitative.

Since that first 1986 campaign, his efforts have never ceased — even when his company went public in 1994, which brought more eyes and more opinions from the public than ever before. You may remember the ad “If the Pope Had AIDS He’d Need More Than Just Your Prayers” going viral in 1996, for instance. The campaign, though it never actually ran, garnered so much press that they received a desist letter from the Archdiocese of New York.

“The stigma attached to people who spoke about AIDS was so debilitating, so I realized I could just speak about the fact that nobody was speaking about it, which was questionably prudent to most. Probably more mature businesspeople would have — and did — opt not to go down that road. It was a treacherous road,” Cole said. “But it’s one we chose to go down and it changed the man, changed the brand, changed the company forever. Everything suddenly became and felt more meaningful and worthwhile.”

Cole has gone on to support a range of social justice movements, including gun reform, homelessness, the Iraq war, climate change, aid to Haiti and women’s rights.

During the 2024 election, abortion was one of the most-discussed issues, and Cole used his platform to support Planned Parenthood and raise awareness about the threat to women’s reproductive rights following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2023.

“It is absolutely about our collective public health, and it’s not just a woman’s issue, it’s a man’s issue, and everything we do is interdependent, so it’s crucial that conversation finds an audience and continues to be part of what we do,” he said.

On how Trump’s administration and plans could impact the shoe industry as a whole, Cole cited uncertainties, highlighting the potential increase of consumer prices, the impact on labor and manufacturing costs, as well as labor shortage.

“If you institute tariffs on goods that are brought into the country, the consumer is the one who pays for it, not the country who’s exporting those goods. At the end of the day, it’s going to be inflationary at a certain level. Access to labor is going to have to all be reconsidered now, especially with the approach to immigrants,” he continued. “Social impact is going to [continue], the method of delivering a lot of that is going to be recalibrated, and its urgency becomes more important. We have to stay on message.”

One of Cole’s most recent fights has been against the stigma of mental health. In 2019, Cole helped to found The Mental Health Coalition, a large-scale effort aimed at bringing together influential nonprofits, businesses, brands and celebrities in a coordinated effort catalyzing like-minded communities to work together to empower access to life-changing resources. Since its founding, MHC has garnered nearly 1 billion impressions through unique online and in-person programming.

“Kenneth Cole has made a lasting impact on the shoe industry by creating accessible and well-made designs. His commitment to social causes sets him apart,” said Steven Kolb, CEO of The Council of Fashion Designers of America. “I respect his dedication to using his platform for good. Professionally, his vision and resilience have shaped his brand and the broader industry.”

In many ways, a career in fashion and footwear was Cole’s destiny.

He got his start in the shoe business with his father, Charles Cole, who had a small factory in the Williamsburg neighborhood in Brooklyn, N.Y., called El Greco. That company eventually produced the famous Candies brand, with help from his son.

While Cole was originally on his way to law school, he couldn’t escape the family business. “I was fascinated by the process of creating a prototype, creating a shoe, and the uniqueness of the art form. It has elements of architecture, of engineering, of traditional design. And if any of that gets changed even ever so slightly, you have a totally different product. So I learned how to make patterns. I learned how to make shoes,” he said.

In a full-circle moment, Cole remembered creating his first collection of shoes for his father and landing on the cover of FN. “That article was a big influence. From that day, I looked at my opportunity in life very different than I did before,” he said. After that, his father encouraged him to actually sell the shoes, and he landed at Franklin Simon & Co., a department store on 34th Street at the time. “They had a hard time saying no to me. They bought a few pairs of those shoes and sent me on this journey,” he said.

After spending nearly five years learning the ins and outs of the business with his father, Cole set out to launch his own venture, Kenneth Cole Productions, in 1982. As the story goes, the designer infamously parked a trailer outside a footwear trade show in Midtown Manhattan, selling 40,000 pairs of women’s shoes in three-and-a-half days, under the guise of a production company shooting a full-length motion picture. He called it “The Birth of a Shoe Company.”

Success came swiftly. Shortly after the brand’s launch, he opened his first store in New York and debuted men’s footwear. By 2003, he had stores globally, fashion week shows and categories outside of footwear, including apparel, fragrance, jewelry, sunglasses, kids and more.

The exec created an accessible brand with longevity, one that epitomized New York fashion, according to Pete Nordstrom, president and chief brand officer of Nordstrom Inc.

“I first met Kenneth about 40 years ago when I was a young shoe buyer, and he had a hot new brand. His styles were fresh and cool, like the grosgrain bow pump and velvet shoes with a granny-style heel. [My brothers] Blake and Erik and I got to know Kenneth well and viewed him as a trusted partner in the shoe business. Our relationship has endured, and we still keep in touch,” Nordstrom said. “Kenneth is incredibly talented and passionate about the industry. I feel fortunate to call him a friend and that Nordstrom has been a business partner with him since the beginning.”

Kenneth Cole shoes were a hot commodity when they came onto the scene. They could be found in major department stores such as Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue. As traction with big retailers helped the business grow, going public made sense for the brand. In 1994 the company made the leap.

But after 18 years under stakeholders’ watchful eyes, Cole took his company private in 2012. Part of the decision came down to Cole’s true moral compass: leading a purpose-driven brand. By going smaller, he could get bigger — on his own terms.

“The reason we’ve been successful over the years is we put everything through a filter of a being agile. Can we respond to change? Are we relevant? And are we profitable? Heel heights are a very fast-moving target,” said Cole. “I decided early on, if we can make what we do [be about] not just what you stand in but what you stand for, then we have a more sustainable and meaningful relationship that will transcend any given trend. It’s gotten us through some very significant changes in the industry and in our business and in our lives.”

While the company remains steadfast on social impact, product and design is still key to the brand story. President Jed Berger, who was tapped for the role in 2022 to help fuel the next stage of growth, said Cole is obsessed with building functionality into fashion. “Nobody appreciates a well-placed zipper or a strategic stretch like Kenneth. He does this without compromising style, and these pieces are consistently the best sellers,” he said. This year, the founder also relaunched women’s apparel with help from a newly appointed women’s creative director, his daughter Emily Cole.

Working with his daughter has been a dream that he never thought would come to life, Cole said. While Emily began her career as a lawyer, she is now following her father’s footsteps in the family business.

“Anyone can make shoes,” she said. “But he’s built something special with people who want to be part of something bigger than themselves. That, hopefully, will be the most important part of the legacy.”

For 38 years, the annual FN Achievement Awards — often called the “Shoe Oscars” — have celebrated the style stars, best brand stories, ardent philanthropists, emerging talents and industry veterans. The 2024 event is supported by sponsors Listrak, Marc Fisher, Nordstrom and Vibram.

Here’s a look at Taylor Swift and the NFL Kansas City Chief star Travis Kelce’s couple style.

Roger Vivier is ready for the holidays. The luxury shoe brand has launched its 2024 holiday season campaign, highlighting signature designs and new releases.

The campaign is divided into two chapters.

The first, which was unveiled earlier this month, features a vibrant holiday story set around a Christmas tree transformed into a winter wonderland, adorned with sparkling ornaments and Roger Vivier’s signature gifts, including shoes, bags, and accessories.

Key highlights include the iconic Belle Vivier pump in orange or purple satin, adorned with a Pilgrim buckle encrusted with baguette-cut crystals. This season also introduces a slingback version with an ankle strap embroidered with beads and mirror elements, along with a black velvet Mary Jane slipper with a Pilgrim buckle on the strap. Evening bags with matching embellishments complete the festive look.

The second chapter of the campaign, which premieres on Dec. 14, is set on a vintage-inspired train, with plush pink velvet seats and gilded accents, showcasing the Efflorescence collection. This line features floral-themed shoes and bags adorned with crystal flower-encrusted buckles. New additions include a mule with the signature crystal flower buckle and a metallic wicker-style jewel bag made of interlaced metal strands.

All items in the campaign will be available at Roger Vivier’s Madison Avenue boutique in New York. After 17 years in its New York flagship, Roger Vivier relocated to the new space in October. Located at 650 Madison Avenue, the new storefront pays homage to the designer’s original Paris boutique and puts a larger emphasis on the label’s accessories categories beyond its footwear collections.

Classic running shoes are dominating the sneaker landscape, and performance styles have permeated the worlds of fashion and streetwear. At The Running Event trade show in Austin, Texas, this week, brand leaders and retailers came together to discuss today’s running consumer and how the category intersects with fashion.

Jason Faustino, director of energy and collaborations at Saucony, highlighted that fashion-conscious consumers have always existed in running. “The same way people are into their health and fitness and wellness, I think it is synonymous with how they are into fashion and art and film. It’s a taste level that spans across their entire lifestyle,” he said on a panel hosted by FN senior news and features editor, athletic & outdoor, Peter Verry. “I don’t think it’s a newer consumer, although, I think the running industry, in general, are speaking to that consumer a little bit differently and making it more inviting.”

Heartbreak Hill Running Company president and co-founder Dan Fitzgerald noted that their store leads with fashion and aims to resonate with customers through design.

“One of our tag lines is we are people who run. You can shorten that to we are people, and running is just the means of connection for us,” he explained. “As a retailer selling clothes and shoes, it’s important to keep fashion in mind. It’s always most prominent and it’s a point of differentiation for us.”

For Fabrizio Gamberini, global chief brand officer and president at Vibram, identifying today’s running consumer comes down to observing current trends and what consumers are looking for.

“One [trend we are watching] is vacationers. The number of people that are going on vacation has been at very high, record level. So there is always a fashion component for that consumer,” he explained. “A second trend is paying attention to influencers. And influencers are very important, especially on the fashion side. The tendency of consumer is to listen to a fashion influencer 40% more than the just the standard influencer.”

He continued to discuss the commonality between trends and intersecting fashion and performance. “[These consumers], they want to have shoes that will provide confidence. You want confidence on your feet, and that’s actually where Vibram is able to play a role,” he added, noting the importance of technicality in fashion.

As the everyday runner demographic continues to grow, so is the category. In a note from Janine Stichter of BTIG released today, the analyst said running footwear will continue to outpace broader footwear, not only in actual participation, but also in the continued growth in average selling price.

Cinq à Sept’s first footwear collection is officially here. The New York-based ready-to-wear brand announced that it was expanding categories in June. The debut line launched Thursday online, in-store at the Cinq à Sept New York City boutique, as well as with retail partners Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, and specialty stores globally.

The shoes are developed and produced by Brazilian powerhouse Arezzo & Co. — known for its own labels Alexandre Birman and Schutz — in partnership with Jaya Apparel Group.

Cinq à Sept footwear launches with 12 silhouettes, featuring an everyday sling-back, festive holiday satin heels, ballerina pumps and espadrilles in a range of leather, denim, raffia, mixed materials.

The shoe retail from $295 to $485.

While the company is only eight years old, co-founder and co-CEO Jane Siskin said launching a footwear category was a long-time coming and an organic move for the brand.

“When we started this brand, we set out to really think about a complete lifestyle, and a very specific aesthetic — something that is on trend, but not trendy, and always has a little bit of a sexy edge. There was really nothing like it in footwear. So, not only did I always want to do [shoes], but it really felt right for the brand to have,” she told FN in June.

Ahead of the launch, Katie Holmes was spotted in New York on Nov. 20 wearing Cinq à Sept from head to toe, including a pair of denim and leather slingback pumps from the new collection.

Wearing, Cinq à Sept’s Sylvie Denim Slingback Pump in the Light Indigo/Saddle colorway, Holmes paired the look with a black leather button-down midi skirt. The shoe’s upper features light blue denim and a brown slingback strap with a small metallic buckle. The tapered heel measures at 60 mm and is available in two additional colorways, retailing for $345.

See the full collection below.

Cinq à Sept Resort 2025: A Look at the Brand’s First Shoe Collection

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With F1 returning to Las Vegas this weekend, Puma is readying to drop the popular Speedcat sneaker yet again — this time with help from Dua Lipa and Rosé.  

In the dual campaign, each artist can be seen modeling the performance racing-inspired silhouette in classic colorways alongside vintage cars.

Dua Lipa wears the classic “Red” Speedcat, outfitted in all-black Puma racing-inspired gear. As for K-pop star Rosé, she opts for the “Black” version paired with a silver Puma racing jacket.

The Puma Speedcat will also be available in a new “Pink Blush” colorway starting Nov. 26 in North America on Puma.com, the Puma mobile app, the PUMA NYC and Las Vegas Flagship stores and additional PUMA retailers globally.

Originally launched 25 years ago, the Puma Speedcat was reintroduced this summer to much fanfare. The red Puma Speedcat was named the third hottest product overall in the Lyst Index for the third quarter of 2024, for instance.

Celebrities spotted in the shoe include Jennifer Lawrence, Emily Ratajkowski, Rosé and more.

It’s the brand’s most-sold sneaker to date and was originally created to support F1 drivers on the track in 1984. Today’s iteration follows the first lifestyle version that released in 1999 and honors its racing heritage. Subtle enhancements now include the addition of the cat logo to the toebox and added comfort with IMEVA material. It currently retails for $100.

Frēda Salvador is back in New York. Like many independent companies, the California footwear and accessories brand shut down its three stores — one in New York and two in its home state — during the pandemic in 2020. Now, co-founders Cristina Palomo Nelson and Megan Papay are focused on brick and mortar with its new Manhattan location, located on Mercer Street in SoHo, launching last week.

This is their second location, which was designed to be an extension to their flagship store at 2011 Fillmore in San Francisco. That outpost opened last year. In April, Frēda Salvador will land in Los Angeles with another new store.

“Our thing is building community,” said Papay. “We just want to see people in real life and get to know them. Retail was always a component of the brand, and our customers here are just growing so quickly that it seemed like the right time to open.”

Inside the New York location, customers will find handcrafted footwear, made in Spain and El Salvador, along with handbags, belts, and a specially chosen assortment of vintage, home, and goods from artisans and designers both Nelson and Papay admire most.

The store is designed with an open plan with white walls and vintage bohemian rugs, which is reminiscent of the coastal aesthetic brought from Frēda Salvador’s corporate headquarters in Sausalito, Calif. There is custom millwork shelving, rounded doorways, custom woodwork to display a rotating selection of pre-loved t-shirts, denim and their iconic upcycled chore coats done in collaboration with Born to Roam Vintage, as well a zellige tile cashier stand and stair display.

Standout styles include the brand’s take on a Wallabee, loafers, Western boots and ballet flats. “Wovens are so big for us,” Papay added, noting a range of silhouettes offered in the material.

Leather and suede water-resistant boots are also included in the offering as well as metallic Mary Janes for holiday.

Outside of direct-to-consumer, Frēda Salvador is finding success with its wholesale accounts, including Goop, Revolve and Moda Operandi.

Freda Salvador’s NYC store is located at 83 Mercer Street.