10 Women's Shoe Line Success Stories [2024]
A women’s shoe business involves designing, producing, and selling fashionable, feminine footwear directly to consumers.
As an entrepreneurial founder, you oversee the creation of heels, boots, flats, and sandals using quality materials and comfortable construction suited for real life.
With the global footwear industry expected to reach $440 billion by 2026, building a shoe brand allows creators to align passion with profit.
For aspiring fashion moguls, launching a women's shoe line presents accessibility through e-commerce as well as versatility to wholesale across boutiques worldwide.
Here are some real life success stories of starting a women's shoe line:
1. TANYA HEATH Paris ($120K/year)
Tanya Heath, the founder of TANYA HEATH Paris, came up with the idea for her business after struggling to find comfortable high-heeled shoes. Her background in disruptive innovation and her experience living and working with engineers helped her develop the world's first multi-height shoe with removable heels. With a focus on word-of-mouth marketing and excellent customer service, TANYA HEATH Paris has attracted and retained customers, despite facing challenges and skepticism from the fashion industry.
How much they make: $120K/year
How much did it cost to start: $1M
Current team size: 2
TANYA HEATH Paris, a shoe company founded by Tanya Heath, created the world's first multi-height shoe with removable heels; the product development stage took 14 engineers and shoe technicians and they now have boutique locations in Paris, Toronto, Beirut, Beijing, and Hong Kong, relying on word of mouth and excellent customer service to attract and retain customers.
2. Rothy's ($132M/year)
How much they make: $132M/year
Current team size: 222
Rothy's, a sustainable lifestyle company, opened their own factory in China in 2016 and utilizes a waste-reduction 3D knitting production process, transforming environmentally friendly materials into stunning and long-lasting product designs.
So... can you actually make money with a women's shoe line?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
3. TOMS ($391M/year)
How much they make: $391M/year
Current team size: 671
TOMS shoes revolutionized the fashion industry with its One for One® concept, donating money to charity for each item sold and improving over 100,000,000 lives since its launch.
4. Fuchsia Shoes ($7.2M/year)
How much they make: $7.2M/year
Current team size: 5
Fuchsia is a successful direct-to-consumer sustainable footwear company that sells premium quality and artisanal shoes, pouches, masks, and other products made in South Asia, with a transparent selling approach, and a dedicated vegan range.
So... can you actually make money with a women's shoe line?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
5. Nike ($1B/year)
How much they make: $1B/year
Current team size: 112479
Discover how Nike went from a small shoe and t-shirt company to become a multinational corporation, now one of the world's top manufacturers of athletic apparel and footwear.
6. Smoove Creations ($40K/year)
How much they make: $40K/year
Current team size: 8
Founder of Smoove Creations generates $40,000 revenue in 2020 despite pandemic by offering unique, personalized sneakers for "sneakerheads" and fans of athletic footwear.
So... can you actually make money with a women's shoe line?
Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.
But how?
- Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
- Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
- Take action, because now you have the roadmap.
Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:
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- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
- 4,818 founder case studies
- Access to our founder directory
- Live events, courses and recordings
- 8,628 business ideas
- $1M in software savings
