Men are toeing the sandal line ; That's making pedicures popular, too
Craig Wilson. USA TODAY. McLean, Va.: Apr 19, 2004. pg. D.04
Copyright USA Today Information Network Apr 19, 2004
Look down. Chances are good that some toes are staring back at you.
The sandal craze is showing no signs of letting up, especially when it comes to the male foot.
Men bought $17 billion worth of footwear last year, and $232 million of that was in sandals. Sandal sales were up almost 5% from 2002.
According to the NPD Group in Port Washington, N.Y., which monitors trends in what we put on our feet, 10 million pairs of men's sports sandals alone were sold in the USA in 2003. That's a 9.4% increase from 2002.
Flip-flops for the beach. Leather slip-ons for the city. Rugged utilitarian Tevas for the mountains. The granddaddy Birkenstock. The open-toed summer sandal is king. Maybe not for Brad Pitt, but more on that later.
"They've become part of men's wardrobes. You can see that from the range available now. You have some that are far more city, the polished leather," says Deborah Lloyd, executive vice president of design for Banana Republic, which is showing a dozen pairs of sandals for sale online, everything from the leather comfort thong ($68) to the classic flip-flop ($29.50).
But Lloyd says the real reason for the popularity of sandals is comfort.
"The guy may love the look, but it has to be comfortable. We've made it easy for them to wear. They've evolved with society, just like the man has."
Hunky actor Matthew McConaughey, for instance, prefers his sandals in suede.
This trend to exposed toes, however, means men actually have to take care of them now, and that means a pedicure.
Writer Eric Hiss took the plunge and put his toes in the soapy water for Spa magazine last year, and he came out of the process a believer.
"I should have done this years ago," he says. Even his nail technician said she has never worked on a man who wasn't "absolutely content" with his pedicure.
"What we're seeing is less resistance to the idea, so more action is being taken," Spa editor Liz Mazurski says.
It helps that spas are now couching the procedures in more manly terms like "sportsmen pedicure."
There are no solid figures on how many men get pedicures every year, but Mazurski says the number is climbing.
