So why would a consumer pay a higher price for a pair of shoes?

Like most things in life, spending more on a product is usually associated with premium features:
1. Exclusivity;
2. Quality;
3. Durability;
4. Differentiated materials;
5. Artistic design.

These five features are just examples of the many ways producers can differentiate their products to create premium (and expensive) shoes.

What’s more important, lasting several years or being comfortable? It all depends on the consumer. In any case, this is the situation where the consumer is willing to pay more for shoes, instead of buying those 15 US dollars shoes, that probably don’t have such premium features.

Advice for footwear producers
It’s a no-brainer. If you can somehow include features in shoes that consumers value, you will be offering to the market something consumers are searching for. Naturally, they will also be available to pay more for it.

For instance, many consumers are willing to pay more than 150 US dollars for a pair of shoes that are vegan or have athletic features, but they wouldn’t be available to pay more than 20 US dollars for non-differentiated shoes because they don’t see an extra value on it. They see it as commodity.

How can you achieve it? How can you improve your production in a way that matters?
As a footwear producer, it is critical to perform market research and understand your internal strengths. Understand what resources are available within your company and how they match the market needs. If a company does this, then success is guaranteed.

For example, if consumers are looking for differentiated design and you have good designers, then you should try to create high-fashion shoes.

Consumers are willing to pay a high amount of money for shoes, as long as they match what they need and want.