Atlantic Dance Retail Show in Chicago

Sofia Konstance Uralsky from Russian Pointe and Emily, a fitter at Diana’s Dancerwear in Ohio

Russian Pointe® continued its string of trade shows this month, attending the Atlantic Dance Retail Show at the Oak Brook Marriott in Oak Brook, IL, on Feb. 9 and 10.

The buzz about Russian Pointe® was evident at the trade show, where dozens of new retailers visited the Russian Pointe® to inquire about carrying our shoes.

“Stores that don’t carry (Russian Pointe® shoes) say there is a demand for the product,” says Megan Bentz, Business Development Manager for the brand. “People have been asking them to please, please carry Russian Pointe®.”

We were thrilled to have new stores from rural areas of Illinois, as well as cities throughout Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin all express interest in carrying our shoes, showing the expansion of the brand’s awareness throughout the Midwest.

On the second day of the trade show, Bentz held a pointe shoe fitting seminar where she explained the differences between Russian Pointe®’s various models and outlined the brand’s philosophy. Bentz said the room was full of new, prospective retailers who were eager to learn more about the brand.

At the end of the seminar, there was a lively question and answer session where retailers asked the Russian Pointe® experts what to do in unusual situations, such as when someone is knuckling in their shoes or a dancer is breaking in her shanks too quickly.

Many new retailers were especially interested in our Muse shoe, which is designed with a roomy toe box and was our third best-selling shoe in 2013. Nationally, more and more retailers are seeing dancers with large, wide feet, and many said they appreciated finding a shoe that would work with these type of dancers.

In addition, retailers placed a lot of orders for our new iPhone covers, which feature three different watercolor illustrations of dancers: Clara from the Nutcracker, the Black Swan from Swan Lake and a Spanish dancer from Don Quixote.

As always, we loved meeting with retailers from around the country and learning more about their stores and their businesses. We are looking forward to meeting even more retailers at the next Atlantic Dance Trade Show, taking place in Baltimore Feb. 23-24!