Russian Pointe® trunk shows in New England

Russian Pointe® was well represented in New England this past weekend as we hosted trunk shows at retailers in Rhode Island and Massachusetts and visited two other retailers nearby.

The whirlwind tour began on Saturday, March 22, when Russian Pointe® expert pointe shoe fitter Sofia Konstance Uralsky held a trunk show at LaBrie Dance in Smithfield, RI.

The store had non-stop pointe shoe fitting appointments scheduled throughout the day – many of them with young dancers who were grinning from ear to ear because they were trying on pointe shoes for the very first time.

“It was really nice to introduce them to our brand,” Uralsky said. “It’s important because this is their first exposure to pointe shoes and it will become their reference point from then on.”

Of the more experienced dancers, some were currently wearing Russian Pointe and wanted to find out more about the brand, while others were trying Russian Pointe® because they were unhappy in other brands.

One girl, for example, complained that every brand she had tried before caused her foot to sink into the the shoe. Because sinking is usually caused by a shoe being too long or too wide, Uralsky kept trying shoes that were more and more tapered until the dancer found the perfect fit – Russian Pointe®’s most tapered model, the Sapfir, in a size 2 width.

“She was very happy and said it was her first time not sinking into her shoes,” Uralsky said.

In addition to fitting customers, Uralsky also fit one of the store’s employees to help her learn more about the line, while other employees observed throughout the day and asked questions.

Then on Sunday, Uralsky traveled to Dancer’s Warehouse in Wellesley, MA, which is also owned by the LaBrie family. Although the store is usually closed on Sundays, it was open specifically to accommodate all of the people who wanted to receive an expert pointe shoe fitting from a Russian Pointe® representative.

Here, many of the dancers who scheduled fittings were already wearing Russian Pointe models, but they wanted to learn more about Russian Pointe®’s entire array of shoes, as well as about the new Entrada Pro. Uralsky also spent time training the store’s two managers, educating them on the subtle differences between each of Russian Pointe® nine models.

Rosemary Giacin, one of the managers at LaBrie Dance, said she felt the trunk show was a great success. “We loved Sofia. She took her time with each fitting and was wonderful with the customers,” she said. “It is something we would definitely do again and would recommend to other retailers.”

During the weekend, Uralsky also visited two other retailers: Dancer’s Edge in Tauton, MA, and Justine’s Dancewear in Easton, MA. Uralsky said she loved getting to meet each retailer in person and take a tour of their store and was pleased to hear that both stores are excited to be carrying Russian Pointe®. In fact, the staff at Dancer’s Edge said demand for Russian Pointe® is growing in their area and the brand is becoming more and more popular.

Uralsky said she was touched by the passion that all of the retailers had for Russian Pointe®, and she is looking forward to coming back to New England again soon.