lystn

It’s a good time to be an outdoor apparel brand. According to NPD Group, outdoorwear sales are up 45% this year, and some brands have been able to dominate this growing fervor. Teva, the shoe brand known for its velcro strapped sandal, has seen sales grow. In the ’80s, when the sandals first hit the market, Teva was the leader in the space. Then, after a couple decades of dominance, fervor died down, as other competitors like Chacos and Keens began to encroach on its territory. But over the last three years the company has been focused on reemerging as a footwear leader. “In short order,” said Anders Bergstrom, Teva’s global general manager, “we’ve retaken the number one position in sport sandals.” Bergstrom joined the Modern Retail Podcast and spoke about how he’s been handling all the curveballs thrown over the last few years. Teva -- which is pronounced ‘teh-vah,’ not ‘tee-vah’ -- has been around since 1985. “The idea -- the notion -- of a sport sandal did not exist until 1985,” said Bergstrom. Teva, he explained, was the first of its kind. “What Teva did was introduce an active component to the sandal category in a way that had not been done before,” he said. That has been the North Star for the brand -- and it’s long been associated with its well-known classic style. But the brand has been staying relevant with new styles and even brand collaborations. Some partnerships include the singer Jhené Like, Outdoor Voices and Cotpaxi. “The sport sandal itself is so iconic -- it’s so unusual -- that, for lack of a better term, collab partners just have a field day tweaking it,” said Bergstrom. “It’s not a blank canvas -- it is just a number of straps that are attached to a midsole.” What also has kept Teva relevant of late is the fact that a certain type of outdoor apparel has become quite fashionable. What some describe gorpcore -- which includes outdoor classics like Patagonia vests and hiking boots -- has become all the rage in New York fashion circles. Said Bergstrom, the way to know a fashion trend is on the horizon is to look at what’s going on in Japan. “What we call gorpcore is really just the way people in Tokyo dress, said Bergstrom. “It’s really fascinating.” He went on to explain how this has led to a new apparel adage. “If we ever have a question about whether a product is going to work or not, [ask] can you see it on the streets of Tokyo?”