ReaLift + G.H. Bass EU
G.H. Bass EU
The Brand
G.H. Bass was founded in 1876 in Maine, USA. As the original creator of the Penny Loafer, stylishly called the Weejun, G.H. Bass has a long heritage of creating numerous original footwear icons for generations of outdoor sportsmen, explorers, and cultural tastemakers. Overland, a leading footwear distributor in Britain, won the licensing rights to G.H. Bass in 2014, allowing them to be the lead distributor across Europe (called G.H. Bass EU), building retail stores and a fantastic online d2c presence.
The Problem
Overland, and now G.H. Bass EU, found great success early in distributing G.H. Bass products across retail locations and their online d2c presence. However, as many footwear merchants discover, growing their D2C presence was difficult compared to a wholesale & retail channel. Footwear sizing issues were common for new shoppers who had not tried on the shoes in-store prior and relied on ordering their normal shoe size or abiding by universal "half size up or a half size down" recommendation. As a result, G.H. Bass EU had an unhealthy return rate for their footwear products, making it difficult to scale the online presence with their marketing channels.