After success in Asia, Sovo Shoes expands in Europe, North America

Handmade shoes brand Sovo Shoes ( www.sovomall.co.kr) is expanding its presence beyond Asia into Europe and North America by launching global websites with Cafe24, a local e-commerce solution provider.

CEO Kim Woo-jin started the business in 1997. After gaining popularity through local department stores, the brand went online to attract more customers. It currently operates websites in English, Chinese and Japanese.

One of the biggest strengths of Sovo Shoes is that it offers designs that appeal to diverse target groups in their 20s to 40s. Their principle of creating stylish yet comfortable shoes also resonated in Korea and abroad.

With its customer base going more global, the design team has also researched different customer needs in different markets to offer them specialized shoes.

Over the past few years, Sovo Shoes, often touted as a "brand loved by hallyu stars," has gained a firm footing in Asia, Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Italy. It is also considering opening up franchise stores in Southeast Asia.

Other than shoes, Sovo's shoe accessories, shoe cleaners, stockings and socks are also gaining popularity among customers, the company said.

"The global demand for Korean handmade shoes is rapidly growing," the CEO said. "We will push for a wider array of products for global success."

By Sang Youn-joo ( sangyj@heraldcorp.com)

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