Quick Facts
- Anthropologie expanded footwear from 8 stores to 200+ locations after data showed shoe shoppers are higher-value customers who visit more frequently
- The retailer launched a ’90s minimalist section within one week of noticing trend signals from Hulu’s Kennedy series popularity
- Net sales increased 5.9% between 2024 and 2025, with fashion accounting for 70% of total sales at anthropologie.com
Anthropologie is expanding footwear to more than 200 stores after data revealed shoe shoppers drive stronger traffic and purchase across multiple categories.
Previously, only eight Anthropologie stores carried footwear in-store, with shoes largely limited to the website due to high return rates. But analysis showed those eight locations attracted higher-value customers who visited more frequently.
“We noticed that those stores were getting better traffic because people were coming in because of the footwear,” said Anu Narayanan, president of women’s and home at Anthropologie, speaking at Shoptalk Spring 2026. “So they led us to say, ‘OK, maybe these are higher-value customers who are coming more frequently.’”
The footwear expansion exemplifies Anthropologie’s approach of combining data analysis with merchant intuition for what Narayanan calls “calculated risks.”
This strategy proved effective when Anthropologie quickly capitalized on renewed interest in ’90s minimalist fashion sparked by Hulu’s “Love Story” series about John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. The show generated over 25 million viewing hours and drove searches for the couple up 9,100%.
Even before the series premiered, Anthropologie noticed customers seeking items like “little mini oval sunglasses and loafers and khaki pants.” The retailer launched a dedicated ’90s minimalist section on its website within one week of identifying the trend.
“Data doesn’t tell you everything. It won’t tell you what’s next,” Narayanan said. “Whether they’re small or large, I think staying relevant, paying attention to what’s happening and knowing how to tell that story along the way, with those little nuggets of data that you’re seeing in lots of different things, is important.”
The approach has delivered results. Anthropologie’s net sales increased 5.9% between 2024 and 2025. The company’s flagship domain anthropologie.com generated $893 million in revenue in 2024, with fashion accounting for 70% of total sales.
Anthropologie operates 241 stores across the United States, Canada and Europe. The retailer’s average order value ranges from $325 to $350, with conversion rates between 1.5% and 2%.
Narayanan has led Anthropologie for three years, overseeing growth of the core brand and sub-brands like Maeve and the home line. The expansion reflects Anthropologie’s broader localization strategy, tailoring assortments by store and market based on category performance and local customer behavior.
Read more: Anthropologie says it marries data and intuition in merchandising as it looks for ‘calculated risks’
