Happy New Year 2024 Into 2025!

There are only a few years I have been more happy to have finished than 2024. And that is saying something, especially considering the last 5 years in general. But 2024 was especially tough for the business. We (J.FitzPatrck Footwear) took a lot of punches and it has been stressful to maneuver through them and continue standing. 

Our factory completely changed the way we do business. And I don’t blame them as this is all a culmination of how the world was affected by Covid and what it did not only to financial relationships but also supply chains and most importantly: Business Credit.

We went from having nearly unlimited access to ordering on credit (which allowed us to grow) to suddenly having debt caps and upfront payments (which has now set us back). When you are used to ordering without payment and paying down debt over time through sales, to then have to pay upfront and have a cap on how much you can order it creates a change about as drastic as it can get. 

The above scenario is why we are light in many stock models, especially boots. Overnight our whole business model changed and meant we now had to go from being able to have large debt to needing a surplus of cash to make a large order. Except small businesses rarely have surpluses of cash! 

On top of that, our NYC shop lease was coming up for renewal. Winters have been historically dead in the city over the last few years. In fact, they have been incredibly slow since we got the shop. I didn’t want to face another Winter in the shop as we did not plan to renew our lease so asked for an early exit. Which in the end led to a very abrupt one. 

Sadly, the neighborhood changed drastically and when I looked outside, I no longer saw my target audience. It felt like everyone left in 2023 and the new 2024 audience was just 20-something’s who worked from home or went to NYU. Both of which were not buying dress shoes. The shop simply didn’t maintain itself so had to get rid of it and go back to being more online-focused. 

It all seems like doom and gloom but it is not. Adversity has always made me stronger and seek out the new path that the Universe is trying to show me. In fact, in many ways, the change in business by the factory and the shop closing are blessings in disguise. Getting to be an upfront cash business with less debt is a good thing. It is hard in the beginning, especially to make the change but I believe that once it becomes normal, business life will be less stressful. Having debt is stressful. And that is how most businesses are run: on debt. So, if we can pay most of our debts up-front and get the stock with little owed, it will make the business run more smoothly in the long run. 

Closing the shop has meant 4 hours less commute daily, managing my own schedule, and being closer to my family: All Blessings. While I can look back and be grateful for the changes, I won’t lie and say that in the moment these things were happening it wasn’t extremely stressful. Because it was: Mentally and emotionally. But it is over now. And that is why I am happy to begin a New Year, with new goals and a new outlook on my future, not only personally, but that of the business.  

Yet here I am, still standing and moving forward. In business, there are always tough years. And it is those years that hopefully we learn the most. And I have learned a lot in 2024. Here is 2025 being better for everyone as I know that we were not the only ones who struggled. It was tough for a lot of people and businesses alike. 

May 2025 bring everyone health, happiness, love, and prosperity. We all need it!

—Justin FitzPatrick, The Shoe Snob

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