In a rapidly changing market environment, how can we drive business development through the power of culture and brand? Li Zhongyi, the co-founder of Footwork Elderly Shoes, shared his insights at the recent Footwork 2025 Super Explosive Product Launch Event. The event saw the official launch of the collaboration between Footwork Elderly Shoes and the “Ping An Fu” IP, with plans to introduce super explosive products like the “Leap Month Shoes” by 2025. This sharing undoubtedly provides a comprehensive overview of this strategic initiative.
Reflecting on a decade of brand development, focusing on putting users at the center.
In 2014, Footwork keenly observed the unique needs of the elderly population and innovatively introduced a new category of elderly shoes. According to Li Zhongyi’s recollection, at the inception of the project, the team raised a crucial question: “Why do older people need to wear specialized elderly shoes?” Based on this question, the team dedicated themselves to addressing various discomforts that elderly people encounter when wearing shoes. They conducted market research and product testing in Zhengzhou and Chongqing, where many elderly individuals who tried on these shoes expressed comfort. Not only did it solve common issues like “tight feet” and fatigue, but they also experienced an exceptional level of comfort. Footwork, which passed the market test, began to expand its presence nationwide.
Li Zhongyi proudly stated, “In five years, we have established a recognized level of awareness, brand reputation, and credibility, making Footwork a well-known brand.” As time passed, Footwork closely integrated the concept of “brand = category = target audience,” making buying a pair of Footwork elderly shoes the preferred choice for many elderly individuals. Meanwhile, Footwork has achieved success in category innovation, product development, channel expansion, and strategic planning.
Over the past decade, Footwork’s sustained growth can be attributed to its consistent focus on meeting user needs. Li Zhongyi is open about this, stating, “For example, the simple ‘offering a glass of water at the entrance’ service aims to capture users’ time through this thoughtful gesture and achieve sales conversion.” Moreover, the company continuously learns from successful experiences, develops a unique methodology, and generously imparts it to distributors. Through ongoing iterations, every action taken by the company, its employees, and partners closely aligns with user perceptions, truly placing the user at the center.
With a diverse range of demands from a vast user base, emotional value drives youthful consumption.
In 2024, Footwork explicitly introduced the dual category strategy of “elderly shoes” + “elderly gifts.” Explaining the decision to expand into a second category, Li Zhongyi pointed out, “As China’s aging population accelerates, the company is facing a potential consumer market consisting of 300 million elderly people and 900 million middle-aged and young people. ‘Elderly gifts’ is a brand choice based on the dividend of 1.1 billion users. The rapid development of the Chinese economy has led to a significant increase in demand. A large user base inevitably generates a vast amount of demand, prompting people to make purchases.”
Despite frequent mentions of “downgrading consumption” in the outside world, Li Zhongyi believes this is merely a superficial phenomenon. In reality, consumers are increasingly valuing the emotional and cultural significance behind products, making brand trust and emotional satisfaction crucial. Li Zhongyi emphasizes, “People are now willing to pay for emotions and products that carry beautiful meanings.”
Hence, brands must embody culture and meet user needs through brand culture. Li Zhongyi draws parallels with other brands on the market, deriving a methodology that aligns with Footwork’s own development from successful cases of other brands. Leveraging cultural trends, a brand can reshape consumer memories through the power of culture, entering consumers’ minds from familiar angles and awakening their cultural identity.
By collaborating with the “Ping An Fu” intellectual property (IP), Footwork integrates the concept of “giving elders Footwork” into its brand culture.
Throughout its brand culture, Footwork has consistently emphasized the core values of “care” and “companionship,” which align with the significance of “Fu” – the foremost of the six traditional symbols of blessings in Chinese culture. “Fu” not only carries deep cultural genes but also embodies the spiritual pursuit of the people. The partnership with the “Ping An Fu” IP created by traditional cultural scholars and Fu culture experts at Guantong is a significant milestone in the brand’s development. Li Zhongyi elaborates on the significance of this collaboration, stating that through this partnership, Footwork can leverage the cultural symbol of “Ping An Fu” to better implement the concept of “giving elders Footwork,” enhancing product added value and brand image, thereby strengthening consumer identification and goodwill towards the brand.
Complementing this is the launch of explosive products incorporating elements of the “Ping An Fu” IP, such as the “Leap Month Shoes” symbolizing adding blessings and longevity for parents. With June 2025 coinciding with a leap month, Footwork hopes to leverage this strong cultural foundation to provide users with rich emotional value through these “gift products” and profound cultural connotations.
“Brand + culture is the only way to break free from internal competition.” This statement during the sharing session deeply resonated with the on-site distributor partners. Li Zhongyi explained, “Consumers do not lack products; what they lack are products that can solve problems, have functionality, carry a brand, and evoke emotional resonance. These are the explosive products of this era.”
Only by combining brand building with cultural dissemination can we truly break free from the cycle of homogenized competition. As we approach 2025, only big brands and categories that can adapt to the major trends will be able to face the challenges of the future. This super category that embodies “blessings,” along with the positive power exhibited by the brand, will undoubtedly lead Footwork to achieve further growth.
