In market feedback and media reports, some believe 2014 was the toughest year for the footwear industry, while others view it as a year of accelerated transformation and upgrading. In the athletic footwear sector, led by Anta, business conditions gradually improved for major companies; in men's shoes, Aokang actively sought collaboration with Alibaba, focusing on channel and terminal development; in women's shoes, the downturn continued, with leading brands like Belle and Daphne reporting declining financial figures; children's shoes saw changes, with smart kids' footwear represented by Yunduo offering new directions; the outdoor market gradually expanded, with Toread continuously integrating and building an ecosystem... Meanwhile, the rise of online channels allowed many traditional small and medium-sized brands and emerging e-commerce brands to compete on par, becoming significant new forces in the footwear industry.
Against this backdrop, the "2014 China Footwear Gala," organized by Global Shoes Network, China’s leading B2B platform in the footwear industry, was launched. After going through four key stages—brand nomination & screening, data collection, online voting, and expert review—the event ultimately awarded the most credible Top 10 Footwear Brands of 2014 list using scientific statistical methods.
Award List Announcement at the 2015 China Footwear & Apparel E-commerce Summit
The organizers believed that brand rankings should be evaluated based on four aspects: market share (both online and offline), brand influence, growth and innovation capabilities, and consumer preference. Therefore, from the 176 brands nominated by 8,181 people, the organizers used data from Tmall Index (Taobao Data Cube), Baidu Index, media index (mainstream search engine news coverage), and Global Shoes Network’s B2B Index as the main references. Combining this with 170,000 votes and evaluations from 20 industry experts, they selected ten lists: "Top 10 Men's Shoe Brands," "Top 10 Women's Shoe Brands," "Top 10 Kids' Shoe Brands," "Top 10 Outdoor Brands," as well as "Men's Shoe Rising Forces," "Women's Shoe Rising Forces," "Kids' Shoe Rising Forces," "Sports Rising Forces," and "Outdoor Rising Forces." These were then published on the official website.
On April 17, 2015, at the 6th China Footwear & Apparel E-commerce Summit hosted by the Fujian Provincial Department of Commerce and the Quanzhou Municipal Government, the "2014 China Footwear Gala" award list was announced and presented. The summit also conferred three additional awards: "2014 Online Consumers’ Favorite Men's Shoe Brand," "2014 Online Consumers’ Favorite Canvas Shoe Brand," and "2014 Online Consumers’ Favorite Women's Shoe Brand."
The award ceremony of the "2014 China Footwear Gala" held special significance as it took place at the 6th China Footwear & Apparel E-commerce Summit under the theme "Internet + Traditional Enterprises Rekindle New Hope." On the day of the summit, Professor Chai Yueting from Tsinghua University, CEO Zheng Min of Ebang.com, and Zhuang Weixiong, General Manager of Quanzhou Yipinjia, all delivered speeches on the footwear and apparel industry from different perspectives, focusing on the "Internet +" topic. During this period of continuous industry transformation and upgrade—and on the verge of major change—these awards carried varying degrees of guidance for the winning companies.
The following is the complete list of all awards:
2014 China Footwear Gala Award List:
2014 Top 10 Men's Shoe Brands
Aokang, Camel, Yerulekon, Red Dragonfly, Mulinsen, Richino Bird, Mister One, Spider King, Bull Tribe, Zero Degree
2014 Top 10 Women's Shoe Brands
Belle, Daphne, Zosigny, Yerulekon, TATA, Dadong, Hotwind, Teenmix, Kiss Cat, Red Dragonfly
2014 Top 10 Kids' Shoe Brands
ABC KIDS, Babudou, Qibohui, Mutong, CAMKIDS, Goodboy Dog, Dr. Kong, Yonggao, Miffy, Frollo Me
2014 Top 10 Sports Brands
Li-Ning, Anta, Xtep, 361 Degrees, Erke, ERKE, Peak, Jordan, Deerway, Double Star
2014 Top 10 Outdoor Brands
Toread, Camel, Tianluntian, Kailas, KENTOP, SKYLINE, MATO, MobiGarden, Polar, Osprey
2014 Men's Shoe Rising Forces
Simier, Musketeer, Sirui, Fadon, Bofan
2014 Women's Shoe Rising Forces
Mollycoo, Guqitianlun, Komanic, Kulindaqi, Hongke
2014 Kids' Shoe Rising Forces
Happy Bear, Yunduo, Genoplus, Peter Pan, Happy Mickey
2014 Sports Rising Forces
Warrior, Xidelong, Kangta, Xidewolf, Bage
2014 Outdoor Rising Forces
Rixing, Luchi, Yele, Hantoo, Scarecrow
2015 China Footwear & Apparel Industry E-commerce Summit Awards List:
2014’s Most Favorite Men’s Shoe Brand Among Online Shoppers
Oulenbao Zero Degree
2014’s Most Favorite Men’s Shoe Brand Among Consumers
Mulinsen
2014’s Most Favorite Women’s Shoe Brand Among Online Shoppers
Shepherdess, Jiafeihong, Lane 172, Xianglian, Romanqi
2014’s Most Favorite Canvas Shoe Brand Among Online Shoppers