The MAD Shoes vs. the customer - an in-depth analysis of our target audience

When I launched MAD Shoes, I often thought about the women who would wear my heels. “Aside from myself, how many MAD women out there would wear a classic stiletto in fuchsia pink?” I kept wondering. Since I was just getting started, I didn’t overthink. We began our research by asking both men and women for their opinions. We asked women what they thought of the idea and men how they perceived women who wear high heels.

The responses I received were varied. Some truly loved the concept: the classic shape of the shoe, the high heel, the color. It was divine, and I was ecstatic. However, along the way, we realized that our target audience is fluid. Yes, we made mistakes, but that’s a story you’ll read at the end of this article.

Let’s just say that the main mistake was to assume that all women want and can wear 10 cm heels. Whereas the shoes look glamorous, they are difficult to manage for more than 2 hours continuously. Basically, I can say that assuming my client IS and thinks like me, we inadvertently eliminated a good chunk of the market. Which, in return, cost us time and money.

Read more here.