AI Was the Conversation Everyone Was Having in Atlanta
The Atlanta Shoe Market just wrapped, and if you weren't there, here's the headline: traffic was good, the atmosphere was upbeat, and buyers showed up across the board, comfort, western, luxury, all of it. That alone would make for a good show.
But the thing everyone kept coming back to, on the floor, between appointments, over coffee, was AI.
The Panel That Packed the Room
The AI panel discussion was the moment of the show. The room was full, and it stayed full. People weren't drifting in and out to catch appointments, they were staying for the whole thing.
Management One was represented on the panel by Adam Hambleton, our Head of Product Development and Planning. Adam's been building the AI inside Retail ORBIT since day one, and it showed. He wasn't up there talking about AI in the abstract. He was talking about what it actually does for a shoe retailer trying to figure out open-to-buy by classification, or which styles are quietly dying in the stockroom.
If you missed it, or you want to watch it again, the recording is here:
The Conversation Didn't Stop When the Panel Ended
What stood out to me wasn't just that the panel was full. It's that the AI conversation kept going for the rest of the show. Retailers were asking each other what they were using, what worked, what didn't. Reps were fielding questions they hadn't expected. It wasn't a one-hour session and done, it was a thread that ran through the whole event.
That tells you something. Shoe retailers aren't wondering anymore whether AI matters to their business. They're past that question. Now they're trying to figure out which AI actually understands their business, and which one is just guessing with confidence.
Private Label Was the Other Big Topic
Right alongside AI, private label kept coming up. More retailers are looking at it seriously, not as a side project, but as a real lever for margin and differentiation. Between AI and private label, this show had the feel of an industry actively working on its next move, not just restocking for the season.
Good Energy, Broad Representation
Beyond the panel, the show itself felt strong. Buyers were there from every corner of the business, comfort, western, luxury, performance, accessories, and everything in between. Traffic was good all the way through. It's always a good sign when a show feels busy on the last day the way it did on the first.
Something New on the Floor
Worth keeping an eye on: Kane. They're focused entirely on sit and fit shoe retailers, and the look is distinctive, a Hoka style bottom paired with a Crocs style upper, but with some sizzle to it. It's a combination that stands out on a wall of comfort footwear, and it's the kind of new entrant worth watching as the category keeps evolving.
A Shout Out to Max Retail
One more thing worth mentioning.Max Retail was there, the busiest non-footwear vendor at the show, and it's worth calling out what they do. Max Retail buys unsold inventory for retailers and brands, representing around 4,000 of them. That number by itself says a lot about the strength of the model. When a business scales to that size helping retailers move product they couldn't otherwise sell, it's solving a real problem for a real number of people. Good to see them there.
Onwards and Upwards,
Marc Weiss
Co-founder and CEO
Management One
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