I’m the one who asks the questions. For more than 20 years as a working journalist, I’ve been the interviewer and, with respect to my tenure at Footwear Plus, it’s been in search for answers to help readers better understand the latest goings-on in our industry as well as to get to know the people behind the brands and storefronts. The selling of shoes is a people business, and learning about the individuals can only be of help. Beyond that, it’s fascinating to learn where people come from—literally and figuratively. Everyone has a story, and I have enjoyed writing about so many great ones over the years.
When conducting this month’s Q&A (p. 18) with Angel Martinez, CEO of Deckers Outdoor, I asked, “What might people be surprised to know about you?” With deft political acumen, Martinez dodged answering by asking me the same question. I volleyed back by moving on to the next question, but it got me thinking that I should answer some of the questions I’ve enjoyed asking many industry leaders over the years. Turnabout is fair play. More importantly, I hope my answers bring us closer together, a process that Footwear Plus has aimed to achieve with every issue for 21 years. So here it goes…
What was the last movie you saw? Bridesmaids, which was overrated. But I highly recommend the BBC series Being Human.
What’s on your iPod? Most likely, Springsteen. (R.I.P. Big Man.)
What is your favorite hometown memory? The pickup games where I grew up in Maplewood, NJ. After school and all summer long, we’d play touch football, street hockey, Wiffle ball, basketball, running bases, soccer, ping pong—you name it. If it could be caught, hit or scored, it was game on.
In high school, you were most likely to be… The quietest kid in the room, which now seems odd since I have written a monthly column for the past 15 years. From a fashion perspective, I was most likely to be wearing bright red hi-top Chucks and, when the weather was warm, plaid shorts and T-shirts. Perhaps it’s even odder that I now write for a fashion magazine.
What might people be surprised to know about you? I’m a weather geek. I follow weather bloggers daily. I know the difference between a Norlun Trough and a closed-off low, and I wish New York resided in a snowbelt. My wife, who grew up in the Michigan snowbelt, and my daughter, think I’m nuts. But when it comes to wanting to know what to wear each morning, who do they turn to first? You might say that my fashion expertise is mostly weather related.
Fashion icon: Kate Moss. Coveted dinner guest: Bono. Motto: Hang in there. I could go on, but maybe that’s best-saved for the blogosphere. Time to ask the questions again. —Greg Dutter
