Famolare Explained

Famolare is a footwear company founded in 1969. It was active for several years before its hiatus, and multiple designs appear in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.

History

The shoe company was founded in 1969 by Joe Famolare Jr.,^[1] featuring a method of absorbing the shock of walking on the foot.^[2] Stanley Marcus of Neiman Marcus wrote that Famolare was the most consistent or popular luxury brand in footwear alongside other name brands in the US like Kleenex and the Four Seasons hotel.^[3] The company was headquartered in NYC.^[4] Famolare was known for its thick, wavy soles,^[5] which they named “four-wave platforms”.They patented the sole.^[6]

Famolare became known for its provocative advertising,^[7] including ads where women were naked but for their shoes,^[8] however they reversed course in the 1980s. The change in advertising led the company to receive the Liberty Award from Ms. Magazine in 1981 for “non-sexist advertisement”.^[9] By the 1990s the shoe brand was available by mail order.^[10] Several styles of shoes have been preserved in the Met Museum in NYC, including the "Violin" created in 1971,^[11] a pair of clogs created in 1973,^[12] and a pair of 1975 sandals.^[13]

References

1. Web site: Obit: Joe Famolare, 82. July 12, 2013.
2. Book: From Abba to Zoom: A Pop Culture Encyclopedia of the Late 20th Century . 151 . David Mansour . 2005. Andrews McMeel . 978-0-7407-5118-9 .
3. Book: 139 . Stanley Marcus from A-Z Viewpoints, Volume II . Stanley Marcus . 2000. University of North Texas Press . 978-1-57441-073-0 .
4. Book: The New York Debut of De-Architecture . 45-46 . June 29, 1981 . The New Yorker.
5. Book: Lost Department Stores of San Francisco . 127 . Anne Evers Hitz . 2020.
6. News: The Shock Absorbers . May 23, 1982 . New York Times . Deborah Blumenthal.
7. Book: 144 . Feminists, Feminisms, and Advertising: Some Restrictions Apply . Kim Golombisky and Peggy J. Kreshel . Lexington books . 2017. 978-1-4985-2827-6 .
8. Golombisky and Kreshel, 39.
9. Book: 105 . Lexington Books . Sex Stereotyping in Advertising . Alice E. Courtney, Thomas W. Whipple . 1983.
10. Web site: '70s Shoes: Funky Famolare Shoes Available by Mail-Order. Jean. Patteson. October 26, 1993. Greensboro News and Record.
11. Web site: Joe Famolare | "Violin" | American. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1971 .
12. Web site: Famolare | Clogs | Italian. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1973 .
13. Web site: Joe Famolare | Sandals | American. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1975 .