The Black Footwear Forum (BFF), formerly known as The African American Footwear Forum (AAFF) will convene once again this year, this time in Detroit.
The forum, which addresses and analyzes diversity issues in the footwear field, will feature a gathering of industry leaders and executives between September 16 and 18, 2022. The annual event was created in partnership with the Pensole Lewis College of Business & Design (Michigan’s first and only HBCU and the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA).
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“With the opening of the Pensole Lewis College of Business & Design in May, we are well positioned to welcome black footwear industry professionals to our new campus in Detroit this Fall.” said Pensole Lewis College of Business & Design president Dr. D’Wayne Edwards. “I can think of no better way to celebrate Detroit Month of Design in September than to host the Black Footwear Forum and bring the footwear industry to our great city. Stay tuned as we unveil many exciting updates about the event in the coming weeks because this will be a very special gathering.”
Corporate sponsors of the event this year include The Athlete’s Foot, Caleres, Designer Brands, Foot Locker, Nike, Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Rack Room Shoes, RG Barry Brands and Steve Madden.
The Black Footwear Forum first met in February 2019. Since then, the forum has held an annual meeting, where industry leaders and supporters hold open conversations about the Black experience in the context of the footwear industry and work together on finding solutions.
In February, the forum announced the formation of an advisory committee that will guide strategies for community engagement, education, networking, events, and regional BFF chapters that are slated to launch in certain cities this year. Members of the committee include executives from Converse, Reebok, Puma, FDRA and Target.
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