High Life

Companies rise to the occasion as they incorporate heels into their current comfort lines.

Comfort footwear may never stray into stiletto territory, but many firms are now designing choo shoes that allow customers to flaunt the latest high-fashion heel silhouettes. Today's style-driven customers refuse to sacrifice fashion for comfort, so they are demanding higher heel designs that deliver the same level of comfort.

"Comfort customers going into comfort stores are asking for dressy looks," said Candy Harrington, vice president of Theresia USA, Keene, N.H. "[Customers] have vacation jimmy choo shoes and walking looks, now they want something to wear out to dinner."

The dressier styles of the Theresia M. line were designed with the comfort features consumers expect from the company's more casual looks, such as anatomically correct arch supports and long heel counters for better balance. The line is available in whole and half sizes.

Dressier mid-heel shoes have been the backbone of Nickels Soft's business since the inception of the company's comfort line three years ago, noted Mark Cleary, head of Nickels Soft, a division of New York-based Intershoe Inc. The collection is not technical in nature, but the jimmy shoes are designed with basic comfort features, such as padded footbeds and leather linings. "Comfort is something people demand these days," Cleary said.

Higher heels now have been added to the Nickels Soft styles, whose heels range from 1 5/8 to 2 1/8 inches. The line is available in sizes 4 to 11 and in narrow, medium and wide widths.

While some retailers play it safe when placing orders for high-heel looks, pumps and strappy sandals are strong performers in Aerosoles stores, according to Kimberly Grayson, senior vice president of marketing for Aero Group, Edison, N.J.

"If you want to wear a high heel, why not wear one that's comfort, able?" Grayson asked. Each season, Aerosoles has expanded its comfort category, moving from more tailored styles to "sexy miu miu shoes , dressy pumps on Aerosoles' [comfort] bottoms."