DOPHAM’S, Extraordinary Shoes That Boost Confidence
STYLE
www.posiv.cz ǀ 97
Víťa a Daja Do Pham
crafted a pair of elevator shoes himself.
Subsequently, during a visit to Hanoi in
Vietnam, we discovered that a similar
type of footwear was already being
manufactured there, which led us to start
offering elevator shoes in the Czech
Republic. With elevator shoes, men
can gain a few extra centimeters. Our
shoes add 5–7 cm. Customer responses
have been very positive. They often
send us photos from weddings and
thank you messages. They are satisfied,
and many of our customers don't just
stop at one pair of shoes but also buy
elevator sneakers from us. The magic is
that they look like ordinary shoes from
the outside, but thanks to an internal
wedge, they provide the necessary
height increase.
Every business story is full of significant
moments. Could you share some of the key
milestones that you retrospectively see as
crucial for the growth and development
of your brand?
At the beginning of our business, we
had our shoes made in Vietnam, which
was a big fail for us. So, a key moment
in our business was when we moved
production to Europe, allowing us much
better control over manufacturing.
Naturally, this also enabled us to offer
our customers much better quality
products.
At this moment, you only offer shoes for
men. Are you considering adding models
for women in the future, or do you
prefer to specialize in men's footwear?
We considered models for women, but
currently, that's not on our agenda. We
want to focus on men's shoes, especially
since many people still don't know that
men's elevator shoes exist, and we want
to devote all our energy to this for now.
Your story shows that behind every
successful business is a strong team.
What roles do you and your husband
play in the business, and how do you
complement each other in leadership?
We handle many matters together
and likewise make decisions together.
But there are definitely a few areas
we've divided up – for example, I'm
in charge of communicating with our
manufacturer and partly the marketing,
and Víťa is responsible for the new
models of shoes and is our guru for
perfect customer care.
Business often brings unexpected
challenges. Have you encountered
any specific obstacles in building
the Dopham's brand? How did you
handle these situations, and what did
you learn from them?
As I mentioned in a previous answer,
at the start of our business, we
were unlucky with reliable footwear
manufacturers. The challenge for us
was to find another – much better
one, and we are very grateful that we
found one here in Europe. Another
challenge was definitely COVID-19. At
that time, we were selling only formal
elevator shoes, and social events were
banned during COVID-19. This led us
to the decision to also produce casual
elevator shoes, which helped us survive
those wild COVID times.
Daja, thank you for the interview.
“
AswhenIworeheels,Víťa
wasshorterthanme.
”