Dive Brief:
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J. Crew’s up-and-coming Madewell brand has recalled its "Sightseer" sandals from its spring 2015 collection after eight reports of metal shanks dislodging and breaking through the bottom of the outsole. No injuries have been reported, according to a notice from the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
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Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled shoes and contact Madewell to return them for a full refund, according to Madewell and the CPSC.
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Some 50,900 of the sandals were sold through 300 Madewell stores, Madewell.com, and Shopbop.com, from February 2015 to July 2015 for between $60 and $80.
Dive Insight:
Madewell is following the recall playbook perfectly here, it appears. And with the nature of the shoes’ design flaw, it doesn’t have much choice.
Certainly, recalls are expensive — they mean returns, repairs, and cancelled orders. But not alerting customers to product quality issues can be even more costly because, even in the absence of safety issues, there's a risk of lawsuits and, something that can become indelible, severe damage to the brand.
Still, a product recall needn’t be a major problem for a brand. It’s just bad timing for Madewell, which has emerged as a ray of hope for J. Crew, which has been struggling with crumpling sales and falling out of favor among some of its previously most ardent fans.