ansion into the Australian market? Prasanna Bhaskar: The Hoka online and wholesale businesses have shown 20 per cent growth in Australia and New Zealand over the past year. We see progression of the brand, allowing our retail teams to serve our customers and build a strong community. Following the successful launch of the Hoka concept stores in Asia, we view retail expansion as a new growth channel to serve our customers and continue building a brand presence in the performance and lifestyle category in Australia. IR: What has the response been like to Hoka running shoes since launching in Australia?  PB: Australia is a very important market for Hoka – where the outdoors is hugely accessible and staying active is a large part of the lifestyle. As a newcomer to the performance footwear space, we offer a unique point of difference in the way we provide cushioning, overall comfort, and unique design. Whether you’re running an ultra-marathon or a fast 5km, or taking a walk around the block, the feeling you experience when you lace up a pair is uniquely Hoka. Australians have embraced the unique level of comfort as we’ve refined and improved our initial offering with pinnacle running franchises like Mach X and hiking styles like Anacapa and Kaha. IR: Community-building initiatives have long been part of Hoka’s marketing strategy. Can you share the thinking behind this, and a few recent community-building initiatives that have been successful?  PB: At Hoka, our reason for being is our community. Our purpose is to share the power of movement with as many people as possible. We have been building grassroots initiatives with our retail partners, who have been successful in bringing runners and fans of Hoka in the community together. We believe Hoka lives in the spirit of our community.  This year, we launched our first large-scale community event in Australia – the Hoka Fly Run Sydney – an inclusive run event with inspiring masterclasses and exciting product trials. The event uncovered a significant appetite for Hoka community events in the market. Within the first 24 hours of going live, the event was booked out with hundreds of runners from ultra-marathoners to first-timers. We have plans to further build momentum by offering masterclasses with our brand ambassadors and reaching a wider audience by partnering with run clubs that share the same brand purpose. IR: Hoka was one of the early adopters of SafeSize technology, which provides personalized shoe recommendations based on 3D scans of an individual customer’s feet. How does the brand view the role of technology in the customer experience? And how does it plan to continue investing in technology in 2024?  PB: We are committed to delivering a premium and personalized experience to our customers. Our global partnership with SafeSize enables our team of run advisers in Hoka stores and events to conduct a lightning-fast 3D foot scan that takes less than two seconds and creates a unique and precise foot profile for each individual customer. Based on this technology that delivers an individualized foot profile, we can recommend the best-fitting shoe from Hoka tailored specifically to a customer’s needs and preferences. The use of SafeSize’s 3D foot scanning technology is aligned with our brand purpose to offer a more personalized, efficient and accurate service. We will continue to invest in technology that helps us deliver the highest level of comfort and performance based on our consumers’ individual needs.  IR: Looking back on 2023, what were some of the biggest challenges Hoka faced as a brand?  PB: The pandemic fuelled fitness globally, and we saw consumers turn to the outdoors and to running amid lockdowns. Supply was one of the key challenges, as demand for Hoka continued to soar after the pandemic reflecting a consumer shift to a fitness lifestyle. Our DTC [direct-to-consumer] channel is growing exponentially, and we have pivoted to digital, focusing on a seamless consumer experience. Our teams and partners have played a pivotal role in being nimble and embracing digital even more in a post-pandemic world. IR: What was the biggest highlight for Hoka in 2023 – either in the Apac region or globally? PB: In June 2023, we launched our largest global integrated marketing campaign, ‘Murmuration’, under our Fly Human Fly brand platform. The campaign explores the concept of murmuration – the flocking behavior of birds – and highlights the brand’s belief in the transformational power of movement. We reinforced the idea of community through the introduction of the Hoka Fly Run – a community event designed to celebrate the joy of movement. We brought the international series to Australia’s own Bennelong Lawn, next to the iconic Sydney Harbour.  IR: Are there any major projects or initiatives Hoka has in the works for its Australian customer base in 2024? PB: Without giving away too much, we will continue our community-building initiatives through brand experience events and relationships with regional run clubs. Exciting projects are in the works for our Australian consumers. We’ll also look at aggressive retail expansion to provide a unique Hoka experience to our consumers in our stores. IR: Hoka was founded by creating a shoe to make running downhill easier. What’s the next problem Hoka is trying to solve with its principle of radical change? PB: We have been innovating and diversifying in the outdoor and hiking categories consistently. Our innovation and design team are always working on the next big thing. We will just have to wait and see. This story first appeared in the 2024 Australian Retail Outlook.