This
years' presenters include
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Vermont Bread Company
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Global Round Table
Leadership |
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J Y Enterprise, Inc.
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Working Partnerships
USA |
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Margot Fraser is the founder of Birkenstock
Footprint Sandals, Inc., now entering its fourth decade as the
major U.S. distributor of Birkenstock footwear. A native of Germany,
Margot spent her early years in Berlin. With a background in art
and clothing design, she was an independent dressmaker until she
secured a position as a designer for a clothing manufacturer,
which brought Margot to the U.S.
In 1966, she started her new venture selling
Birkenstock sandals from home and subsequently approached traditional
shoe retailers, only to be told, "Women will never wear those
shoes!" But Margot persevered and, in the summer of 1967,
she found her first customers at a health food store convention
in San Francisco. She had neither a business plan nor a line of
credit. What she did possess was a wholehearted belief in the
product.
Margot credits much of her success to
her lack of formal business training by not knowing what was "correct"
or even "possible." She also sees now that her lack
of financial resources in the early years was actually an asset,
as she learned to be very resourceful. Margot's simple yet innovative
approach to business has brought Birkenstock Footprint Sandals,
Inc. from a small home business to the multi-million dollar company
it is today. Margot's vision of the future of Birkenstock is for
it to remain a people-oriented company that values the participation
and contribution of each employee.
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