White space. In art, advertising, page layout and the like, it's often referred to as negative space, the nooks and crannies between the important stuff that's gone unmarked, either for effect or lack of additional content.
For Ben Fischman, it's the driving principle of his new startup, M. Gemi, which officially launched this morning.
Fischman, who previously founded both Lids and Rue La La, speaks of white space in entirely different terms. For him, it's not better left alone – it's the gap in the market ripe for filling. It's precisely the area within an industry on which he plans to leave a mark.
“Women know that the finest, most beautiful shoes in the world are made in Italy," Fischman told me during a recent phone call. "For most products, the country of origin doesn’t matter.” But, he went on, “Italian shoes are known to be the best."
M. Gemi is a direct-to-consumer luxury footwear brand, offering women high-end, designer shoes at prices typically not synonymous with Italian craftsmanship. A new style will be offered online and via the company's app every week, all in limited quantities.
Shoes of similar quality and origin typically run anywhere from around $500 to several thousand dollars. M. Gemi will offer theirs in the $128-$300 range.
"We think we’ve found a pretty big white space," said Fischman.
The "we" there is the M. Gemi team, comprised of Fischman; president and general manager Cheryl Kaplan, a former EVP at Rue La La; and chief merchant Maria Gangemi, an Italian with more than 30 years experience, including as the former SVP of European Luxury—whose zeal for conveying the brand was the genesis of the company's name.
Founded about a year ago, M. Gemi has already made an impact with investors, securing approximately $14 million in seed and Series A funding, led by General Catalyst with participation from Forerunner Ventures and Breakaway Ventures.
The company is based in Boston, with a current staff of around 30 that Fischman expects to swell to around 50 by year's end. There's also about 10 people working out of a Florence, Italy, office.
In addition to the shoe designs and unique supply chain model – giving Italian craftsman a rare channel to the U.S. market – Fischman and co. have been consumed by what he calls a "maniacal consistency of fit.” A small design team in New York conducted U.S. testing over 90 days, allowing more than 500 women to try the shoes on and provide feedback.
The results were surprising. “We want our shoes to be as comfortable as they should be," said Fischman. But customers were surprised at how "shockingly comfortable" the shoe felt on their feet.
The team also created an advisory board of students studying abroad in Florence, called their Fit Team, who once every week would try on the shoes and give their thoughts.
When asked what's next for the company, Fischman told me expanding to menswear and other products could be a possibility down the road.
But his current focus was clear: “These shoes will stand up to any shoe made anywhere in the world.”
