Pavers, the York-based family-run shoe chain, has just opened three concessions in Lewis's department stores in Manchester, Liverpool and Hanley... and expect more in this, its 30th year.

Also expect good things for Pavers from the Innovative Retailer Awards at London's Dorchester tomorrow, when the company is in the final three nominations.

The firm is literally stepping into the shoes of the British Shoe Corporation which has closed or sold 2,000 shops and concessions in the UK.

Stuart Paver, managing director of the retailer which has its headquarters in Piccadilly, York, decided that these three outlets were a perfect fit and bought the fixtures and fittings.

This takes the Pavers empire to a total of 11 outlets, expanding by 200 per cent in turnover in the last 18 months and spending about £750,000 in the process.

Apart from successful branches in Scarborough, Hull, Newcastle, Bradford, North Shields, Southport and Glasgow, there is a huge and growing trade being undertaken at its website, Shoeworld. Its address at http://www.shoeworld.com is visited by 7,000 Internet visitors from all over the world each year.

It is this website, initiated by Pavers and now housing about 40 manufacturers, retailers and suppliers in the footwear trade, which has earned it a place in the top three of the Innovative Retailer Awards. Without too much of a pun, commentators in the trade predict that Pavers will literally walk it, not least because predictions are that by the end of this year the web site should be even more profitable than one retail outlet, given its low overheads.

Stuart wants to lace up further deals at factory outlet centres on the south coast and discussions have been taking place in Plymouth and Bournemouth "and we are having talks about a Pavers in a Dublin department store".

And to handle the storage for all these new and future outlets, Stuart and his mother, Katherine and brother, Ian, both directors, have just built a 4,000sq ft distribution centre off Amy Johnson Way in Clifton Moor.

It adds another five jobs to the 52 new staff they have generated by creating new stores throughout the UK. "It has the capacity to take us up to a total of 18 outlets," says Stuart.

He adds that the fate of the British Shoe Corporation "presented an opportunity we dared not miss and wherever we have taken over we have shown increases on former sales of between 20 per cent and 50 per cent.

"Others have moved into the gap but not quite as we have because there are only six or seven independents left within the UK who are capable. But we believe we have the formula that works - offering a wide choice of quality products within an environment in which customers are looked after in an old- fashioned sort of way."

Is the firm going to celebrate 30 years since it was started by Katherine by "going public" on the Stock Exchange? "No we are not," insists Stuart. "All the growth is self-financed and we intend to keep it that way for as long as possible."

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.