Furla has come up with a new business plan to make profits and dig themselves out of the “middle” category which seems to have hit other brands such as Coach and even more luxurious Ferragamo in this economic crisis.

CEO Paolo Fontanelli, of Furla, the accessibly-priced Italian accessories, explains that  the brand has recently gone on a retail binge in the UK, by launching a menswear collection, and creating a special initiative to leverage the talent of emerging shoe designers.

With a model that started 80 years ago by the Furlanetto family Furla has now has expanded to over 150 franchises and 60 stores owned by them.  They are at a 15% margin for profit gain and the label itself has no debt.

In 2009 they opening a flagship store on London’s Regent street and a store in the Westfield Mall.  More stores in China will open, some will be franchises and 2 will remain owned by the Furla company.

But the retail growth does not take away from design.  The Furla Talent Hub supports promising young shoe designers from around the world, enabling them to present their creative vision through products that are produced under the Furla brand name, in the spirit of Furla DNA.  Designers such as Alice and Lisa Ferrari, Courtney Crawford, Nicole Brundage, and Max Kibardin have all participated.  The outcome of Max Kibardin’s collection was so great that Furla had him design the first shoe collection for the brand which is in stores now.  All of the designers involved, however, are there to learn and grow and still sell and succeed under their own name and label.

It seems to be the desire to try new things, the launching of collections in sectors where there are still sales (menswear and accessories) and forging ahead with markets that are already loyal to the brand.

“The fact that we are privately-owned means we can take a long-term view towards our business strategy and our investments. This is very powerful, especially in times like the ones we find ourselves in today,” Fontanelli told the Business of Fashion.net exclusively.