Shoe Stars on The Rise
By Roxanne Robinson
Starting any kind of business anywhere in or around the COVID-19 period was risky, particularly if that business happened to be a designer shoe brand that didn't fit into the sneaker, Ugg-like, or slipper category. On one hand, it's never been a more challenging time to start a new business, especially with indie fashion brands closing their doors of late. At the same time, the sophistication of social media and its shopping capabilities has given birth to a platform that, in the past, only a traditional brick and mortar retailer could offer. Here, Ac Magazine looks at five shoe brands that have risen during the last five years, each offering unique perspectives on shoe designs for the roaring 20s.
Chris Donovan Footwear
Not many designer-price-point Italian-made luxury shoe brands can claim a founder who used to work for a telephone company repairing downed lines. Enter Chris Donovan who, upon receiving a cancer diagnosis in 2012 at the age of 55, left his secure IBEW union job to pursue a master’s in footwear in Florence, Italy.
The dream, however, began years earlier when, as a high school student, Donovan was dreaming up designs and sketching them. “I was relentlessly teased by classmates who saw the shoe designs in my notebooks, but I couldn’t stop,” he told Ac Magazine. “A fire had been lit within me. Drawing shoes became as essential as breathing — it was something I had to do.”
For the rest of his story read HERE.
Britt Netta
While studying abroad in Italy, shoe designer and founder Britta Netta was awestruck by the artistry and craftsmanship of shoemaking. Netta attended New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, earning her BFA in fashion design with a focus on Haute Couture. During her time in Milan and Florence, she was convinced she would launch her own collection; in 2023, her namesake brand was launched.
With a focus on fun, flirty evening party shoes with a distinct transparent mesh upper and a thin trapezoidal tip heel, popularized by designers such as Amina Muaddi, Netta is positioning herself in the designer shoe space with a tightly curated offering full of color and sass.
Read the rest of her story HERE.
Read about the rest of the stunning brands featuring, Nomasei and Daniella Shevel, in our summer issue HERE.