Tell us a little bit about how you got started. Why footwear? 

I grew up loving art and all things creative. One of my first part-time jobs on the weekends was at Andrea Biani Shoes in Manukau Shopping Centre, and by the time I was leaving school I decided I wanted to be a shoe designer and build a career in the NZ fashion industry. I studied for a year at AUT, gaining a certificate in fashion technology before transferring to Massey University in Wellington to complete a Bachelor of Design. During my second year, I won a scholarship to study design at Nottingham Trent University in the UK and returned to NZ determined to be NZ’s next name in footwear design. After winning a $5000 scholarship from AMP, I sampled some of my first designs locally in NZ with the help from Marler Shoes and launched the brand in 2003 with business partners Lloyd and Caroline Sills who I was designing for at the time.

The best piece of business advice I’ve ever received is…

Surround yourself with talented, optimistic, big-thinking people who are excited to come on the journey with you and enjoy the ride. Listen to the experts and be open to change.  

And the worst – if you’re willing to share…

‘Choose another career, it’s too hard to design and produce footwear in NZ.’

You have a penchant for the fabulous colours and fun designs — obsessed with the Zsa Zsa heels! Kiwis are often considered quite conservative with fashion and colour but you have a very loyal following. Can you talk a little about this and how your designs and colours resonate with the consumer? 

We launched the brand in 2003 with the purpose of designing and producing colourful, playful, limited-edition footwear that is made to last. Our brand promise is to design shoes that make the wearer feel confident and happy – footwear that you can trust to be your everyday go-to shoe for a board meeting, a big night on the dancefloor or a special occasion. There is an emotional connection with shoes and how they make you feel when you are wearing your favourite pair…Your shoulders sit back, your head is a little higher and your back straighter. We love to celebrate this and often design the new collections with certain customers and their lifestyles in mind. You can have a lot of fun with colour on your feet when you wouldn’t necessarily feel confident to wear bright colours near your face. Our classic styles are always made in a timeless palette which are often the best sellers. But we also love to offer the bright accent colours for each season as a nod to international trend direction.  

Tell us about the SS22 collection and the inspiration behind it.

With international travel now on the horizon, a custom mosaic-inspired printed leather evokes sandy shores and Mediterranean summers. A large selection of casual trainers and loafers providing the perfect capsule of travel-friendly styles. Italian and Spanish constructions feature sophisticated vegetable tanned leathers, brass hardware harking back to 70’s inspired wooden clogs. Pops of colour in the form of sleek stilettos, elegant wooden platforms and wearable mid-heights will have the KW woman ready for party season, featuring acid green, sky blues and coral waxed leathers.

There are so many fabulous, fun pieces but also a lot of classic designs and colours that are real wardrobe staples. How do you find the balance between the two when creating a collection?

Designing beautiful and timeless shoes is at the heart of our business. We know which styles and shapes worked really well the previous season, and this provides a great starting point to build on for new, fresh concepts which are often adaptations on best sellers. We are selfishly always designing what we want to be wearing ourselves in the year ahead. There are often far too many ideas that are continually refined and revisited before signing off the final collections with our technicians and patternmakers. 

Tell us about your personal footwear collection. How many pairs of shoes do you own and what are your favourites?

I have a shoe wall at home that holds 80 pairs of heels… I’m the same shoe size as several best friends and my sister (and Beyonce!!). So, it’s often being swapped around and updated with new season designs as they get passed on to friends. I have favourites that are timeless silhouettes that I intend to keep and wear forever – the classic ballet flat and mid-height stiletto heel that will never date.