DRESSING THE LADY SUPREME: HOW JIMMY CHOO’S SIGNATURE STILETTOS BUILT A LEGACY OF LUXURY AND EMPOWERMENT

BY RHIANNA JONES

Marilyn Monroe once famously said, “Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world,” and it could’ve been a Jimmy Choo tagline. Jimmy Choo founded his atelier in the ‘90s in East London, with the intention of alluring an exclusively glamorous, globe-trotting clientele with luxury footwear they couldn’t live without. The bespoke shoemaker was a pioneer in the art of celebrity dressing. Princess Diana was one of his earliest devotees, and today lady bosses across industries don the iconic Choo heels, from Jennifer Lopez and Jill Biden to Halle Berry and Anne Hathaway. But in this world of seductive skyscraper stilettos, Jimmy Choo has built a legacy not as a man who tells women what they want and what they should wear, but as a perennial proponent of female greatness. In fact, Choo has long championed women as instrumental stakeholders in his company vision. Co-founding the brand with fashion editor Tamara Mellon, and bringing his niece Sandra Choi onboard as creative director, together the trio built an empire of empowerment, elegance, and exceptional design.

Choo had mastered bespoke couture shoemaking, but adding Mellon’s editorial expertise and Choi’s stylistic savvy catapulted the blossoming atelier into a global brand in 1996. Jimmy Choo amplified its sex appeal through iconic advertising, featuring emboldened women conquering the world in towering heels and power-play handbags.

Choi started as a protégé while studying fashion design at London’s prestigious Central Saint Martins and eventually quit school to fully immerse herself in the business. Marrying her cutting-edge design skills with her uncle’s entrepreneurial vision, they perfected the art of shoemaking from concept to creation, pattern-making to production, thus rendering accessible couture-quality footwear. With signature details like crystal embellishments, studded stilettos, exotic skins, and vibrant jewel tones, a Jimmy Choo shoe is a guaranteed showstopper.

While some designers start small and slowly amass a legion of followers, Choo garnered immediate success, attracting outside investors and expanding across genres and geography. Within two years, Choo was a full blown accessories brand, opening a shop in New York City in 1998, then in L.A. the following year. Having secured a literal foothold in the two capitals of celebrity, Choi continued to cultivate the brand’s star-studded clientele, targeting celebrity stylists and award seasons, making Jimmy Choo synonymous with red carpet regality. Jimmy Choo himself left the brand in 2001, leaving Choi in charge of continuing her uncle’s iconography.

As the brand continues to evolve, it reimagines its audience beyond the jet-set through various partnerships and projects. It was one of the first ultra-luxury accessory brands to bring its high-end couture designs to high street with a 2009 H&M collaboration, inviting mass-market shoppers to walk a mile in Choo’s star-studded shoes. Today Jimmy Choo continues to drop capsules with street wear and utilitarian brands to keep its heritage on the pulse of fashion.

Earlier this year, the brand introduced Jimmy Choo Beauty, a cosmetic line channeling the “timeless glamour and red carpet spirit of Jimmy Choo.” The Seduction Collection comprises a dazzling array of richly hued lipsticks, glittering nail polish, and intoxicating fragrances. With the stiletto-inspired handle design and satin lipstick imprinted with Choo’s iconic python print, the capsule reflects the multi-faceted and fabulous nature of the Jimmy Choo woman.

Truly anchored in strong, bold femininity, the brand is a steadfast supporter and partner of Fashion Makes Change, an organization dedicated to empowering and educating women in the supply chain industry and heightening the voices of women globally. Whether strutting down the runway or sashaying in the streets, Jimmy Choo’s sky-high empire has built a legacy lifting woman up worldwide to unlock their limitless powers and possibility

Jimmy Choo
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