Like Rolls Royce, Jimmy Choo had a brilliant idea during the height of the pandemic last year: get fans involved in a competition that would possibly take their minds off the grim realities of the time by letting them do what they love the most.
The Choo Sketch design competition was conceived on creative director, Sandra Choi’s Instagram page, and it birthed over 10,000 sketches from all over the world.
“I was overwhelmed by the number of sketches and stories we received and felt inspired and touched that we had reached so many people around the world,” says Choi of the number of entries that were submitted to the brand.
In the end, the submissions were whittled down to 10 from which five finalists with the most votes on Instagram emerged. They are Joyce Fung (Hong Kong), Pia Tan Ramirez (Dubai), Valentina Badeanu (Romania), Nathan Scalzo (France), and Hema Ved (India).
The finalists pulled from their experiences to create designs that were true to themselves but also resonated with the Jimmy Choo community. Fung’s Sparkling Broom design reimagined the household essential into a playful yet glamourous footwear with embellished darling crystals and a heel wrapped in rhinestones creating the picture of the early aughts flapper dresses. Ramirez created a satin stiletto mule, entitled the Nina, in a gorgeous hot pink with a significant statement bow.
Badeanu opted for a blossoming design, entitled Blossom in Your Choos. The design brings the outdoors indoors with handpainted flowers decorating the straps, while Scalzo designed the Wisteria pump also decorated in delicate flowers.
Lastly, Ved’s design, named Cynosure, was made to see the dance floor. Inspired by her Indian heritage, the stiletto ankle boot is embroidered with hotfix crystals and pearls resembling Indian ornaments for the ears called Jhumka.
Unlike the Rolls Royce’s Young Designer competition, however, Jimmy Choo took the winning entries and transformed them into real-life shoes that are now available for purchase. When you buy any one of these shoes, 100% of the profits will go to The Jimmy Choo Foundation’s partner Women for Women International, a charity that helps women survivors of war rebuild their lives.
To find out more and shop the Choo Sketch Collection, visit the brand’s website here.
Source: CPP Luxury