Jimmy Choo... A Malaysian born, East London raised
man, who came from a line of shoe makers. He used his natural ability
and his eager determination to make it in the world of fashion to
graduate from the London College of Fashion in 1983 and to open his
first store.
Choo specialised in snake and crocodile skin footwear,
creating pointed mules and also coming up with his signature skyscraper
heels with leather ankle straps. He was propelled to national
recognition after an 8-page Vogue magazine spread, shortly after which
he received the patronage of a certain Princess of Wales (Diana), and
was confirmed as her official shoemaker.
In 1996, Jimmy Choo as it is known today was founded alongside Tamara Mellon. The same woman who had eight years earlier, found Jimmy Choo and done the 8-page spread on him. Alongside the both of them was Mr Choo's niece, Sandra Choi, who had been heading up design in the East End atelier, coming on board as Creative Director (a position she still holds to this day).
With a key fundamental goal of global expansion, the brand crossed the waters to the USA. Originally New York in 1998, shortly followed by Los Angeles in 1999. The brand used their LA branch to cater to Hollywood and red carpet events. Choi worked with celebrities and their stylists from a hotel atelier creating Jimmy Choo shoes for award show dressing. The red carpet proved to be the ideal runway for shoes, as actresses such as Halle Berry, Sandra Bullock, and Natalie Portman all took up their Jimmy Choo shoes.
On top of the celebrity endorsements and international fame, Jimmy Choo has received 5 major fashion awards and an OBE from the Queen. If you need any more guarantee of a high-quality shoe, all you have to do is to pick up a Jimmy Choo shoe from a Selfridges (or any other high end store), and you'll be faced with a shoe that has not just decades of hard work into it, but also Centuries when you begin to trace the lineage of Mr Choo and his shoemaker background.