FOCUS GUTS and GLAMOUR JIMMY CHOO’S CREATIVE DIRECTOR SANDRA CHOI JOLTS THE FOOTWEAR BRAND FEARLESSLY FURTHER INTO MENSWEAR. BY JOSHUA GLASS 92 | ESSENTIALHOMMEMAG.COM On the onset of any exploration, there are those that will set off with a decisive course of action—be it literally a physical route or an in- animate sense of loyalty—that comes premedi- tated. Decided on, set upon, and fully executed, the thoughtfulness of the plan is only surpassed by the attention to detail of its maker. For the rest, the path is a more circuitous one. Mean- dering about, these wanderlusts seem to find the finish line, along the way collecting up ideas as free flowing as fluttering butterflies in a con- servatory. Seemingly at odds with each other, occasionally these kinds of conduits converge and—like Jimmy Choo Ltd’s Creative Director and Designer Sandra Choi, whose meticulous devotion to her design matches only her keen- ness toward inspiration—result in journeys that despite occurring several times a year, still reso- nate with distinctiveness. In this case, these journeys are the British fash- ion house’s ever-expanding shoe and fashion accessory lines, which have ballooned over the past two decades from small London women’s studio to fashion enterprise through Choi’s gusts of creativity. At the heel of the company since its inception in 1996, the designer—who is also the niece of the house’s eponym—started first as his protégé before leaving her fashion design stud- ies at the prestigious Central Saint Martins for the sensual school of the stiletto. “At Saint Martins my tutor was actually surprised that I wanted to be in fashion. He identified that my strengths were in product design—making telephones, glasses, and other things like that. He thought that fashion was great, but that I was meant to make objects,” Choi recalls. “I guess I haven’t ended up too badly today, because shoes and accessories are objects that happen to fall under the fashion category.” But to call a pair of her shoes simply objects, however, would be a vast underestimation of both Choi and the Choo brand. Quickly stealing the heart of celebrities such as Halle Berry, Cate Blanchett, and Natalie Portman, Jimmy Choo gained a Swarovski-embellished foothold on women’s footwear after emerging stateside in 1998. In 2011 it was men’s turn. Though at that point fully focused on the female arch—using experimental designs in an admittedly comfort- able space for the designer—it was Choi’s bold leap into the men’s arena then that still rings true SANDRA CHOI PORTRAIT BY IEVA BLAZEVICIUTE. today in her high-end collections. ESSENTIAL HOMME | 93 FOCUS “I’m quite a curious person. I’m one who will try out new ideas and I like to discover, [but] when it came to rst designing for men, the process was also about learning to stay authentic. Tradition is important,” says Choi. “You can go a long way in men’s, but you must be very real. A monk strap needs to be an actual monk strap, but you can still put in those small twists so that it becomes yours.” These twists—modernized renditions of familiar melodies—are what have allowed the brand to reach from slightly humble but mostly glamorous beginnings in Mayfair, London to an international status with the announcement of its new global re- tail concept earlier this summer, along with recent agship openings in Beverly Hills and New Bond Street back in London. The boutiques bring noble intentions from Choi, whose aim is to literally house both genders’ collections under one roof. “The men’s division is still molding itself. We’re building it up bit by bit,” says the designer. “I want to make sure our men’s is just as strong as the wom- en’s, because otherwise we wouldn’t have started it. The [expansion] is a testament to the incredible power of the brand.” It is this protectiveness over product that continues to fuel Choi’s re. The designer is intimately linked to every ospring the house yields, be it a golden star welted oxford or a studded calf leather belt—“I am quite a control freak and I like to do the ttings myself,” she admits—and is known to hand sketch creations on the y. “For men, I might not be there in millimeters, but it’s important for me that every- thing that has a Jimmy Choo label gets my stamp of approval.” But inside her mind, adjacent to Choi’s chambers of carefulness and critique, lies another aspect of her creative process: a gut instinct that not only accepts chance, but also unabashedly Sloane slipper in black porno paisley lasered velvet, $695. maximizes twists of fate to her advantage. Take Jimmy Choo’s Fall/Winter 2014 collection—a roaring rock ‘n’ roll collection of vintage leath- er-made Chelsea boots, seductive pornographic prints, and camouaged high-tech accessories reected through London—that nds its muse in You can go a very long way in men’s, the Albert Hammond dynasty. Admittedly not too familiar with the father and son—frontmen of the but you must be very real. A monk strap bands The Family Dogg and The Strokes, respective- needs to be an actual monk strap, but ly—other than a few songs from the latter, through a fated discovery Choi became widely moved by you can still put in those small twists so both men. “I liked the look of Albert Hammond that it becomes yours. Jr., I found him very dierent yet also very now, so I looked a bit more into his surroundings and I found that his dad is actually just as great,” says Choi. “The whole idea of the father and son made a story for me.” Similarly, the choice to cast Game 94 | ESSENTIALHOMMEMAG.COM of Thrones actor Kit Harington as the face of the brand’s seasonal fashion campaign along with its inaugural fragrance release for men and Carrera by Jimmy Choo sunglasses capsule collection—two more milestones for Choi—came from another moment of fortuitous instinct.“ I had no idea who he was until I was introduced to him,” remembers Choi. “Because of his humor, English upbringing, and daringness I immediately liked him.” It would be a mistake to try to fully capture the range of Choi’s insight into situational examples, and both Hammonds and Harington are just tiny glimpses into the designer’s overall arching mantra that if one senses something strongly, then “they should carry on doing whatever they need to achieve it.” This instinct is “one of the most import- ant” qualities for the designer to have to continue to nd newness, a journey for Choi that seems, for now at least, without pause. “I’ve been here for a very long time. I’ve seen it all happen. I’ve made mistakes and I have enjoyed the triumphs, but at the same time I feel like I haven’t nished my job yet,” says Choi. “I haven’t given it my all. I still need to drive Jimmy Choo to a place where it outlives any one individual, including me.” Miles lace-up with star welting, $895. Available at select Jimmy Choo stores and JimmyChoo.com. Fitzroy navy camo backpack, $1,595. ESSENTIAL HOMME | 95 .