If the phrase vegan fashion brings to mind images of chunky, home made things (probably with muesli in there somewhere) then think again, because a new comer to the world of footwear is just about to shake up all preconceptions.
Launched earlier this year at Milan Fashion Week, Alfredo Piferi makes the sort of high-end, fashion-forward shoes that are both beautiful to look at and helping the planet. Under the name of Piferi, think bowed heels, Italian construction, and removable embellishments and you are starting to get the picture.
Formally head designer for Jimmy Choo, and at Burberry before that, Piferi's debut collection is the result of years of industry knowledge and, true to his personal view, is entirely vegan.
Feeling the need to push back against leather being a natural product and therefore good for the planet, Piferi instead wanted to draw attention to plant based, or recycled alternatives, that don’t carry the same chemical and heavy metal burden as animal hide.
Instead, he chose materials made from alternative sources, such corn oil, for shoe linings; and plastic bottles, recycled into soft but durable faux suede. Recycled polyester and lurex are also used by way of removable elements such as a socquette (a decadent frill that sits around the ankle, and that can be taken off at will) while ultra thin rubber soles are waterproof and less slippery to walk on.
Speaking to Vogue recently, Piferi explained that he wanted to create a brand with "purpose", and having switched to a vegan lifestyle some years before, coupled with his shoe design background, the answer was obvious. "I thought, maybe I can do the same thing with shoes. Nobody was doing sexy and sustainable," he said.
Having sourced vegan materials to a high enough standard, Piferi’s next challenge was with the shoe making factory in Italy, that struggled to handle the new materials.
After years of working with only leather (albeit of very high quality) the factory workers could not cope that the plant based materials reacted in different ways, forcing them to come up with an entirely new assembly method.
Despite the hiccups, the result is a series of beautiful, distinctive boots and sandals that are elegant, stylish and are set to be seen on the feet of every fashion-ite. With a signature bowed heel shape, Piferi's work is elegant, urbane and incredibly desirable.
“I’m trying to get the fashion customer to buy my shoes without even thinking about the fact that they aren’t leather,” he says.
With consumers becoming increasingly aware of the environmental damage done by the leather industry – with dyes and noxious chemicals leaching into waterways, and increasing concerns of how those same chemicals impact human health from being worn – Piferi is certain that more and more, consumers will begin to question the ethics of products.
“Once you get to know the details of leather and the chemicals you need to finish it, the impact doesn’t even compare,” he explains of his recycled and plant based alternatives.
In fact, the only down side to these exquisite shoes is that we still have to wait until they arrive. With a grand launch set for November in London, only after that will they travel to the UAE, having been snapped up by Level Shoes at The Dubai Mall.
“As a designer, you want to be remembered for the way you changed the perception of a product, not just the product,” he explains, and if this first round of designs is anything to go by, Piferi is all set to become a name we will all be watching.
