Stuart Weitzman

Stuart Weitzman

Born in 1942, Stuart A. Weitzman is the founder of high-end international shoe brand, Stuart Weitzman. He garnered worldwide attention for the use of unconventional and unique materials like vinyl, cork, wallpaper, lucite and gold, as well as his objective to produce something flawless. His shoe designs are sold in more than seventy countries worldwide.

The shoe business is ingrained in his family since Seymour Weitzman, his father was also a shoe maker. He began a factory of shoe manufacturing in Massachusetts in the 1950s. The company was known as Seymour Shoes. In the early 60s, when he was twenty years old, Stuart started designing foot-wear for his father’s label. The tradition and legacy was carried forward.

In 1958, Stuart graduated from George W. Hewlett High School, followed by studying business at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School in 1963. Two years later when his father died, Stuart and his brother Warren took charge of the business. In 1972, although the label was sold to a Spanish company, Stuart kept on designing shoes for the brand. When he was capable enough, he purchased his company back but continued to produce shoes in Spain.

In 2008, a rather strange incident happened that disappointed the designer to an extent. Stuart designed a pair of extremely expensive shoes called Retro Rose for Diablo Cody to wear at the Academy Award ceremony. It was embellished with luxurious diamonds costing a million dollars. However, controversy broke out when Diablo did not attend the event in these shoes and instead wore a pair of golden sandals from her wardrobe. She then defended herself by saying that she was unaware that she had to wear Weitzman’s design to the occasion.

François Kress became the global president of the Stuart Weitzman Holdings LLC, a three hundred million dollar wholesale and international business. Kress was previously associated with Prada, The Row, Bulgari and Miu Miu. Since 2013, there over 100 stores of the brand around the world and three internet sites. The same year, a flagship store was opened in Milan on Via Sant’Andrea.

The Weitzman label is recognized for its gallant designs that sometimes seem eccentric as well, but are always high-class, exquisite and made with utmost care and attention to detail. His shoe-wear is famous among celebrities and socialites from Hollywood.

Stuart Weitzman’s shoe designs are encrusted with jewels and stones that can be worn like jewelry on shoes, they work as stick-ons. This technique was used in order to ensure the versatility and longevity of shoes. Although he designs high-quality shoes, his shoes are in general relatively affordable with designs priced minimum at $200. Apart from footwear, his company offers a range of wallets and handbags that are available at Zappos.com, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and other retail stores.

For more than three decades, Stuart has been creating shoes that are adored by women since they light imagination and leave them feeling glamorous. Weitzman long before understood that a perfect shoe is one that not only functions in a great way, but makes a woman feel and think she’s beautiful. The company produces over 590 designs and styles every year, experimenting with and inventing new materials, silhouettes and techniques in order to make a shoe that looks good and is comfortable.