Jimmy Choo "like an architect"

Jimmy Choo says making shoes is a lot like designing buildings.

The iconic footwear designer spends hours painstakingly crafting each pair of Jimmy Choo Couture shoes because they are the “foundations” of the woman who wears them.

“I design like an architect,” he explained. “It’s a beautiful, distinctive art, and shoes are like the foundations. If the foundations aren’t right, the building won’t stand upright, and if a woman’s balance isn’t right, nothing else is.”

These days, Jimmy spends all his time creating bespoke shoes, after selling his stake in the Jimmy Choo label in 2001. He has one shop, on London’s Connaught Street, and shoes start at ?650 a pair. Although this is considerably more expensive than items from his previous label, Jimmy insists his footwear is worth every penny.

“My shoes are beautiful, but they fit and they last,” he told Britain’s Daily Telegraph newspaper. “Yes, there are cheaper dressy shoes on the high street, which is good for choice, but do they fit properly and will they last? My clients keep my shoes for ever.”