In Pictures
British luxury footwear brand Jimmy Choo is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a curated edit of archival styles from the first five years of the label, which it states represent the “blueprint” and DNA of the brand.
The archival edit has been curated by the brand’s creative director Sandra Choi, alongside BFC New Generation award-winning London-based fashion designer Conner Ives and fashion journalist Alexander Fury, and features pieces from the very start of the footwear label, from the late 90s through to the early Millennium, summarising both the quintessence of 2000s style and the founding essence of the brand.
On the collection, Choi, said in a statement: “We looked at three decades of work and dialled back to the first 5 years. Why? Because those years truly represent the heart and soul of Jimmy Choo - they’re our roots, where it all began. And in looking at these styles, I saw ideas that are still essential to Jimmy Choo today - eternal values of glamour, of femininity, combined with make and craft.
“This was a fascinating exercise for me - to see Jimmy Choo through other people’s eyes. This collection is about where we’ve come from, and what we stand for and where we continue to go. It’s a celebration, pure and simple - and Jimmy Choo can always ignite a party.”
Jimmy Choo launches The Archive 1997-2001 capsule collection
The eight-style collection spotlights a selection of key themes that have shaped the Jimmy Choo brand across its three decades, including animal print, slick boots, unique design detail, a love of asymmetry, and the perfect strappy sandal.
A highlight from the line-up is the revival of the ‘72138’ shoe, better known as Carrie Bradshaw’s Jimmy Choo lilac suede strappy heels, finished with delicate feathers as seen in the ‘Sex and the City’ show. Her recognisable “I lost my Choo!” line helped catapult the brand from fashion insider to a global pop culture phenomenon.
They sit alongside ‘The Strappy,’ a sexy heel from the brand’s spring/summer 1997 collection, combining a thong sandal with barely there criss-crossing straps designed to flatter the leg, and ‘The Leo’ an ankle strap sandal in leopard-print grosgrain, which debut in 1998 and was immortalised in the opening sequence of ‘Sex and the City’.
There is also ‘The Bow,’ a style from 2000, featuring a spotted print scattered across snake-embossed leather, in a maximalist collision of texture and pattern, ‘The Slide,’ a relaxed flat mule in mint nubuck drawn from 1999, ‘The Boot’ taken from 2000 in python-print leather, and ‘The Flower’ one of the brand’s best-selling shoes from its spring/summer 2001 collection featuring a barely-there sandal in metallic Nappa with an embroidered silken corsage.
The final style in the collection is ‘The Thong’ a high-heeled thong sandal with silvered chainmail, which at the time drew inspiration from the Y2K obsession with handkerchief tops.
“These eight styles interconnect and converse with one another - they shape a definition of Jimmy Choo, expressing a core belief and lasting principles of design,” explains the brand. “Jimmy Choo is always of the moment, expressing the fashion spirit, the mood of now - yet these styles transcend fashion, becoming part of the house style, the design language and unique handwriting. The first expression of an exploration of Jimmy Choo’s heritage to mark its 30-year milestone, this curated edit is an essence of Jimmy Choo. Past, present and future.”