Studio D may be the new ground zero for footwear
I am still lamenting the shuttering of Zola Shoes in 2009, not so much its offshoot in Yorkville but specifically its flagship on Avenue Rd. — ground zero for footwear no one else carried. It was total shoe crack, where the well-heeled could get their fix of arcane brands like Miss Trish of Capri, Emma Hope and especially Gianni Barbato, to which I am addicted.
So I am encouraged by the opening of Studio D Shoe Boutique on May 2. Preternaturally dapper owner Derrick Adams has been in shoe biz for almost three decades, the majority at Holt Renfrew with a fourand-a-half-year layover at Zola.
He carries nine brands, mostly Italian but all esoteric, like MSGM out of Milan, which the cool kids aspire to wear. Though he covers the bases from sneakers to platforms to stilettos, the inventory is rather sparse. He could use much more merch — then again, he has only been open for a couple of weeks.
Adams was going for a living-room feel with scented candles and a fireplace to make the shop homey and relaxing so customers can kick off their shoes and get comfy. He plans to install a cappuccino machine fuelled by Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee.
Studio D could be SoHo in New York with its sophisticated white grill display screens but I get a Saint-Tropez vibe from the bleached floors and custom- made aqua velvet couches. Where’s my vin rosé?
I am so not a sneaker girl but I am transfixed by a pair of white runners with a silver plaque at the sides by Rodolphe Menudier, a French line made in Italy known for kick-butt sneakers worn by Pharrell Williams and Justin Bieber. They had me at Pharrell.
I try them on and they are killer — to my high instep, but Adams’ wife Judith totally rocks them.
I love the sandals with Swarovski crystal lips at the toe ring by Eddy Daniele ($425). Daniele could be channelling Miss Trish of Capri. And how subversively cool are British designer John Richmond’s ankle-strapped midnightblue suede stilettos that start off soft and seductive and end up rock ’n’ roll with a skull at the toe ($695)?
Sebastian Milano does great things with lace that have nothing to do with your great auntie’s antimacassar: edgy lace platform espadrilles and slip-on sneakers. And Missoni zigzags the Birkenstock.
Anyone can do a tuxedo flat, but how about a pair of blue satin and patent leather ones with a floppy satin bow and industrial gold zipper on the side?
Adams carries a handful of bags from the local line Ela including a cool clutch in cobalt blue for $288. “Give them what they don’t know they need before they ask for it,” is his mission statement.
I didn’t know I needed that pair of kelly green gladiator sandals with obscenely big pearls on them. But apparently I did. ritazekas@rogers.com