Perfect 10

Young Gianvito Rossi grew up in dad Sergio Rossi’s shoe atelier, so it is no surprise that he knows how to create the perfect heel: timeless and comfortable. Celebrating 10 years of his eponymous label, he reveals to Daphne Chen-cordeiro 10 things you didn’t know about the brand

The secret to the Gianvito Rossi signature stiletto is… carbon fibre. I wanted to create the lightest sandal, both in terms of weight and design. Carbon fibre worked perfectly.

The most crucial step in

shoemaking is… the way you assemble the shoe; specifically, the lining. It affects the quality and fit of every shoe.

The only way to creating

comfortable heels is… having the perfect shoe last. It’s an element that you really need to put thought and care into. When it comes to designing footwear, I always start with… the proportion and silhouette, and then consider the materials and details after. The newest material used in our autumn/winter 2017 collection is… a rich matte satin in a series of intense hues for our pumps and sandals. It is an understated material, and is classic, timeless and modern. That is what the Gianvito Rossi brand is about. The number of people involved in each shoe is… more than 50. They are involved in a number of tasks, from the cutting of the leather to the shoe finishing. There are so many ways to create a pump and I choose… the method with 60 steps, instead of 30, because my focus is always on quality first. The first people who testdrive every Gianvito Rossi shoe are… our female employees at the factory. They have technical knowledge when it comes to footwear and they give the most honest feedback. They are truly the best! My father Sergio Rossi created shoes, and so do I… My son is working with me now and hopefully, my daughter will too. The best advice that my father gave me on shoemaking is… “there is always a way to do it better, keep looking for it!”