MY LIGHT BULB MOMENT
Shoe entrepreneur Lisa Kay
In 2017 Lisa Kay, 56, launched Sole Bliss, the comfortable high-heel brand worn by the Duchess of Cornwall and Helen Mirren. She lives in London with her husband Roger. They have two sons, Oliver, 30 and Zak, 26. WAY back in the 1980s, I left my accountancy job in the City to launch a fashion label with my husband Roger. We started out making handcrafted belts in a factory in East London, which were snapped up by Selfridges, John Lewis and Topshop.
My lightbulb moment with shoe design came when I started growing a bunion — a painful bump on the base of my big toe. I looked into how many other women were suffering with them and couldn’t believe the numbers.
So I decided to launch a pioneering footwear collection for ‘ladies who can’t wear heels’. The comfortable higher shoes were aimed at the ten million women in the UK who have painful feet.
This year, however, the market for elegant shoes changed. Prior to the pandemic, we were mostly selling heels. But during lockdown solebliss.com we realised there was a growing desire for flat shoes, as everyone was walking long distances.
People assume trainers are always comfortable, but ill-fitting shoes can cause irreparable damage to your feet, posture and even circulation.
That’s why we created our Miracle Trainers range of ultra-comfy flats in chic colours. Our first collection, which launched in August, sold out in less than 48 hours. Now we have eight styles.
We work with a team of British podiatrists and Italian artisans. Our ‘luxe trainers’ are made differently from normal trainers. They are much deeper and have no stitching over pressure points. I’m annoyingly critical, but that’s because I know that even a stitch in the wrong place will rub.
The trainers have a chunky shockresistant platform sole, an anatomically contoured footbed and a hidden stretch panel. A seamless leather lining prevents rubbing, and the side zip means you only need to lace them up once.
All our shoes are handmade in Italy, where the entire female workforce understands where I’m coming from.
My son Oliver is getting married in August, and we look forward to getting out the heels again for occasions like that.
But if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that comfortable fashion has become a bigger priority for far more of us.