You’ve got a major event on the horizon, so you did the smart thing and shopped at True Fashionistas consignment store, Naples for the full designer treatment. Armed with a drop-dead gorgeous Prada dress and Coach purse, all you need now is some stunning footwear. It is a hard decision, no doubt, with so many stellar creations lined up vying for your attention. It’s just something about those Jimmy Choos.
HISTORY OF JIMMY CHOO – EARLY DAYS
Biography.com reminds us how in Season 3 of Sex and the City, Sarah Jessica Parker's Carrie Bradshaw has a Cinderella moment while running for the Staten Island Ferry, exclaiming, "I lost my Choo!"
Whether you’re having a Sex and the City flashback, looking to channel British royalty (Princess Diana was a mega fan, as is Princess Kate), or just know quality when you see it (or all of the above), getting your Jimmy Choo fix has become a standard in True Fashionista designer footwear fashion.
To think, it all started in 1948, when Jimmy Choo Yeang Keat was born in Penang, Malaysia. The son of a shoe cobbler who wanted him to follow in his footsteps, Choo was an enthusiastic learner, creating his first pair of shoes at age 11.
Choo recalls those days for Biography, “When I first started, my father wouldn't let me make a shoe. Instead, he said: 'Sit and watch, sit and watch.' For months and months, I did that."
Once he had learned the craft, Choo headed to England in the early 1980s to study at Cordainers Technical College, where he graduated with honors in 1983.
HISTORY OF JIMMY CHOO – VOGUE DISCOVERY
Upon graduating from college, Choo decided to stay in England. In 1983 he opened his first shop in the town of Hackney in a former hospital building. His reputation for making True Fashionista footwear grew quickly, and not two years later, Vogue featured Choo’s creations in an eight-page spread. Oh, you’re in love already? Find your fave Jimmy Choos at True Fashionistas, the best designer consignment store.
HISTORY OF JIMMY CHOO – CELEBRITY FANBASE
The Vogue piece got Choo noticed alright, and soon he was being commissioned by celebrities for his custom designs. The aforementioned Princess Diana was endlessly photographed wearing his creations. The Vogue spread also cemented his relationship with the magazine, becoming instrumental in the rise of the Jimmy Choo brand.
Up until then, he was still relatively unknown, producing only 20 or so handmade pairs of shoes a week. Choo’s relationship with Vogue, however, proved to be a turning point in his career. Tamara Yeardye Mellon, a Vogue accessories editor who often hired him to make shoes for fashion shoots, sensed that the world was ready for Choo’s True Fashionista creations, and suggested a partnership to create a line of ready-to-wear footwear. Choo agreed, and his talent was soon to be unleashed upon the world. Here at Naples’ best consignment store, True Fashionistas, you can also find a diverse selection of Jimmy Choos.
HISTORY OF JIMMY CHOO – BRAND LAUNCH
With Mellon onboard, in 1996 the pair contracted with Italian factories to mass-produce Choo’s creations, and they opened their first boutique shop in London. By the late 1990s, they had established stores in Los Angeles and New York, amid an impressive clientele of Hollywood celebrities that included Julia Roberts, Renee Zellweger and of course, Sarah Jessica Parker.
HISTORY OF JIMMY CHOO – EXCLUSIVE COUTURE
By 2000, major global retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Harrods were carrying Jimmy Choo merch like footwear, handbags, and accessories. Despite their hard-won success, Choo and Mellon began to disagree about the direction of the company. Choo began to long for the simpler days of making shoes in his Hackney shop for a small but devoted group of clients. In 2001, he sold his half of the company to Equinox Luxury Holdings for $30 million and returned to London to run a small shop which also serves as the headquarters for the exclusive Jimmy Choo Couture line catering to discerning clients such as Madonna and First Lady Michelle Obama.
HISTORY OF JIMMY CHOO – PHILANTHROPY
Now back in his happy world where he began custom-designing footwear by hand, Jimmy Choo also focuses his energies on education and philanthropy. A devout Buddhist, he is an Ambassador for Footwear Education at the London College of Fashion and spokesperson for the British Council in its efforts to reach out to foreign students. He is also a recipient of the O.B.E. (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire). A father of two, Choo resides with his wife Rebecca in London.
Get authentic Jimmy Choo shoes, handbags, and accessories for a fraction of the original price at Southwest Florida’s largest lifestyle consignment store, True Fashionistas. Sign up for our emails to score even deeper discounts. Shop in-store or 24/7 online.