Jimmy Choo

Jimmy Choo was founded in 1996 in London by Malaysian Chinese couture shoe designer Jimmy Choo and British Vogue accessories editor Tamara Mellon. The proposition was straightforward. Mellon often hired Choo to make shoes for fashion shoots, and she sensed a larger market for his work. She approached the shoemaker about a partnership to produce a ready-to-wear footwear line.

The label took shape around the women’s heel. Choo’s converted Metropolitan Free Hospital workshop in the East End of London served as the starting point, an appointment-only bespoke studio that drew private clients and fashion editors directly, set in the neighborhood of the Brick Lane and Spitalfields markets.

Choo was already known to fashion magazine editors for his custom patterns and original silhouettes, and for his ability to tailor fabrics, textures, and colors on demand. The brand also claims to have been a favorite of Diana, Princess of Wales.

The Jimmy Choo men’s line arrived as an expansion of a house long defined by its women’s footwear. The collections today span shoes, bags, accessories, jewelry, eyewear, and fragrance across men’s and women’s.

The men’s line works through familiar archetypes finished to house standard. Loafers and derbies appear in modern proportions and hand-finished leathers. Sneakers add technical detail and everyday functionality, with silhouettes such as the Diamond Light and Diamond Space, alongside the Buff tassel loafer on the dressier end. Dress shoes come in leather, suede, and velvet, with classic shades and silhouettes spanning loafers, monkstraps, and oxfords.

That places the house in the same Italian and London craft tradition occupied by names like Manolo Blahnik and Christian Louboutin, often grouped together as the big three of luxury heels, while the embellished evening pieces push it toward red-carpet territory. Recognition has followed.

The brand has won the British Fashion Council Designer Brand category in 2008, the Accessories Council Brand of the Year in 2008, the Footwear News Brand of the Year, and the 2009 Nordstrom Partners in Excellence award.

The business has changed hands several times since the founder’s exit. Designer Jimmy Choo left his namesake brand in 2001, when the company underwent its first sale. Robert Bensoussan’s Equinox Luxury Holdings, backed by Phoenix Equity Partners, bought a 51 percent share in a deal valued around 20 million pounds.

In 2004, brand leaders struck a management-backed deal with Lion Capital for around 100 million pounds. In 2007, the brand sold again, this time for 225 million pounds to TowerBrook Capital. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange until Capri Holdings acquired it in November 2017.

Through every ownership shift, one creative voice has held the line. Sandra Choi is the only member of the founding group still on board. For nearly three decades she has served as Jimmy Choo’s designer and then creative director, a consistent artistic voice across multiple sales and owners. In late 2020, Hannah Colman, with the brand since inception, was named CEO.

Today, the house dresses a Hollywood and red-carpet clientele alongside a global retail base, with 237 stores worldwide as of April 2023. Its strongest market is the EMEA region, which brought in more than 40 percent of its fiscal 2023 revenue of 633 million dollars.