African-American shoe designers

There seems to be a distinct shortage of to die for African designer shoes. 

So, in the African spirit of oneness (and laying claim to anything remotely African including Barack Obama!) I took a trip around the USA to see if I could find any hot African-American shoe designers.

I also feel that I’ve grossly underrepresented the African-American community so far and this is the start of a bit more incorporation......one Africa, one love!

Anyway, after my field trip (for the record, my trip was virtual!) I have to report.............I found plenty of designers! Here are a few of my personal favourites based on nothing other than my taste (yes, it’s my blog so you get stuck with what I like!)

All of these designers were named by the Atlanta Post as must-watch designers of this year.

Enjoy!

Fever Shoes by Natischa Harvey

Her clients include Raven Symone, Vivica Fox and Angela and Vanessa Simmons (who have a shoe line of their own!)

Look at those gorgeous shoes, need I say more??!!

Fevershoes.com

Artyce Footwear by Candra Palmer

This lady grew into her love of design through an unconventional route. With an information systems degree she went straight to work for Intel. She soon discovered a knack for sales and marketing which led her to explore fashion companies. She designed shoes for herself and her friends by night until Artyce became a fully-fledged brand.

Her pay off line is “Unique treats for your feet”. Don’t you just love that?

Shane Shawn Shoes by Shane & Shawn Ward

(try saying that after a couple of margaritas!)

This dynamic duo (twins no less!) has what they call a “Boardroom Rockstar” approach to design.

Shane originally designed for Adidas while Shawn, an engineer by training, worked with General Motors initially. Their company came about more by accident and circumstance more than a focused choice, but boy, are we happy it did!

One of the things I admire about these guys is that a portion of all their sales goes towards an organisation combating violence against women.

The focus of their shoes is comfort as well as style. I’m in!

http://shaneandshawnstore.com/

Pastry Footwear by Vanessa and Angela Simmons

When Daddy is Rev. Run and Russell Simmons is your uncle, there’s not much pressure to do anything with your life. These two decided that being reality starlets wasn’t enough and launched their own line of footwear in 2007.

Their line is trendy sneakers aimed at young girls so why you might not wear these yourself, grab a pair for your niece, daughter or younger sister.

Anyhoo, those are just a few of many, many African-American shoe designers out there. Who are your favourites? Drop me a line. Would you like to see any of them in our online store? Just holler and let me know!

Ciao!