When we were 12, our favourite things to do during our pastime were probably the last things that would come to support us professionally when we grow up. However, for the then 12-year-old Christian Louboutin, little did he know that his love for sketching women’s shoes, would someday become not only a thriving profession for him when he grew up, but his name on the lips of every affluent icon out there when it comes to the perfect footwear.
Louboutin spent his adolescence out clubbing at the iconic Le Palace, and watching shows at Moulin Rouge and the Folies Bergères, where his fascination with the showgirls eventually landed him an internship – the beginning of his rather illustrious working career.
There, at the Folies Bergères, his intrigue with the role of the shoe in defining a silhouette grew into an obsession. Before long, he presented his drawings to Hélène de Mortemart, Christian Dior’s fashion director at the time.
You could say that the rest is history for Louboutin after meeting with Hélène: he took up an internship at Charles Jourdan, Dior shoes’ manufacturer; and subsequently, as a personal assistant to the illustrious shoe designer Roger Vivier, who showed him the magical symbiosis of exceptional design and craftsmanship.
By the time the lucky encounter that came by in 1991 for him to rent a boutique at the corner of Galerie Vérot Dodat, a beautiful neoclassical arcade in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, Louboutin was on the cusp of his career as a high-end shoe designer.
Louboutin spent close to 20 years, building his moniker with its signature red-lacquered sole, and it wasn’t until 2009, when his collaboration with singer Mika breathed a new lease of life for its men’s collection.
Almost 30 years later since Louboutin’s first boutique in Galerie Vérot Dodat, Paris, the brand opened its 164th boutique in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur late last year. The 92sqm store is a reference to the first boutique in Paris, with its five facets façade punctuated with arches and red scales.
Inspired by a private boudoir, the delicate atmosphere is contrasted with velvet materials in multiple shades of pink in the women’s area; and palm and peacock patterned fabrics, blue and green colours raised with golden coffered ceiling in the men’s area – design codes in tribute to the typical Parisian gallery.
The new Christian Louboutin chapter in Malaysia begins with the spring/summer 2020 collection, inspired by Louboutin’s creative universe, from the stars that light up the night sky over Paris, to the stars of the circus, the Loubi constellation.
The new season introduces the HappyRui low top sneaker inspired by the iconic tennis shoe from the ‘70s, with its shimmering panels and lamé details, new cap toe construction and raised outsole, mounted on a tonal red lined leather strap.
While now cult styles, such as the Red Runner and the Spike sock sneakers make their much-awaited comeback, along with timeless silhouettes such as the Dandelion and the On the Nile moccasins, the spring/summer 2020 men’s collection sees the debut of hand bags and accessories made from brand new, highly innovative and extremely supple materials.
Adorned with an iconic ‘Loubinthesky’ pattern that incorporates the CL monogram, not to mention logo and signature spikes that recall a star-studded constellation, the leather goods are flashed with a bright light, creating a stunning rainbow display of iridescent colours.
