LEOPOLDINE

"Clothing has always been my language. As a little girl, I was already making outfits for my dolls and miniature designs. I dreamt of becoming a fashion designer.

Without family support, I did not study in that field. I explored art history, cultural mediation, architecture, interior design… without ever finding my way.

One day, when I was 15, my best friend Othilie came over. She was wearing a very simple outfit: jeans, a white T-shirt… and red croc loafers. That is when I understood that shoes could transform a silhouette, tell a story, give character.

Later, at architecture school, a teacher asked us to draw a sneaker. I couldn't do it. But at that very moment, my new dream was born: I would create my own shoe brand.

It took time for my project to mature. I worked in restaurants, lived in New York as an au pair, then joined my father's antique art gallery in Paris... But deep down, the dream persisted. In March 2022, I decided to come back to it. For real.

The following summer, on a beach in Normandy, I met Suzon, a leather goods product designer. She was leaving her job to go freelance. Perfect timing! It was the sign I had been waiting for!

Together, for almost a year, we put our whole heart into designing my first pair of shoes. The leather, the shape, the arch… nothing was left to chance. We wanted a shoe that feels good for the foot, but also for the soul. Something beautiful, comfortable, assertive, but never loud. A shoe like a signature.

I want to create shoes that last, that have meaning, that respect time and people.
No endless collections, no mass production. Just well-thought-out, well-made pieces, at the right time.

This is only the beginning."

— Léopoldine