Manolo Blahnik Sets Sights on Growing its Men’s Business

Although Manolo Blahnik has become a household name when it comes to luxury footwear and built a business with annual sales of some 70 million euros, what is not widely known is that he has been designing men's shoes since the early days of his career.

"My first men's shoe was called Hockney, 1971," the designer said. "It was a very simple, effortless shoe, with a rubber sole and soft suede upper, which came in an assortment of vibrant color combinations: yellow and blue, red and blue, and red and yellow. Extremely comfortable, you could wear it all day, every day and that was very important for me. I designed and made it in one weekend in a factory in Northampton, England. Many of my friends from that time had a pair including Brian Ferry, Eric Bowman, Peter Slazenger, Peter Hinwood and, of course, David Hockney."

But like many other brands, Blahnik soon realized the true opportunity lay in focusing his attention on the larger women's market. That strategy has clearly paid off, but in recent years Blahnik has once again begun putting more emphasis on men's.

As Kristina Blahnik, Manolo's niece and chief executive officer of the company, explains: "In 2018, we decided as a business to invest in developing a comprehensive shoe collection for the modern man."

Andrew Wright, president of the Americas for the U.K.-based company, said men's currently represents between 10 percent and 15 percent of annual sales and is "growing year-on-year. It's the biggest commercial opportunity we have. Men are back to shopping and want something fresh and creative, with a big focus on comfort that they have become accustomed to while dressing down. They are ready to invest in quiet, creative luxury with an insider's confidence of buying into a brand name that inspires timelessness and resolute quality."

To capitalize on this opportunity, the company has opened separate dedicated men's spaces at its retail stores on Madison Avenue in New York, Burlington Arcade in London and in Omotesando and Roppongi Midtown in Tokyo. The company's stores in East Hampton, New York, and Paris also offer a selection of men's product.

The most striking statement is the New York store at 717 Madison Avenue, the largest in the fleet, which opened in June 2021 and replaced a smaller unit on 54th Street that carried women's shoes with just a "vignette" for a couple of men's models, Wright said.

Initially, he said, the company had committed to only half the space, but when Kristina Blahnik saw the shop next door was available, she jumped at the chance to take both spaces and knock down the wall between the two stores to allow easy access to the vastly expanded men's shop.

"We’d been offering men's on a small scale since 2018, but this meant we could have a real statement," Wright said.

Quite a statement it is. The Madison Avenue store marked the first time that the full women's and men's collections were offered at the same location. The men's store features a library of fixtures in peacock-blue lacquer with the shoes displayed on adjustable tonal shelves. There is a fully functional bar with a brass countertop that offers non-alcoholic beverages and encourages customers to shop and socialize.

In terms of product, the assortment ranges from bedazzled tuxedo shoes in suede, silk or velvet to raffia sandals. Everything is made in Italy and the models include loafers with hand-beaded tassels, Art Deco-style buckles or handmade bows; penny loafers with flexible outsoles that are often unlined for comfort; bubblegum pink boat shoes, and the company's unique take on the sneaker, the Semanado weekend shoe in a variety of colors with contrast eyelets.

There are unconventional drivers in mixed materials such as leather and suede with fold-down backs; lightweight mules; sandals with padded footbeds; a reinvented Witney oxford from the ‘80s; an unlined chukka boot inspired by styles worn by polo players in the 1930s; lightweight lug-soled oxfords, and a retro-inspired patent leather zipped bootie with a chiseled toe box.

As Manolo Blahnik said: "There are some wonderful creators in the market and I adore classic designs that are beautifully made. I find sneakers quite challenging and not visually appealing, and they seem to be everywhere at the moment, I hope that changes in the near future. I do like subtle style lace-ups like a classic Converse or my Semanado style, which is very minimal and elegant. I really despise chunky trainers."

While black and brown shoes are a key part of the mix, the selection also includes eye-popping colors and patterns such as zebra and cow prints on everything from a tuxedo slipper to a hiking boot. Wright said, perhaps surprisingly, the bestselling colors are pastel pinks and blues, oxblood and forest green.

Kristina Blahnik described the collection as ripe with "color, creativity and comfort," which have long been "pillars of the collection. Manolo Blahnik Men's is about expressing individuality from head to well-dressed toes."

The store also sells a variety of accessories including leather gloves made in Milan and ash wood umbrellas from North London with a surprise pattern of a sun on the interior.

Prices for the footwear start at $700 and go up to $2,000 or more for special pieces. "And we don't get any pushback," Wright said. "I think we’ve hit a sweet spot that guys can understand."

Wright, who joined the Manolo Blahnik company six years ago, quickly saw the void in the business for a comprehensive men's collection. "We always had a vignette in London but never a full collection. But I came from Ralph Lauren and Louis Vuitton, so I knew how big men's could be."

The first test came in 2017 in London when a Parker Pen store next door to the Manolo Blahnik women's store in Burlington Arcade became available. The company decided to take the space, which Wright said was "tiny," and brainstormed about what to do with the extra square footage. "We thought, should we do a café or a flower shop, and I said, ‘Why not a men's store?’"

The experiment was a success and proved the viability of the men's footwear space. So it was full-steam ahead in terms of expanding the styles and materials of the collection.

"We went through our archives and reconfigured the line for the 2020s. It's classics reinvented," Wright said. "Mr. Blahnik is always polished but he's not afraid of color, pattern or sparkle."

As Manolo Blahnik explained: "I don't follow fashion or trends, nor do I focus on what other people are doing, I just do what I like, and I design shoes as I am inspired by books, films, people, artists, the world. If you create shoes that fit well, that are made well and with wonderful craftsmanship — and of course ensure you look after them — they will always stand the test of time. Color and comfort are at the heart of my designs and shoes that last."

Kristina Blahnik added: "With retail locations in London, Tokyo and New York, the men's collection continues to evolve season-on-season to cover every component of our discerning clients’ wardrobing needs — from smart polished classic styles for the office through standout opulent creations for celebrations, to relaxed downtime moments kicking back at the weekend."

The men's customer runs the gamut but leans toward a man who is comfortable with fashion. That includes celebrities such as Channing Tatum, Seth Rogen, Chase Stokes, Penn Badgley, Sebastian Stan and others who don the designer's shoes on red carpets.

Wright said men in general are familiar with the name and recognize the brand's reputation for quality, so the goal is to get the word out to more guys by hosting events for fashion insiders and influencers. An event is slated for this week at a resort in the Catskills in upstate New York and another will be held in the U.K.

All told, Manolo Blahnik operates 19 monobrand stores, seven of which are operated by the company while the rest are franchised. Although the units that carry men's are designed to appeal to guys, it's the collection itself that really draws people in, Wright believes.

In addition to its own stores and online, the men's collection is sold at Mr Porter, Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Ssense.

Going forward, Wright said the goal is not to add any additional silhouettes, but to further publicize the fact that Manolo Blahnik sells men's footwear. That will be helped on June 19 when a pop-up opens in Harrods to showcase the men's collection for the first time. It will be open through July.

Wright said there is some discussion of opening men's-only stores that are not connected to a women's boutique, and the company also plans to further increase its presence on the West Coast and the Southern U.S.

"We have high hopes for the future expansion which are based on the enthusiastic feedback from our d-to-c clients in-store and some of the most influential men's retailers in the world," Wright said. "We are seemingly hitting a sweet spot between color, creativity and comfort."

Manolo Blahnik celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2021, a year where it notched record sales and returned to profitability. In the 12 months ended Dec. 31, 2021, profit before tax rose to 6.5 million euros, compared with a loss of 4.7 million euros in fiscal 2020. EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, increased to 8.8 million euros from 0.5 million euros. Sales climbed 65 percent to 69.9 million euros from 42.3 million euros in the corresponding period in 2020.

Although a private company, Manolo Blahnik files with Companies House, the register of U.K. businesses.