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Nowhere was that relationship tested more than in 2020, when the pandemic struck. Unable to hold face-to-face trunk shows, Mashizan wondered if his company would survive. As the world went into lockdown, new pairs of luxury shoes were hardly a priority \u2013 after all, there was nowhere to go and no occasion to trot around in a glamorous pair of heels.<\/span><\/p>\n Mashizan began holding private sessions over Zoom with customers in Singapore, including virtual fittings. To his relief, sales did not dry up entirely. Some clients continued buying shoes, even if they had to wait until the world reopened to wear them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEveryone was stuck at home, but then they had all this money to spend,\u201d he recalled with a laugh. \u201cSo what do they do? They buy more shoes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n By then, his decision to build the business around direct relationships rather than depend heavily on department stores had become an advantage. Mashizan could reach out to customers who already knew the label instead of waiting for a wholesale buyer to place another season\u2019s order.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cA lot of my clients are actually MDs, CEOs. They\u2019re really C-suite level,\u201d he said. His customers also include school vice-principals, teachers and other professionals who spend much of the day on their feet and want something both comfortable and distinctive.<\/span><\/p>\n Prices on his website currently range from around S$650 (US$508) for slip-on sneakers and flats to about S$720 for heeled styles. Mashizan believes what unites his customers is not so much their income as a preference for something less widely available, rather than the familiar labels and monograms of major luxury brands.<\/span><\/p>\n His own modus operandi is deliberately small-scale. The shoes are handmade in Florence in limited quantities. This allows him to pay closer attention to materials, construction and the response of the people who wear them, rather than chase volume for its own sake. It also gives him room to experiment and source exclusive materials from artisans, often available only in small quantities.<\/span><\/p>\n A length of vintage kimono fabric he sourced, for instance, might yield just 12 pairs of shoes; another piece of leather might be sufficient for only four pairs of sneakers. Sometimes he offers these materials to long-standing customers before production even begins, giving them first dibs on a pair that may never be repeated.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf you wanted a particular model in that pair, that size, there might only be two pairs,\u201d he explained. \u201cIf you buy in Singapore, someone else buys in Paris. That\u2019s it. In the whole world, only two of you will be having it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The geography of those customers now mirrors Mashizan\u2019s own life. Despite keeping the operation small and production strictly artisanal, he works with collaborators across several cities, including a partner in Paris and publicists in Los Angeles. His shoes are made in Italy, Paris is what he calls his \u201ccreative playground\u201d, and New York is home.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\nA LONG WAY FROM THE HEARTLANDS<\/span><\/h2>\n
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