Sandra Choi
Sandra Choiis Creative Director of Jimmy Choo Ltd, an iconic luxury lifestyle brand defined by an empowered sense of glamour and a confident sense of style. Born in the UK on the Isle of Wight, and educated in Hong Kong, Choi relocated to London as a teenager to finish her secondary school education. During this time, Choiwent to work with her uncle, Jimmy Choo, who was then a couture shoemaker based in the East End of London catering to the global jet set, including Princess Diana.
Passionate about turning her apprenticeship into a career as a designer, Choi attended the prestigious Central St Martins School where she studied for a degree in Fashion Design whilst continuing work as Choo’s protégé. At his side, Choi perfecting the art of creating couture shoes: designing, cutting patterns, stitching, fitting and constructing lasts. Enchanted by the business, Choi eventually abandoned her studies so that she could devote herself full-time to design and the management of the atelier.In 1996, the Jimmy Choo brand was born with Sandra Choi serving as the company’s Creative Director since its inception.Jimmy Choo has grown to be an internationally recognised label with a passionate clientele worldwide.The company’s first Jimmy Choo store was opened in 1996 on Motcomb Street in London complementing a distribution in some of the most prestigious and selective department stores. The sexy cut and fashionable design of the shoes combined with exceptional Italian crafts manship struck a chord with clientele, and the first collection enjoyed immediate success. Choi’s fashion insight combined with the skills she refined as a bespoke shoemaker created a collection that made couture quality available at retail.
With a strategy to expanding internationally, the company established a retail presence in the United States with its first store in New York City in 1998, followed by Los Angeles in 1999. Using the store’s LA foothold tocater to Hollywood celebrities, Choi worked with celebrities and their stylists from a hotel atelier creating Jimmy Choo shoes for award show dressing. The red carpet proved to be the ideal runway for shoes and then handbags, as actresses such as Halle Berry, Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett and Natalie Portman all took their paces wearing Jimmy Choo.Sandra Choi was inducted into The Footwear News Hall of Fame in 2019.Today, she is one of the longest serving female creative directors at a luxury fashion brand.Jimmy Choo is a leading global luxury brand with an empowered sense of glamour and a playfully daring spirit.Known for its distinctive, fashion-forward style and exceptional craftsmanship Jimmy Choo has become a pioneer in the art of celebrity dressing and red-carpet style. Women’s shoes remain the core of the product offer, alongside handbags, small leather goods, scarves, sunglasses, eyewear, belts, fragrance and men’s shoes. Creative Director Sandra Choi has been with the brand since its inception in 1996 with a vision to createone of the world’s most treasured luxury brands. Jimmy Choo has a global store network encompassing more than 200 stores and is present in the most prestigious department and specialty stores worldwide. Jimmy Choois part of the Capri Holdings Limited global fashion luxury group publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker CPRI.
