Introduction
I first discovered Alzuarr's stunning 'Cece' metallic silver pointed toe high heels. I have always thought the classic style 5 inch high heels on a female give off great confidence, and I love how creative director Zeynep Dag as a modern art twist, in the form of the circular cutouts, which work so well. I am also a huge fan of her watermelon inspired "Mabel" pumps. I contacted Zeynep personally, and have a wonderful conversation about her designs, and she kindly invited me to her showroom in London during fashion week. I am very grateful to Zeynep for the invitation, and sharing her passion for her designs with me. I have invited fellow fashion blogger and personal friend Amina Allam to accompany me to the event, to share her thoughts and experiences.
About Alzuarr
"Born in 1990, Zeynep Dag combines her passion for modern design and art, her sense of creativity and an abundance of luxury materials into desirable footwear.
After attending two Bachelors Design and Art & Design and Art in Education at ArtEZ, Zeynep earned a Masters degree in Modern and Contemporary Art. She started her career at the age of 18 in the fashion industry and worked for several huge international brands. She is teaching design classes at different Art Academies.
In 2017 Alzúarr was founded by Zeynep Dag. In the same year she presented her first luxury shoe collection consisting solely of handmade pieces.
To Zeynep, shoes are a metaphor of power. The goal of her shoe designs is to give every woman a sense of being powerful and confident. Contemporary art, street fashion and minimalism are a big inspiration to her, resulting in an eclectic and refined style. Alzúarr shoe designs are synonymous with classic sophistication and timelessness. The keyword in the brand’s design philosophy is feminine power. Luxury materials such as genuine leather, combined with quirky designs and a meticulous attention to detail, form the iconic style of the brand."
- Alzuarr.com
- Zeynep Dag
Visiting The Showroom Event
The Store Studios
180 Strand,
London,
WC2R 1EA
Tuesday, 19th September 2017
09:00 - 17:00
My Photos From The Event
My Thoughts
I spontaneously bumped into Zeynep by the London Fashion Week decorative advertising, where she was displaying her beautiful collection of unique feminine high heels on the top of each letter. Zeynep is always thinking about her brand, and the unique ways to produce creative imagery to advertise via her instagram.
I spoke with Zeynep briefly about how quickly her brand has developed in such a short time, establishing only 9 months ago. As you can see from the photos above, I got some beautiful shots of each of the shoes onto of the "LFW" lettering.
We then moved from this area towards Zeynep's allocated showroom space where the Alzuarr branding was in full display. A combination of 10 beautiful high heel shoes and boots,with the pairs placed neatly on top of the white blocks, whilst the single shoes were placed on top of brass elevated stands. The presentation was fantastic.
I continued to talk with Zeynep to get a deeper insight into her brand, and her ideas for the future. If you are ever lucky enough to meet Zeynep in person only thing will be instantly apparent... She LOVES shoes!. Throughout our whole conversation her beautiful smile was beaming, along with the clear passion she has for designing shoes and making women happy.
I asked Zeynep about her upbringing and what impact this had on her designs and creating the brand. Zeynep explained to me, her mother and father separated whilst she was young, and it was tough on her. She remembers telling her mother all she wants to do in life is design beautiful shoes. Once leaving university she worked for high street brands which solely wanted her to recreate the catwalk designers soles, and bring them to the high street. Zeynep felt completely restricted and unable to inject her own creative thoughts, so she decided to create her own brand.
Zeynep continued to tell me about how she established her brand. The planning for the brand has taken an estimated 5 years, this is due to saving enough money by herself in order to put the brand to fruition. I highly respect Zeynep for this. Most new brands have funding behind them, either from investors or from within the family, which Zeynep did not have. I asked her about the possible thought of investment in the future, but Zeynep was adamant she would never except, as the money is not important to her, her desire and passion is whats most important, and to inspire other woman to be powerful.
A question I was desperate to ask Zeynep was 'what are the inspiration for your designs?'. Zeynep explained to me, the 'Pretty Venus' shoes she designed feature the orchid flower, which have never to her knowledge featured on a shoe before, and she also designed this with her mother in mind. The 'Cece' (my favourite) was designed with the thought of becoming the staple, iconic shoe, but Zeynep did not want to produce a standard classic pointed toe pump, which all the other top designers have (such as the Jimmy Choo 'Anouk', or the Christian Louboutin 'Pigalle'). She wanted it to be more unique but still a classic shape. Perforated designs have been designed in the past, but not with larger cutout circles, and this is the mindset behind the design. I am so glad she did, as the shoes are phenomenal, and have the air of confidence and power.
Finally after a long discussion with Zeynep I asked her about the future. She already has more designs in mind, but at this time wants to establish the current shoes she has. She plans to release a 24 carat gold colour version of the 'Cece' and more customization for the customers on the current shoes to enhance the shopping experience.
I had a wonderful time meeting Zeynep, and I love how genuine of a person she is. I can't wait to see her again at future events, and I am excited for her future designs.
I spoke with Zeynep briefly about how quickly her brand has developed in such a short time, establishing only 9 months ago. As you can see from the photos above, I got some beautiful shots of each of the shoes onto of the "LFW" lettering.
We then moved from this area towards Zeynep's allocated showroom space where the Alzuarr branding was in full display. A combination of 10 beautiful high heel shoes and boots,with the pairs placed neatly on top of the white blocks, whilst the single shoes were placed on top of brass elevated stands. The presentation was fantastic.
I continued to talk with Zeynep to get a deeper insight into her brand, and her ideas for the future. If you are ever lucky enough to meet Zeynep in person only thing will be instantly apparent... She LOVES shoes!. Throughout our whole conversation her beautiful smile was beaming, along with the clear passion she has for designing shoes and making women happy.
I asked Zeynep about her upbringing and what impact this had on her designs and creating the brand. Zeynep explained to me, her mother and father separated whilst she was young, and it was tough on her. She remembers telling her mother all she wants to do in life is design beautiful shoes. Once leaving university she worked for high street brands which solely wanted her to recreate the catwalk designers soles, and bring them to the high street. Zeynep felt completely restricted and unable to inject her own creative thoughts, so she decided to create her own brand.
Zeynep continued to tell me about how she established her brand. The planning for the brand has taken an estimated 5 years, this is due to saving enough money by herself in order to put the brand to fruition. I highly respect Zeynep for this. Most new brands have funding behind them, either from investors or from within the family, which Zeynep did not have. I asked her about the possible thought of investment in the future, but Zeynep was adamant she would never except, as the money is not important to her, her desire and passion is whats most important, and to inspire other woman to be powerful.
A question I was desperate to ask Zeynep was 'what are the inspiration for your designs?'. Zeynep explained to me, the 'Pretty Venus' shoes she designed feature the orchid flower, which have never to her knowledge featured on a shoe before, and she also designed this with her mother in mind. The 'Cece' (my favourite) was designed with the thought of becoming the staple, iconic shoe, but Zeynep did not want to produce a standard classic pointed toe pump, which all the other top designers have (such as the Jimmy Choo 'Anouk', or the Christian Louboutin 'Pigalle'). She wanted it to be more unique but still a classic shape. Perforated designs have been designed in the past, but not with larger cutout circles, and this is the mindset behind the design. I am so glad she did, as the shoes are phenomenal, and have the air of confidence and power.
Finally after a long discussion with Zeynep I asked her about the future. She already has more designs in mind, but at this time wants to establish the current shoes she has. She plans to release a 24 carat gold colour version of the 'Cece' and more customization for the customers on the current shoes to enhance the shopping experience.
I had a wonderful time meeting Zeynep, and I love how genuine of a person she is. I can't wait to see her again at future events, and I am excited for her future designs.
Alzuarr Contact Information
General Enquiries
Info@alzuarr.com
Press Inquiries
Press@alzuarr.com
Wholesale Inquiries
Sales@alzuarr.com
Showroom Paris
20 Boulevard de la Tour-Maubourg,
75007, Paris, France
Visitors by appointment only
Website
www.Alzuarr.com
Info@alzuarr.com
Press Inquiries
Press@alzuarr.com
Wholesale Inquiries
Sales@alzuarr.com
Showroom Paris
20 Boulevard de la Tour-Maubourg,
75007, Paris, France
Visitors by appointment only
Website
www.Alzuarr.com
Contact
Reedfashion@yahoo.com
(+44) 7599 816 833