Answer extracted from the Beyond Luxury podcast — listen to the full episode below.
Why did a luxury shoe designer prioritize comfort over pure aesthetics?
After attending 13 weddings and witnessing women constantly struggling in uncomfortable designer heels, Edgardo Osorio spotted a critical gap in the luxury market: beautiful shoes existed, but wearable luxury did not. He believed that comfort and sensuality are inseparable—if you're not comfortable, you can't be sexy—and designed Aquazzura around the idea that a shoe should let you dance for four hours without thinking about your feet.
Osorio arrived at this philosophy through years of immersion in the fashion industry. Having started as an intern at age 15 for a Colombian designer, he progressed through formal training in accessories in London, then joined Ferragamo as a consultant at age 19 while studying at Polimoda in Florence. By the time he founded Aquazzura in 2012, he had spent nearly a decade understanding both traditional shoemaking and the commercial demands of luxury.
The insight was deceptively simple yet radical: luxury brands had created an artificial divide between beauty and functionality. Designer footwear was treated as sculpture—stunning but unwearable for more than an hour. Osorio refused to accept this trade-off. His founding vision was to craft sensual, aesthetically striking shoes that felt as good as they looked, challenging the assumption that luxury meant sacrifice.
What made this approach commercially viable was Osorio's commitment to craftsmanship and location. He established Aquazzura in Florence, working directly with Italian artisans inside Palazzo Corzini, positioning the brand within the global epicenter of shoemaking tradition. This choice grounded his philosophy not in marketing spin but in genuine production expertise and technical mastery. The result was a brand that stood apart: luxury that didn't require you to suffer.
"If you're not comfortable, you can't be sexy. The product should sell itself."
Edgardo Osorio — Founder & Creative Director of Aquazzura. After spending nearly a decade in the fashion industry working with major houses like Ferragamo, Osorio founded Aquazzura in 2012 with a clear mandate: to create handmade luxury footwear in Florence that prioritized both beauty and wearability. His brand has since grown to be stocked in over 300 retailers across 58 countries, becoming a leader in the movement toward genuinely wearable luxury.
Osorio's philosophy extends beyond shoe design. He operates Aquazzura as an independent, founder-led brand—a rare position in modern luxury where most prestigious houses are now owned by conglomerates with rotating creative directors. This independence allowed him to maintain his original vision without commercial compromise, expanding thoughtfully into complementary categories like handbags and sunglasses rather than chasing quick revenue. The brand's growth—from $12,000 in his bank account at launch to a lifestyle presence in hundreds of boutiques worldwide—proves that comfort-centered luxury was not a niche but a market gap waiting to be filled.
See also
What production constraints have forced Assouline to abandon potential book projects despite creative completion?
A surrealism book in the Collection of Styles was completed and fantastic, with the team spending extensive hours perfecting it. However, production constraints made it impossible to continue.
What factors determine which cultural subjects and stories deserve full book treatment within a luxury publishing program?
Selection comes naturally through curiosity and understanding how the world is changing. Ideas often emerge from meeting people and feeling drawn to their stories and visions.
How did physical luxury retail spaces emerge from a publisher's vision to showcase curated collections?
After spending significant time creating beautiful books, Martine and Prosper found them displayed alongside less carefully crafted publications, inspiring them to create their own dedicated retail spaces.