Q&a / Rupert Sanderson on his shoe brand’s less-is-more approach: the British designer’s label is loved by Kate Middleton, Kate Winslet and the late Karl Lagerfeld, and works with Swank in Hong Kong

May 25 , 2023

Rupert Sanderson is a renowned British shoe designer. Photo: Handout

Rupert Sanderson founded his eponymous footwear brand in 2001, and has since attracted a cult following including celebrity fans like Catherine, Princess of Wales and Kate Winslet

Over the years, the British shoemaker has collaborated with luxury retailers like Swank in Hong Kong – here, he chats with Style on his spring/summer 2023 collection and the signature pebble shape

Rupert Sanderson has come a long way since he founded his eponymous footwear label in 2001. Besides having a major celebrity following – everyone from Kate Winslet to Catherine, Princess of Wales has been spotted in his understated designs – the British shoemaker has several accolades and memorable collaborations to his name.

Shoe designer Rupert Sanderson at the Rupert Sanderson Store, Elements mall in West Kowloon, Hong Kong, in July 2013. Photo: May Tse

Sanderson talks to Style about his latest collection and partnership with luxury retailer Swank as well as his less-is-more approach to design.

Rupert Sanderson designs are loved by celebrities the world over. Photo: Handout

Tell us about your spring/summer 2023 collection.

The premise of our identifying emblem is the pebble which is on almost every style in the collection. That simple pebble shape, which I developed 15 years ago, is a riff that I’m constantly playing with. You can see how it’s evolved. From the design perspective, that’s the attraction of working with shoes. You’re working with a very small space, creatively.

You’ve got a lot of restrictions on what you can and can’t do. You need to technically know how things work and don’t work. It’s fun coming up with little stories or stories upon stories just around the pebble. In terms of the collection, there’s a grace to it. It’s very particular to Hong Kong ladies, over seasons and seasons of working out what people like and what people respond to. One of the perennial stories is the idea of turning leather into bamboo. I know there’s a lot of bamboo in this city, mostly surrounding the buildings.

Rupert Sanderson shoes on display. Photo: Handout

What was the inspiration behind it?

What tends to happen is that, having been making and designing shoes for quite a long time, you build up a body of work that forms the foundation of every further collection. Doing huge leaps of creative fantasy can confuse people.

Kate Middleton wearing Malone grey suede court shoes by Rupert Sanderson. Photo: Handout

As a recognised brand, there are certain pieces of creative language that I keep coming back to, time and time again. I tend to pare back things. I’m not using materials excessively. Rather than overloading the shoe with lots of different stories, I’m trying to pare it back to just one simple silhouette or just one simple bold accessory that contrasts with the shoe.