Matt Bernson’s shoes pair sex and comfort

Oct 24, 2011
Katherine Sweet • Fashion

A woman with a shoe obsession? Commonplace. But a man with a shoe obsession? Matt Bernson proves that you don’t have to be female to be a serious ladies footwear designer. (Be sure to see giveaway below.)

It all began with a fateful trip to India, when Bernson discovered a beautiful handmade sandal. At first, he simply eyed it as a gift for his then-girlfriend. But after witnessing her excited reaction, he wondered if there was money to be made in importing shoes. Frustrated with his current career, he looked into finding the right factory.

“I didn’t really like what I found, so I started designing and changing everything … I ended up starting from scratch what would become a designer line eventually. But in the beginning, I was just trying to import sandals,” Bernson said.

Bernson is based in New York City, and the Big Apple’s vibes have worked their way into his line. The focus is on the shoe, rather than bells and whistles. He seeks to find that perfect balance of design and construction. Although he lacks a formal design education, he has turned this deficiency into a strength: Having less technical expertise means his shoes can be simpler and less intricate.

“The concept is to have casual, wearable styles that are downtown and cool but not overly designed,” he explained. “It’s actually more about the construction of the shoe rather than the embellishment. So I try to use really technical, interesting ways to build the shoes and make that aesthetically pleasing versus putting in ribbons and gems and jewels. “

In designing for women as a man, he knows he is a bit of an outsider.

“I feel like I am coming to it without my own personal needs addressed,” Bernson said. “So what I am hoping the result is something that is really wearable and that people really love, and it is not just something I am just designing for myself that I think I would wear. A lot of designers say ‘I designed this for me.’ For me, I am trying to design something that other people will love.”

Glancing in his closet, you might not instantly tell he has had an obsession with shoes since childhood. In summer, he goes with simple espadrilles, while in winter he gravitates toward European-style hiking boots. However, his love of little-known footwear, which seemed innately born, has stuck with him.

“Usually I try to find more obscure, not big brand kind of stuff,” he said. “I try to find smaller, more interesting, more unique shoes.”

He takes inspiration from his wife and her friends in designing, using every chance he gets to observe women and what they are wearing. From magazines to stores or even just women strolling down the street, his varied inspirations have turned out shoes with a unique twist.

“(There are) a lot of knockoff and very derivative shoes. I try to be original. I start from scratch and really build something that is unique and has an original point of view. If you see it on the shelf, there shouldn’t be anything else like it that you’ve seen, hopefully. I don’t want it to be some crazy concept art piece. I wanted it to be something people really want to wear every single day,” the designer explained.

via Matt Bernson

Accessibly priced at $143 to $275, his line is also set apart by its socially conscious approach. In a quest to be eco-friendly, Bernson uses naturally tanned leathers and recycled paper boxes and avoids chemical processes. From starting raw material to finished product, his shoes are created as sustainably as possible at every turn.

“With shoes it is almost more important to be socially responsible (than eco-friendly), to use responsible factories, factories that are using real craftsmen instead of the other horror stories that have been told in the fashion industry about child labor and bad working conditions. I work inside the factory whenever I go there, so that I know they have sound practices and it is an amazingly great place to work,” Bernson said.

Crafted by artisans with more than 20 years’ experience, the shoes are built entirely by hand. When Bernson says his shoes are comfortable, he isn’t kidding.

“If you take the shoe out of the box, you immediately see and feel the difference, but when you put the shoe on, there is a real difference,” the designer said. “It is left on the last (shaping device) longer; it conforms to your foot better. If you have done it right and put comfort features in, it should be something you can feel the second you put it on.”

Women, the shoe designer believes, want to be both fashionable and comfortable. Thus his motto, “Sex + Comfort,” born out of a lazy afternoon debate.

“(The motto) is something we came to in reverse. ‘Well, (the shoes) are sexy and they’re comfortable.’ But that seemed too watered down and simple. It is sex and comfort combined, and every style needs to have both of those factors. If it was only a sexy shoe but not comfortable, we would never sell it. And if it is just comfortable and not sexy, then we would also not sell it. We want it to be the perfect balance of both,” he disclosed.

With his personal taste for high-end goods, the decision to make luxury shoes was an easy one. His hope is to craft a product like a fine wine: Something that improves with age. While nothing is indestructible, he laughed, his shoes are designed to last. As he points out, shoe sizes, unlike pants sizes, never really change.

But what he really adores about footwear is how it can add the perfect finishing touch to a look.

“You can change your shoe and change any outfit,” he said. “You can take the most basic outfit and put the right shoe with it and it makes a totally new look and you don’t have to worry about it.”

The Tundra boot, his personal favorite from his collection, is made of cracked shearling with snaps that allow the boot to be worn in six different ways.

After his incredible success with the material, Bernson wan.ts to stay in leather goods, although perhaps branching into jewelry such as leather bracelets and necklaces. He plans to launch a line of handbags and someday tackle the men’s market. Long term, he is contemplating a retail store in New York City.

Experience his line at www.mattbernson.com.