Zeology X Design Challenge

Design Challenge

Five talented designers from five different countries started their journey on the Design Challenge in October 2020. Their goal was to create shoes for the high-end of the fashion industry, with an emphasis on the sustainability of their products, and with leather as hero of the shoe. Guided by the expertise of the Arsutoria School in Milan they presented their final prototypes in May. The jury called out Hommy Diaz from the United States as the winner.

Shoe collection with Zeology Leather

The challenge for the designers was to create a shoe collection consisting of 6 styles in total with chrome-free and sustainable tanned leather. Their project should be timeless, adaptable to trends and time and according to new social and environmental standards. All subsidiaries of Smit & Zoon have played their part in delivering sustainable leather, Nera for the tanning, Smit for the retanning and Codyeco for the finishing. The leather article is tanned with the new innovation Zeology.

Hommy Diaz: winner of the Design Challenge

The jury deliberated the entries on five elements; design, innovation, storytelling, functionality and sustainability. The versatility and quality of all the designs was high and made it difficult to decide a winner. With his functional and fashionable slip on sneakers it was Hommy Diaz from Los Angeles who got awarded the first place and the opportunity to showcase his ‘Home Base’ concept at WHITE Milano, during the Milan Fashion Week in September 2021.