Design Challenge 20|21 200 years of experience… 5 talented designers… 1 timeless shoe collection With 200 years and seven generations of experience, we are proud of Royal Smit & Zoon’s history. We also know that tradition is without value if not connected with ambition. That’s why we like to show our respect for the past by a clear path to an appealing and sustainable future. Royal Smit & Zoon’s Design Challenge is exactly on that path; supported by the expertise of the Arsutoria Design School, five designers are selected. Their goal is to create shoes for the high-end of the fashion industry, with an emphasis on the sustainability of their products. The challenge started in October and will have its grand finale at the 200th anniversary of Royal Smit & Zoon, in May 2021. A tradition meets an ambition. A shoe shows a talent. A drop makes a difference. The assignment: to create a timeless and sustainable shoe collection The challenge for the designers is 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 Royal 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. Meet the designers Alexandros Vasdekis – Greece Read my story Guglielmo Gorno – Italy Read my story Javier Albanil Mogollon – Spain Read my story Hommy Diaz – USA Read my story Laure Wolff – France Read my story About the initiative The fashion industry is too often connected with exploitative working conditions, microplastics, pollution and rapid resource consumption. A system change is needed. With 200 years and seven generations of experience, we are proud of Royal Smit & Zoon’s history. We also know that tradition is without value if not connected with ambition. That’s why we like to show our respect for the past by a clear path to an appealing and sustainable future. The Design Challenge is exactly on that path. Want to know more? Go to designchallenge.info
