Meet The New Face In Footwear

Following in the (if you'll pardon the pun) footsteps of designers including Sophia Webster and  Jimmy Choo, Kay Whitehouse became a student at London College of Fashion's Cordwainers with a view to launching her own label - and her latest accolade might just help her make a success of that business. As well as receiving vast technical knowledge from the college's professors and lecturers, Whitehouse has just added a placement within the Saks buying team to her forthcoming plans - meaning that her commercial awareness and financial nous will also be honed.

Kay Whitehouse

"It still hasn't sunk in that I will be going to NY," she said. "I am excited about it all, but I am especially looking forward to being in the centre of the footwear industry in the world's most vibrant city, seeing the development of the world's fashions at first hand and experiencing Saks's operations and in particular the buying activity. After university I hope to find a design position within the footwear industry. But my ultimate dream is to one day have my own footwear brand on the shelves of Saks."

With a collection conceived on the day that her parents told her that they planned to sell her childhood home, Whitehouse won over the judges with her modern-craft offering. Nostalgiac and playful, while still entirely wearable, the collection displayed not only her artistic vision and eventual skilled execution, but also her awareness of what women want.

"We saw an opportunity to be a part of the future of footwear," Elizabeth Kanfer, Saks' senior fashion director of accessories, said of the American store's involvement in the competition. "The collaboration with Cordwainers allows Saks Fifth Avenue to create a dialogue with emerging talent that will hopefully create a lasting relationship with the future designers in the industry. The winner of the design challenge is offered an internship in the buying office at Saks and this provides insight into how a business is run, which we have learned is invaluable for a new designer."

"Kay is a totally dedicated student whose passion for her subject shows in everything she does," Sue Saunders, Cordwainers course leader of the BA Hons in Footwear, told us. "As a designer she is never satisfied until she has worked out every tiny detail for every shoe. Her eye for line and colour is superb, while her individual style comes through in the handcrafted elements of her work. Through the real-world experience with Saks, Kay will learn how to balance her creativity with consumer needs and profitability; an invaluable lesson for a young person wishing to work in the fashion business."