Branding the man: why men are the next frontier in fashion retail

Or why I learned to walk in a Cuban heel

It’s not often that a pair of shoes stops me in my tracks, but Yves Saint Laurent’s Jonny Boot has managed to do just that to me for over the last five or so years.

When I first saw them — under YSL’s previous régime of Tom Ford — they looked far too louche to be taken seriously. Uh.. is that a high heel?

“It’s a Cuban heel,” I was informed. Indeed, according to Kenny Abiog, YSL’s men’s buyer for the U.S., the shoe was not exactly a runaway success for the brand when it was launched in 2004.

“Even I looked at it and thought it was the kind of shoe my hairdresser would wear,” said Abiog, on a recent trip to San Francisco where he (alas) had to help pack up the just-closed YSL boutique.

But in very little time the shoe became one of designer Tom Ford’s most successful pieces, and at one point the Jonny Boot accounted for the lion’s share of the label’s men’s wear profits.

“A store would get a shipment of 24 pairs on a Friday and by Monday there were only eight left,” says Abiog.

Thus even under Stefano Pilati’s current reign as YSL’s designer, the Jonny Boot remains. The boot you see here is an exact reproduction of the original, in buttery soft leather and is currently available in a limited edition of 142 pairs. I have my eye on Number 78.

To stand in these shoes, one must stand tall. Comic relief can be had in watching the uninitiated try to walk in them. Some slouch, others stumble, and those even less fortunate walk as if on stilts.

Just remember,  you’re not wearing a pair of Manolo’s so make sure you swagger. At $795, they’re a small price to pay for a legendary shoe from a legendary house, and trust me, they’ll definitely give you the confidence to strut.

The Yves Saint Laurent limited edition Jonny Boot is available in select U.S. boutiques. For more information call (212) 832 7100.

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