London - With their striking red soles, eye-watering cost and legion of celebrity fans, Louboutins are the height of sophistication.
But their style comes at a painful price – as actress Emma Thompson, who took to the stage at this year’s Golden Globes with her shoes in her hand, will testify.
Now Christian Louboutin, designer of the notoriously sky-high heels, has admitted what many have long known – he does not make them with comfort in mind.
In an interview Louboutin, 51, claimed it is far more important to him that his shoes – which start at around £425 (about R7 600) and can cost more than £1 000 – have sex appeal.
He said: “It’s not the height of the heel which makes it comfortable or not, it’s how you arch, how you balance. You can get mid-heels which are super difficult to walk in.
“I don’t think of comfort when I’m designing a shoe. You can’t. Of course, things need to be done properly – a shoe is made to be walked in – but creatively I’m not thinking about comfort at all.
“The first emotion I want to provoke is, ‘How beautiful! How sexy!’ I don’t want people to think, ‘How comfortable’.”
Louboutin also revealed that the Duchess of Cambridge is a fan of his designs, having been gifted a pair of boots by Victoria Beckham. He told The Times: “She’s been photographed wearing my boots, she looked fantastic.”
Other famous devotees include singer Lily Allen and actress Gwyneth Paltrow.
When Thompson, 55, was forced to take off her Louboutins at the Golden Globes in January, she declared: “I just want you to know, this red [the soles], it’s my blood.” But she is not the only celebrity to have fallen foul of the heels, which can be up to eight inches high.
Broadchurch star Olivia Colman, 40, admitted that her £525 Louboutins were “murder to walk in” after taking them off to collect her Best Actress gong at the Royal Television Society Awards.
She said: “They are beautiful shoes, but I’m really a flip-flops type of girl. I couldn’t actually stand up in them.”
Louboutin’s philosophy is in stark contrast to rival footwear designer Manolo Blahnik, who once said: “There is nothing charming about a woman who cannot walk in her shoes.”
The Louboutin brand began in 1991 after the French designer used his assistant’s red nail varnish to paint the bottom of a shoe, creating his signature red sole. His range is now sold in 55 countries. - Daily Mail