Touch of leather
By Li Shuo (Beijing Weekend)
Updated: 2004-12-20 08:34

With a new wave of Italian fashion names gracing the international marketplace, luxury leather accessories brand Tod's officially opened its first flagship boutique in Beijing.

Quality in style and presentation of Tod's boutique in Beijing.

CEO Diego Della Valle flew over especially for the launch, adding another notch to its 102 boutiques worldwide.

Within the brightly-lit minimal decor, with a floor paved in oak off-setting colourful vacchetta and ebony walls, leather accessories abound resting on crystal glass shelves and black and white parquetry, a delightful array of shoes, bags, wallets, belts, and other leather accessories, all exclusively made by hand.

Shoes range between 3,000 yuan (US$361) for a pair of 'simple' shoes to as much as 560,000 yuan (US$67,469) for a pair of crocodile-skin boots. Bags float around the 7,000 yuan (US$843) mark.

CEO Diego Dalla Valle affirms that what is available here is no different to the latest collections presented in their other boutiques.

A visitor to Beijing only twice, he holds high hopes of Chinese fashion aficionados favouring his brand.

"The Chinese people are quickly becoming well-acquainted with a high-quality lifestyle, and the image of our "Made in Italy” label caters to their tastes and status. We produce only the best, wished-for products, which are both luxurious and useful," he said.

Tod's was the dream-child of Diego's grandfather, who made hand-crafted shoes in Italy 75 years ago. His legacy of traditional Italian leather skills continues to this day.

Under Diego's command, computer modelling programs are used to examine every procedure of design and manufacture to make the product still more exacting to satisfy customers.

He has held true towards the brand's authenticity in that all procedures in making a product are still by hand. "More than 100 steps are required to make one pair of shoes, using up to 35 pieces of leather. The whole process takes a week, even longer," he said.

Naturally, celebrities make up a large part of its client base. The A-list includes politician Hillary Clinton, film stars Halle Berry, Sharon Stone, and Andie MacDowell, and the late Princess Diana.

However, such signature status is not limited to so few. The articles are made for those who admire excellent taste and have a demand for quality.

"I plan to visit China twice a year, and open more boutiques other than this one in Beijing and another in Shanghai.”

Location: L112, first floor of China World Trade Shopping Centre, Jianguomenwai Dajie.

Tel: 6505-6486

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