Candace Blake Shoes

I have always had a love for shoes.  I guess you can say I got it from my momma.  My mother was always on top of her shoe game. 

After graduating from Katharine Gibbs Business School, I was hired to be the receptionist at Nine West's New York showroom.  That is where my love for designing shoes grew.  I was surrounded by designers, salespeople and buyers and I fell in love with the atmosphere. 

In 2004, I started my own women's shoe line with a manufacturer in Brazil.  All of my sketches came to life and were just as I wanted them.  I launched my line in November of 2004 and had a great turn-out. Unfortunately, my manufacturer turned out to be shady and kept all of the money I gave him for my customer's orders.  I lost a lot of money and learned a lot from that experience.  I then turned to Italy.  My new manufacturer there also did a great job in bringing my styles to life.  The shoes I currently have in stock were produced by him and his team.  All of the shoes below can be purchased on my site at http://www.candaceblake.com/.

The problem with me using Italy is the costs for samples, production and retail.  I spent a lot of money on a pair of shoes and had to accommodate sizes 6-11.  On top of that, I had a hard time trying to sell these shoes that retail for $300 and up.  I could not find people who can afford that.  I lowered my prices so that I can get rid of them and start fresh with a cheaper manufacturer.

I am happy that I found someone in China and they are currently working on some samples for my Fall/Winter 2012 line.  I should be getting them back next month.  I cant wait!!  My new line is  full of flirty and unique styles for the bold, fashion forward woman. I am color blocking and mixing all types of materials.  This line is truly sexy and in a class of its own.  I plan to launch this line next summer but will focus on selling wholesale.  This will cut out a lot of the hard work such as finding the customers interested in my style and prices, overhead fees, shipping, etc.

For updates on my line please like my Candace Blake Shoes page on FaceBook and follow me on Twitter at CB Shoes.