Nicholas Kirkwood

For collectors of architectural luxury shoes, the name carries real weight. Nicholas Kirkwood is a British footwear designer whose eponymous brand has been recognised repeatedly at the highest level of the industry, and that craft pedigree is what you are buying into. If statement footwear with a serious design reputation is the goal, the label earns its place.

He is the British footwear designer behind the eponymous label. Born in July 1980, he lives in Bethnal Green, London, and learned the craft of shoemaking at London's Cordwainers College. That formal shoemaking training underpins the technical, sculptural feel of his work.

Kirkwood formed his eponymous British brand in 2004, together with his business partner Christopher Suarez. So the label is the work of a trained shoemaker striking out under his own name, rather than a designer brought into an existing house. That origin is part of its appeal.

The luxury conglomerate LVMH. In 2013, LVMH acquired a majority stake in Kirkwood's company for an undisclosed sum. That backing put the brand inside one of the most powerful groups in luxury fashion.

Through a broad luxury network. Kirkwood's collections have been distributed in 150 leading department and specialty stores around the world, alongside three flagship stores in London, New York and Las Vegas. Buying through those established channels is also the surest way to know a pair is genuine.

Yes, for an Italian one. In 2010 Kirkwood succeeded Jonathan Saunders as creative director of the Milan-based fashion house Pollini, a role he held until he left in 2014. It is a useful sign of how widely his footwear eye was valued beyond his own label.

A long list, concentrated in accessories. He has twice been named Accessories Designer of the Year at the British Fashion Awards, and in 2013 he became the first Accessories Designer to win the British Fashion Council/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund. The recognition stretches back to emerging-talent prizes early in his career.

Plenty of early prizes pointed to it. He won the Condé Nast / Footwear News Vivian Infantino Award for Emerging Talent in 2005, the Vogue Italia 'Who's on Next' accessory award in 2007, and Footwear News Designer of the Year in 2008. The British Fashion Council also backed him through its New Gen programme.

Because the whole arc of his career sits in footwear and accessories. His training was in shoemaking, his brand is a footwear label, and his awards are overwhelmingly accessories honours, including being named Accessories Designer of the Year more than once. That single-minded focus is exactly what set him apart.

Protect the structure and the surface. For sculptural high-fashion footwear, add sole protectors before first wear, store the shoes with shapers or tissue to hold their lines, and keep delicate materials away from rain and abrasion. A specialist cobbler is worth it for resoling and heel-tip repairs on shoes at this level.

End-of-season sales at luxury retailers are the most reliable windows for sharper pricing, since that is when current-season stock is marked down. Signature, evergreen silhouettes tend to hold value better than trend pieces, so they are the safer buy at full price. Sizing can be limited late in a sale, so move quickly once you spot your size.