From The Straits Times    |

 

Kristina Blahnik is all smiles as she met with us at the Mandarin Oriental. The Cambridge-educated, former architect and niece to Manolo Blahnik was in town to share her experiences and success stories at the inaugural Brainstorm Design Conference, the feature conference of Singapore Design Week 2018, having been appointed as the CEO of the shoe empire in 2009.

For someone who hardly gives talks as reported in the media, the statuesque Kristina took to the stage to stress the importance of creativity in the organization, and sharing values she deems important to her uncle’s brand, namely humility, quality, modesty, respect and creating beauty.

“We think in 500-year plans. My purpose in life is to protect his legacy. That is what we’re about,’’ a bold statement that brought oohs and aahs from the crowd. After all, there is immense pressure to manage a family-owned luxury business amidst ongoing fashion upheavals.

Merging her training and lessons in architecture and fashion, with her strong business acumen, the Spanish company has increased revenue six times and opened 16 stores around the world. What an achievement! (And yes, that’s right, there will be a Manolo Blahnik store opening at Marina Bay Sands, so stay tuned).

Watch her video (above) as she takes on our questions, as well as two fans’ questions we picked for this interview.

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