WWW - Kristina Blahnik Sandra

Photographer: phill taylor

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The architect-turned-CEO of Manolo Blahnik shares how she’s helped to redefine her family’s luxury shoe empire—and why her uncle’s perpetual passion for learning has been key to its success.

“I’ve always been particular about my brows—even on shoots with incredible make-up artists, I’d insist on doing my own.”

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On curiosity, community and the power of vulnerability

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I originally studied engineering and worked in that industry for three years, so I launched my business later on in life. At 26, I left my job in France and came to London to study jewellery design. That was almost 10 years ago. I basically used my studies to start working on my business plan. Every time I had a school project, I would design pieces that would be part of my future collection. But I didn’t have a lot of experience in business; I had no idea what a small business was, how to hire, or how to be a manager. I had no connections whatsoever in London – nor in fashion or design.

“Of course, I’m very grateful for the successes we have achieved, and yes, we can celebrate these milestones. But I’m always cautious – I never believe I have ‘arrived’. To me, one day you’re in and the next you could be out. You can’t rest on your laurels.”

“I say ‘work in progress’ a lot or ‘this too shall pass’. Also: ‘don’t forget to have fun’.”

What is your mantra?

“In the beginning, the biggest challenge was doing everything with a small team, but I truly believe it’s important to be hands-on to understand what your business really needs”

“When we got our first negative TikTok review, I panicked. I thought we’d ruined everything. But it turned into one of my biggest lessons.”

“A very old Hermès trench, which I got when I worked at the [brand’s] sample sale in the ’90s, plus a McQueen embroidered cape.”

What is your most treasured fashion item?

£1,465

SHOP NOW

£1,295

SHOP NOW

£1,015

SHOP NOW

£695

SHOP NOW

£1,795

Menki 70 embroidered satin knee boots

SHOP NOW

£1,115

SHOP NOW

I never planned to be part of the family business, but I always was. Even to this day, I don’t see it so much as a business – I see this world as part of who we are as a family. From when I was six or seven years old, the school bus would drop me off at the shop in Old Church Street [in London], and I’d go up to the tiny little head office and do my homework. Then at 5.30pm, when the shop closed, I’d come down, hoover, dust the shoes, brush the suede… It was home, it was part of the family. I think I probably had the longest work experience-slash-internship ever. When I was a little older, I worked in the shop during the holidays, selling shoes, supporting the sales team and helping out in the press cupboard doing send-outs. Then, at the end of the Nineties, when digital photography really kicked off, I was able to photograph the look books: I printed them out, prepared them, and sent them out in beautiful packages to press. In 1999, I photographed the archives. So, really, from 1980 onwards, up until my mid-30s, I was doing things for the company in some shape or form. I only formally became a full-time employee in 2009, when my uncle [Manolo] couldn’t go to the factories to develop the new collection for the very first time. At that point, I understood the very basic principle of making shoes, because I had done a small study on it for an architecture project when I was doing my diploma. I had gone to the factories and learned all the stages of construction and I thought: ‘I know I can build a building, so if you give me your drawings, I can translate them into an object’. That’s one of the main skills an architect needs to have.

After I worked on the Spring/Summer 2010 collection, I felt I needed to tell that story. I wanted to watch the journey of these shoes from beginning to end – the genesis design of them, the development, the wholesale marketing, the press, the communications, the visuals, the install... And that’s when I decided to move from the world of architecture, back home and back to my family. I became CEO in 2013 when my mother wanted to take a step back from her role. I’d spent four years embedding myself in everything at the company and I really was involved in everything. There were only six people in Head Office when I joined, so I got to experience and learn the full breadth of the business. Like a building, I understood its foundations. Next came the challenge of how high we could build it; how many more layers we could add. I don’t love the title CEO – I prefer the term ‘creative strategist’. It’s more reflective of how I’m using both my left and right brain simultaneously. I’m not much of a ‘titles’ person. CEO feels very Americanised and corporate and we try to be everything but corporate, but it is important in terms of growing and unifying the business globally, and being able to have those meaningful conversations. Commercial success should never come at the expense of your soul, your community or your sense of being. That’s when things become unsafe and fractured, so it’s about avoiding anything that is driven by commerciality. It’s so important to us to try to maintain that sense of family, and the safety, warmth, love and relationships that comes with it. For me, the success of our business is about the community [that exists] inside it, and the objects that come out of the creative process. If both of them are coming from a place of joy, of happiness that radiates out, then I think that in itself creates the byproduct of commercial success. I would absolutely never compromise on creativity or the values of our business. If we don’t maintain those, we weaken our foundations, potentially irreparably. I think longevity comes from being really clear on who you are, what you’re doing and who you want to be, both in terms of product and people.

“We celebrate wins—big and small—every day through a WhatsApp group with our leadership team. Everyone shares one big and one small win daily. It reminds us that progress, no matter how small, is still progress. “It’s natural to take inspiration from others, but it’s tough when we see replicas of our products on the market. There are too many loopholes that let brands get away with it. I used to stay quiet about it, but now I see it as a compliment—it means we’re leading, not following, and that Refy is aspirational. “I’m still learning to set boundaries with my phone. So much of my work and life happens there, but I can easily spend hours scrolling without being productive. I’m trying to create a new routine—once I finish work, I leave my phone on my desk for the evening . “I’m a chronic overthinker, and the best advice I’ve ever received came from my brother: whenever you have a problem, look in the mirror and ask, ‘Can I do anything about this?’ If yes, do it immediately. If not, let it go—it’s out of your control.

Kristina

“I started posting on Instagram at a very good time. It was very early on. I would just put outfits together, and my mum would take pictures of me in the kitchen. At the beginning, I was just sharing to friends and family, but over time my following grew. It was a lot easier back then. As my following grew, so too did the opportunities, and I started working with brands, which is how I met Jenna [Meek, Jess’s co-founder]. “I’ve always been particular about my brows—to the point where, even on shoots with incredible make-up artists, I’d insist on doing my own. I was actually on one yesterday and said, ‘I’ll do my own brows.’ Back then, I’d use two gels and three brushes just to get them how I liked — I thought that was normal. Jenna saw what I was doing and asked why I was using so many different products. “I talked her through each step, and her entrepreneurial brain immediately lit up. She said, ‘I think there’s something here.’ We met for lunch and sketched out designs for a dream product — one that featured three brushes to create my everyday sculpted look and hold it in place all day. “Months later, Jenna called and said, ‘I’ve spoken to a lab — they think they can make it. Would you want to start a business together?’ Naively, I said yes, with no experience in make-up or business. I wish I still had some of that fearless energy, because as the brand grows, the stakes get higher, and I’ve become more cautious. I love where we are today, but nothing beats the magic of the beginning.

“Back then, I’d use two gels and three brushes just to get them how I liked — I thought that was normal.”

“I had no idea the process would take two years. Our prototype was a world-first, so there was a lot of back and forth. We eventually launched in November 2020 — a strange time, right in the middle of lockdowns. But with everyone on their phones, it actually worked in our favour. I launched Brow Sculpt on my channel with a simple video of me applying it and saying, ‘We have this brow product — hope you love it.’ That clip went semi-viral because of the instant wow factor. “The lab required a large initial order since it was a new product. We forecasted that the stock would last nine months — it sold out in six weeks. We were out of stock for three months, which wasn’t ideal, but it showed there was a gap for a brand that simplified beauty with innovative, time-saving products that did the hard work for you. “I’m not a make-up artist — I’m just a girl who loves make-up and wants to create beautiful looks in under 20 minutes. From then on, we kept asking, ‘What else needs simplifying in our routine?’ That question still drives everything we do.

“We forecasted that the stock would last nine months — it sold out in six weeks.”

“When we got our first negative TikTok review two years in, I panicked. I thought we’d ruined everything and relied too much on social media. But it turned into one of my biggest lessons — we needed to be clearer about who each product is for. Instead of saying, ‘Everyone will love it,’ we started saying, ‘Don’t buy this if you’re not after that specific look.’ “Our community is our biggest strength. It’s at the core of everything we do. We started out wanting to simplify beauty, but now it’s evolved — I’m often the second person to know what’s launching next because it all comes from our community. They influence everything, from product development to shades. We regularly email our database asking questions like, ‘What do you want to see next?’ or ‘Should the next mascara be blue or brown?’ “We’re so fortunate to have such a close relationship with them. Our products are made for them — nobody else. Some of our biggest viral moments have come from everyday customers, not influencers. One girl in America filmed herself applying Lash Sculpt from Sephora in her bedroom — that video now has over 100 million views. It sold out across Sephora US. You can’t buy that kind of exposure — it’s pure community power. “To stay ahead, we have to keep innovating — not just with products but with every aspect of the business: in-house processes, customer experience, and events. Three years ago, we hosted a community pop-up at a Pilates studio in London. We weren’t selling anything — just meeting people. There were classes upstairs, coffees and matchas downstairs, and a space to connect. People queued for six hours just to be part of it. It’s one of my proudest moments and reminded me why community matters so much.

Manolo Blahnik’s brilliance is that it is unconstrained. Every season, the collection will take you by surprise. Yes, we have our classic styles that have captured people’s imaginations on a very large scale, like the ‘Hangisi’ buckled pump or the ‘Maysale’, which is your perfect 360 shoe in my opinion. But I think what differentiates us is that there is such a wide selection, and everything stems from deep cultural references and historical understanding that my uncle has spent his entire life learning, studying and consuming. Each collection is a visual feast. Even if you’re only going in to buy the simple ‘BB’ pump, you will always have something to look at, that will inspire you to think and make you curious to try it on. We don’t follow fashion, we just do our own thing. We’re not beholden to an Excel spreadsheet telling us what has to be made. Manolo is never told to do this, that or the other, or to follow certain trends or movements. It’s wholly unboundaried; an infinite world of surprise. No collection is ever going to be obvious, so that element of magic and surprise is consistent, and that has meant we’ve maintained our community. When someone connects with us, they will continue being connected. It’s not something that fades over time because there’s always something to excite. Speaking of surprises… We recently launched a Marie Antoinette capsule collection. It’s to celebrate the incredible exhibition that’s currently on at the Victoria & Albert museum [in London], which we immediately threw ourselves at to sponsor. It was one of those magical, very rare moments where all the stars align and we knew that Manolo just had to be part of it. Marie Antoinette is one of the icons of his life; someone he’s always been drawn to, so to get as close to her as he did through this process was so important to us. This little capsule collection he’s designed is very much with her in mind, but as if she was alive today. I currently own about 150 pairs of Manolo Blahnik shoes, but of course I’d like them all! My most treasured are a pair of gold leather sandals from 1976 that I asked to keep when I spent three months in Bath photographing all of the shoes for our archives. I never wear them – they’re more of a collector’s piece, something really special that I own from the archives. Another treasured possession is my collection of ‘Maysales’: I have about 12 colours and I love laying them all out in a spectrum. Looking at them all together makes me smile – it’s like being in a candy store. Some of my shoes are not in such pristine condition, of course, but that’s only because they’ve had a lot of fun and been on many outings. They’ve danced, they’ve walked, they’ve run, they’ve battled the weather, but I look at them and they bring back all those wonderful memories, so I’ll never get rid of them.

“When we got our first negative TikTok review two years in, I panicked. I thought we’d ruined everything and relied too much on social media. But it turned into one of my biggest lessons—we needed to be clearer about who each product is for. Instead of saying, ‘Everyone will love it,’ we started saying, ‘Don’t buy this if you’re not after that specific look.’ “Our community is our biggest strength. It’s at the core of everything we do. We started out wanting to simplify beauty, but now it’s evolved—I’m often the second person to know what’s launching next because it all comes from our community. They influence everything, from product development to shades. We regularly email our database asking questions like, ‘What do you want to see next?’ or ‘Should the next mascara be blue or brown?’ “We’re so fortunate to have such a close relationship with them. They’re who our products are made for. Some of our biggest viral moments have come from everyday customers, not influencers. One girl in America filmed herself applying Lash Sculpt from Sephora in her bedroom—that video now has over 100 million views. It sold out across Sephora US. You can’t buy that kind of exposure—it’s pure community power.

“Like a building, I understood the business’ foundations. Next, came the challenge of how high we could build it; how many more layers we could add.”

Kristina Blahnik may have grown up thinking of her uncle’s iconic shoe brand as ‘part of the family’, but she never set out to join it—let alone lead it as CEO. Yet after training as an architect and running her own practice for a decade, she found herself drawn back ‘home’, stepping back into the fantastical world of Manolo Blahnik to propel it into a bold, unboundaried and global new era. Here, she tells Clementina Jackson about her unconventional career path, the important lessons and challenges along the way, and why she’ll never compromise on creativity, community or soul in her quest for success.

Blahnik

“I think longevity comes from being really clear on who you are, what you’re doing and who you want to be, both in terms of product and people.”

“We’re not beholden to an Excel spreadsheet telling us what has to be made… It’s wholly unboundaried; an infinite world of surprise.”

Growing the team was one of the toughest personal journeys for me. We went from 26 people to 52 in one year, then to 100 and now we’re about 250 people. Really understanding how to maintain our culture and our values on a much bigger scale was incredibly challenging, especially transitioning from a really tight-knit team where everyone knows each other. There was a moment in 2016 when I could feel that we were losing that a little bit, so we did an incredible exercise of reviewing everything from the qualitative to the quantitative, listening to everyone who was part of the company at the time and asking them what was working, what wasn’t, what could be improved. That created the blueprint of all the values we stand for now and a long-term vision for our purpose in the business. I really had to introspect and pull out of myself what our values were… It’s taking your subconscious brain, your prehistoric brain and giving it language; how do you turn feelings into words? That was the hardest thing we’ve ever done, but it set the foundations in a really clear way for us. It’s still my proudest piece of work. Assumptions are the biggest mistake you can make in a business. You can’t make assumptions about what people are thinking and feeling – you have to make yourself vulnerable and just ask: ‘What are your thoughts on this?’; ‘What’s right, what’s wrong?’; ‘What can we improve?’ Actively listen to what everybody has to say – that whole feedback loop is essential to our evolution and it will continue for ever. We will constantly be evolving because our community is changing internally as we grow and as our territories and footprints widen. I don’t perceive myself as a woman in a specific world. I see myself as a human doing a job as best I can. I’m going to boldly say that I haven’t faced any challenges specific to being a woman in business. That also comes from my mum and everything she instilled in me. She was a trailblazer, a female leader in the Eighties, Nineties and Noughties, before she passed on the baton, and though she’s still very involved in the business, to this day she has never voiced any obstacles. She just got on with it; she’d lean into any challenge. That ethic is something that I’ve observed and admired, and tried to continue to emulate in my own way. I’m very privileged to happen to be a woman leading a business, though; I don’t see enough of them and I don’t know why.

“You can’t make assumptions about what people are thinking and feeling – you have to make yourself vulnerable and just ask the questions.”

I’ll never forget a talk I listened to a few years ago: Brené Brown’s ‘The Power of Vulnerability’. It sparked one of those lightbulb moments, where I realised that I am so much happier, so much stronger, so much more clear-minded and understand my purpose by actually allowing myself to be vulnerable. It’s amazing the doors it opens; how being vulnerable breaks down barriers. You suddenly realise you’re not alone, and it creates a community and environment where everyone’s in it together, rather than everyone having these unemotional armours on. My uncle and mum taught me the importance of always being curious. It’s something I always observed in both of them, as well as a desire to roll up their sleeves and learn what they don’t know. We’re so lucky now to have the internet and so many ways to be able to seek things out without having to go to the library. We should never, ever allow ourselves to stop learning. My uncle is infinitely curious, and that’s why the collections are always changing, always different, always exciting – he’s curious for more and more knowledge, as am I. Leaning in and listening and asking those questions – all these things help you evolve and become stronger as time goes on. It’s an intermeshing of vulnerability and curiosity. The way I celebrate successes is with gratitude. Words and acknowledgement are so important. You can give gifts, have events, do all those things but, actually, it’s more about celebration of someone’s individual contribution to a moment – because you’ve never done something on your own. I try to remind everyone how grateful I am of what they’ve done to contribute to where we are today, and think about where we’ve come from and how much we’ve achieved together. It’s not necessarily one thing that’s a success: it’s a sequence of events and a constant evolution.

Harnes 50 appliquéd suede mules

Maysale 50 buckled suede mules

Palissot leather-trimmed appliquéd grosgrain and satin sandals

Hebes 90 appliquéd satin Mary Jane pumps

Pleneuf 90 velvet-trimmed silk-satin mules

Kristina

“Like a building, I understood the business’ foundations. Next, came the challenge of how high we could build it; how many more layers we could add.”

“I think longevity comes from being really clear on who you are, what you’re doing and who you want to be, both in terms of product and people.”

Manolo Blahnik’s brilliance is that it is unconstrained. Every season, the collection will take you by surprise. Yes, we have our classic styles that have captured people’s imaginations on a very large scale, like the ‘Hangisi’ buckled pump or the ‘Maysale’, which is your perfect 360 shoe in my opinion. But I think what differentiates us is that there is such a wide selection, and everything stems from deep cultural references and historical understanding that my uncle has spent his entire life learning, studying and consuming. Each collection is a visual feast. Even if you’re only going in to buy the simple ‘BB’ pump, you will always have something to look at, that will inspire you to think and make you curious to try it on. We don’t follow fashion, we just do our own thing. We’re not beholden to an Excel spreadsheet telling us what has to be made. Manolo is never told to do this, that or the other, or to follow certain trends or movements. It’s wholly unboundaried; an infinite world of surprise. No collection is ever going to be obvious, so that element of magic and surprise is consistent, and that has meant we’ve maintained our community. When someone connects with us, they will continue being connected. It’s not something that fades over time because there’s always something to excite. Speaking of surprises… We recently launched a Marie Antoinette capsule collection. It’s to celebrate the incredible exhibition that’s currently on at the Victoria & Albert museum [in London], which we immediately threw ourselves at to sponsor. It was one of those magical, very rare moments where all the stars align and we knew that Manolo just had to be part of it. Marie Antoinette is one of the icons of his life; [someone] he’s always been drawn to, so to get as close to her as he did through this process was so important to us. This little capsule collection he’s designed is very much with her in mind, but as if she was alive today. I currently own about 150 pairs of Manolo Blahnik shoes, but of course I’d like them all! My most treasured are a pair of gold leather sandals from 1976 that I asked to keep when I spent three months in Bath photographing all of the shoes for our archives. I never wear them – they’re more of a collector’s piece, something really special that I own from the archives. Another treasured possession is my collection of ‘Maysales’: I have about 12 colours and I love laying them all out in a spectrum. Looking at them all together makes me smile – it’s like being in a candy store. Some of my shoes are not in such pristine condition, of course, but that’s only because they’ve had a lot of fun and been on many outings. They’ve danced, they’ve walked, they’ve run, they’ve battled the weather, but I look at them and they bring back all those wonderful memories, so I’ll never get rid of them.

“We’re not beholden to an Excel spreadsheet telling us what has to be made… It’s wholly unboundaried; an infinite world of surprise.”