This Pune-based shoe designer is now making hand embroidered Oxford brogues and hand patin finished mocassins 

Several celebrities like Raghu Dixit, Sachin Tendulkar, Sharman Joshi and Jackie Shroff have been seen wearing Chappers, making the company,  one of the fastest growing fashion start-ups today. 
Hand embroidered shoes
Hand embroidered shoes

The business is not a new place for  29-year-old Harshwardhan Patwardhan. In the industry for over five years now, the Pune-based entrepreneur first started the parent company Chappers in 2014 when he was studying in the UK and carried with him a pair of traditional Kohlapuris. Compliments poured in for the youngster and he started Chappers as soon as he got back India. After conversing and arranging meetings with several leather manufacturers in Dharavi and Kolhapur, Harshwardhan finally found a manufacturer and kickstarted the label. Chappers provided Indian handcrafted chappals with the same comfort as that of a flip flop. Since then, several celebrities like Raghu Dixit, Sachin Tendulkar, Sharman Joshi and Jackie Shroff have been seen wearing Chappers, making the company,  one of the fastest growing fashion start-ups today. 


The company has now launched Coblers hich focuses on the Western art of shoe making, unlike Chappers that focuses on the Indian methods. “Honestly, Cobler started as a fluke,” says Harshwardhan with a laugh. “I was at our workshop making a pair of Chappers which had a closed toe, and the sample had gone wrong, and I suddenly made up my mind to turn it into a shoe for myself. It wasn’t the most beautiful pair of shoes but the wheels started rolling in my mind.”  What makes Coblers stand out is the intricate embroidery work on the Oxford brogues and moccasins. “We launched the wedding collection where we have introduced embroidered shoes. Embroidery on leather is a difficult task,” says Harshwardhan adding that their craftsman use a special set of needles on leather. Each piece of leather needs to be skived and made as thin as 1 mm. The leather is then hand-embroidered in about three days.  Coblers is available in an impressive range of 75 colours, and is sourced from tanneries in Vellore, Italy and France. 


Their fast selling range has been their Oxford brogues and English lace-ups, apart from their Italian calfskin double monks in olive, turquoise, blue and burgundy. “People also like to custom make Greek sandals and gladiators for  themselves,” says Harshwardhan.  Watch out for their studded slip-ons, and leathers in matte gold Italian calfskin and olive green French leather. With the brand fast catching on, Harshwardhan hopes to set up bespoke studios across the country and be known as one of the best bespoke shoemakers.

So what would they say is their most unique shoe they’ve made to date? “We have made a shoe by handcarving it. We handcarve on leather like they do on wood. It’s a time consuming process and is a real art in itself. Also, we have made shoes with Swarovski crystals on them.” On top of the list of most exquisite shoes is a 24K gold shoes that a client requested to be made with his initials on it. Now that’s a million dollar walk! 

Starting at `15,000. Available online. 
 

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