Jeffery-West co-founder gives masterclass to DMU footwear students
Published: 07 November, 2011
On Friday 4 November, Guy West, who founded Jeffery-West shoes with childhood friend Mark Jeffery in 1987, came to Leicester to share his knowledge of footwear design with DMU’s students. In An Audience with Guy West, the renowned designer delivered a masterclass to (BA) Hons Footwear Design students, talking about his diverse career and the lessons he has learned in almost 25 years as a men’s shoe designer.
The duo were born and bred in Northampton, the historical centre of the British shoemaking and leather industries. At only the age of 16, they began their first business by buying rejects and samples from Jeffery’s father’s shoe factory, customising them, and selling them on at markets in Northamptonshire and London.
The sudden death of Jeffery’s father and subsequent loss of the factory motivated the two friends to take their fledgling business to another level, and in 1987 the men’s designer footwear brand Jeffery-West was born.
Known for their high-quality craftsmanship and traditional formal designs, Jeffery-West shoes are sought-after and favoured by international stars worldwide.
Guy West said: “My biggest achievement is going into retail and having my own store. My advice to students studying footwear design is to go out and get experience once your degree is completed. It is essential that once you have gained key skills from being at university, that you then go and utilise these and get some solid work experience. The path I took some years ago would be difficult now. You need a good track record and to have gained invaluable experience before you can start your own collection.
“I’m very focused on what I do. Having my own business, like any business, can get hectic, but being focused and working hard is why I have achieved what I have”.
Commenting on the masterclass, final-year footwear design student, Laura Whittaker, said: “I found the talk very interesting. It was nice to hear from someone in the industry, and I felt it added value to our studies. It was good that it was informal so that we could ask questions. He was very engaging and it’s interesting to see how he developed himself from having very little. He created a niche and has stuck to it throughout his career. I found him very inspiring.”
Head of Footwear Design, Kevin Guildford, said: “It was a pleasure to have such an iconic footwear designer visit us and give such enlightening talk to our students. Guy’s career story was both informative and enlightening and will inspire students who aspire to create their own brand or business.”
