The Man

Born in 1979, Mark Charles is a self-taught boot designer from Harlesden, North West London who from a young age displayed a natural flair for design. This later proved to be a talent that would help him get his life back on track after a difficult childhood.

From a young boy Mark was always fascinated by design and its ability to transform a person’s state of mind. “I’ve always been drawn to beautiful things, mentally and physically. Design without emotion is pointless, the ability to express your deepest thoughts and have others share your passion is a true gift.”

After graduating from university in 2004 with a degree in Graphic Design Mark decided to set up ‘Orgill-La’Touche’ with a business partner. ‘Orgill-La’Touche’ was a luxury drinks company that designed and produced ultra premium alcoholic beverages. Mark travelled to Sweden to work with ‘Zuidam’, one of the best distillers in Europe to produce ‘Dutch 101’ – an ultra premium alcoholic liqueur designed for the luxury market.

Two years later, with Dutch 101 poised to hit the market, Mark suddenly found himself living and working as the single parent of a 5 year old daughter. Due to his new found responsibilities and financial commitments Mark decided to put his business venture on hold and pursue a career in the city in order to make ends meet.

One day in June 2007 whilst working as a creative recruitment consultant Mark recalls a poignant conversation with a client over the telephone “…I was sitting at my desk advising a client on her next career move, I told her that no matter what she decided, she had to make sure that she loved what she was doing, otherwise there was no point in moving.”

After this conversation Mark found himself reflecting on his own dreams and ambitions. Not content with his office job, he decided to take his own advice and pursue his one true passion – design. “I knew I didn’t want to be a graphic designer - I wanted to create something more tangible…and I’d always loved shoes even before I ever considered designing them myself – that was when it clicked.”

Never one to procrastinate, the following week Mark found a job working with a bespoke shoe maker in East London and immediately handed in his resignation, much to the surprise of his family and friends.

Coming from a strong design background Mark was able to quickly grasp the fundamentals of bespoke footwear production and soon found himself managing the entire process from start to finish with the guidance of his mentor.

After having gained experience working with his shoemaker he later embarked upon a nomadic journey, which took him deep into the heart of Italy where he was able to work with some of the best artisans around. Mark grasped this opportunity with both hands and totally immersed himself in his work. “I love Italy, there’s a place in Loro Ciuffenna called ‘Casamona,’ they have the most beautiful hills…with beautiful trees for miles. I’d grab a pencil and pad and a bottle of wine and I’d be off, absolutely stunning.”

By 2008 Mark had already began working on his first boot collection. In 2009 with production well on the way, Mark was busy preparing for the launch of his first collection when one day he received a call from his producer in Italy “…I’ve been known to be very optimistic but this one really caught me off guard - after all that time and effort spent creating something that you love, then to have the plug pulled at the last moment is a tough pill to swallow.” His producer had just taken on a massive order and was unable to continue working on his collection for the foreseeable future.

However, this set back presented Mark with a new opportunity – taking what he had learnt from working with his shoe makers in the UK and Italy, Mark decided to produce his collection elsewhere. After searching for suitable producers in Spain and Russia, he was still not satisfied with the quality and insisted on the highest standard possible. Again Mark searched for another producer, this time he travelled to Guangdong Province in China to make sure that every last detail was addressed. Twelve months later and many samples down the line the ‘Mark Charles boot collection’ was finally ready.

“The thing I love about producing in China is that I get exactly what I want, and if they don’t have it, they can make it. The reality is that you get what you pay for and we only use the best from start to finish.”

In mid 2010 with production finally back on track Mark was now able to focus all his efforts on creating a luxury experience that would compliment his limited edition boot collection.

Marks’ dream was to create the most luxurious boot ever conceived and to provide his customers with an experience that was truly unique. In order to retain full control of the experience that he envisaged along with his ‘no expense spared’ approach, Mark decided to retail his collection online via his own website which he designed from the ground up.

In 2011 he founded ‘The Mark Charles Boot Company’ which was built around a very simple concept of ‘giving more’. Gone are the days when the word “luxury” was defined by an object or a thing - today’s “new luxury” is defined by the feelings and emotions of the people who embrace them…with that being said, words are not enough - the proof has to be in the pudding.