“Shoe Star” – new online reality series

Footwear News and Nine West, in association with New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, are putting seven promising designers to the test in the first Shoe Star contest.

Who has what it takes to become the footwear industry’s next up-and-coming designer? Footwear News and Nine West, in association with New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, are putting seven promising designers to the test in the first Shoe Star contest. The contestants were chosen from among the school’s accessories design seniors after a rigorous judging process conducted by the FN staff. Over the next six months, the seven finalists will compete against each other in a series of six challenges testing their ability to think outside the box and create innovative designs that will keep them in the running to win the 2008 Shoe Star title. A panel of industry professionals, including FN’s editorial director Michael Atmore, Nine West’s creative director Fred Allard, FIT’s professor and chairperson of the accessories design program Ellen Goldstein and a rotating list of celebrity judges, will critique each challenge, eliminating one contestant each round until the winner is announced at the Fashion Footwear Association of New York’s tradeshow in June. In addition to the 2008 Shoe Star title, the winner will gain a coveted spot on the Nine West design team to work on the spring ’09 footwear, handbags and accessories collections. As the contest progresses, FN will be documenting the competition online and in print, while Ninewest.com will feature video highlights from each week’s judging round. These seven student designers have secured a place in the competition, but only one of them will become the next Shoe Star.

Watch the episodes!