Stoffa footwear's newest range

There are some brands that you always associate with special events in your life. My first lipstick — Lakme. My first pair of grown-up jeans — low-slung Levis. The perfume I wore when I was dating my first boyfriend — the sweet Anais Anais. The one I wore when I dumped my last one — Calvin Klein’s Truth. You know how it is. But there are some that grow with you. Stoffa’s been that kind of label for me.

Ever since sisters Priyanka Tejwani and Malini Kotecha started stocking their brilliant footwear designs at Mumbai’s Oak Tree in 2003, I was a goner. Since then, I’ve been getting my Stoffa fix every few months. Funky wedges, satin flats with ethnic hand embroidery, Swarovski-studded jute footwear and brocade chappals, the likes of which I haven’t seen anywhere else.

No wonder that when I visited their fab new flagship showroom in Mumbai, I was like a kid in a candy store! Although I knew I could get the same footwear at any of their retail outlets in all the other Indian cities that I visit so often on work, I just wanted to buy, buy, buy, then and there.

I flitted about the beautifully appointed 1000 sq ft space where the sunshine pours in through large windows and checked out the latest collections. Their signature styles are still around — combining Italian corks, shiny metallic patents and structured heels with traditional Indian beads and stones. But what I’m most enthused by are their two new ranges. Stoffa Gal, meant to be for the under-20s age-group, has a fabulous funky feel. The wacky styles are in young and perky colours, from melon and strawberry to fuchsia and acid green. In contrast, the Stoffa Bride range is all sophistication, with metallics and intricate embroidery on plush fabrics.

Stoffa’s the stuff that dreams are made of.

Stoffa flagship store: 6/12, Grants Building, 1st Floor, Arthur Bunder Road, Opposite Cafe Basilico, Colaba, Mumbai; Tel: 022-22826619. Also retails at Ensemble, Kimaya, Ogaan, Samsaara, Aza and Mai in Delhi and in Evoluzione and Samsaara in Bangalore; E-mail: mail@stoffastyle.com.