Sleeves Magazine April 2016 | Page 31

T he designs are very "trippenish", the only adjective I can think of because I have not seen such shoe designs in my life before. Even their bags are unique in style. "To design shoes and bags is definitely something we feel very passionate about", say Angela Spieth and Michael Oehler, the designers behind the label. Angela Spieth studied fashion design at the HdK Berlin and worked several years as freelance designer for various companies around the globe as well as on several projects on behalf of the Taiwanese government for the development of the Taiwanese footwear industry. Michael Oehler worked as independent shoemaker based in Berlin, producing customised shoes for film and theatre and as a scholarship holder at the IFG Ulm Are there other designers who you think are your source of inspiration? There are certainly designers we have the greatest regard for, like, for example, Salvatore Ferragamo or Roger Vivier. I got attracted to your label when I first saw your small bag in a Muehlmann Shop where they sell some of your accessories. Your designs are highly specialized. What kind of strategy do you implement in order to reach a wider niche? From the beginning the idea behind Trippen was to design and produce a design product at a reasonable price. Therefore there is no huge marketing budget and we still do many things ourselves or in-house. But with the help of social media and collaborations in theatre, music, film and fashion we hope to continue to gain a wider audience 30 Photo:Trippen Sleeves Magazine