In what’s proving to be a notable year for the Tieks brand, Kfir Gavrieli’s foldable ballet flat company won the Women’s Fashion category of the Global Footwear Awards. Highlighting the ingenuity of the brand’s lead designer, Samantha Hinton, the award announcement noted that, “Tieks are the most versatile flats in the world. Made of the finest Italian materials and designed to fold and fit in a purse, they are flexible, durable, comfortable, and stylish enough for wear all day, every day.”
Indeed, the brand’s marriage of fashion and function is getting noticed a lot these days. The Global Footwear recognition comes on the heels of the brand’s big win at the American Business Awards, where Tieks took home top honors in the domestic Stevie® Awards’ Apparel, Beauty & Fashion category. Yet, these wins aren’t a new development for Tieks. Rather, they are part of a steady trend that’s been building since 2008 – when Tieks launched as one of the first D2C (direct-to-consumer) shoe brands on the market.
Noteworthy from the Start
CEO Kfir Gavrieli founded Tieks along with his siblings and, right from the beginning, they positioned Tieks to disrupt the shoe industry. First, the company uses a D2C model—Gavrieli decided to turn away from brick-and-mortar stores, and directly connect with his new customers. Then, he sought to really listen to the customer’s needs. Ballet flats are a classic shoe. But, they are known for causing discomfort from rubbing at the backs of the wearer’s heels.
Luckily, Tieks solved those problems with high-end Italian leather construction and built-in padding to offer extra support. Plus, the brand added a layer of convenience by making the shoes foldable – allowing for easy portability. And, to transport your shoes in style, Gavrieli’s company ships each pair of Tieks with its own beautiful carrying case.
Customers quickly fell in love with the shoes, earning Tieks a major fan following. As a result, many of the brand’s colorways and limited-edition releases sell out almost immediately. Yet shoe lovers aren’t the only ones taking notice. In the first few years after launching, Tieks landed on Oprah’s O list, soaring in popularity as one of her ‘favorite things,’ was included in Forbes’ selective list of the 25 Most Creative Consumer and Retail Brands, named one of Entrepreneur’s Top 30 Startups to Watch, and Tieks CEO Kfir Gavrieli was profiled as one of Inc.’s 30 under 30.
Cumulatively, the brand has collected many accolades. But that doesn’t mean Gavrieli’s work is done. Instead, he is constantly working to innovate the brand by rolling out new, limited-edition releases. One of the more recent limited-edition shoes are the Ember Tieks, a dragon-inspired collection that launched to great fanfare, thanks to an innovative ‘countdown to hatching’ that played out live on the brand’s website.
Gavrieli and his team of talented designers are always ready to titillate the shoe world with the next big thing. Is it any surprise, then, that the industry keeps taking notice?
