This time you will get to know three brands YALL, Manuel Dupont and Buenos Aires and designer Lara Guina. Four footwear brands, having in common a focus on design as an element that differentiates their creations.

Lara Guina is the woman behind the homonymous brand, born in the central region of the country. This young businesswoman decided to embrace an old passion for shoe's design, and engaged in an adventure she passionately lives following all steps of the process, since the beginning of manufacturing until the moment the shoes are ready for delivery. The men’s collection is described by the brand as “timeless and mostly classical” one with shoes that are all made of leather and which can be customized. The women's collection features a more casual look, with more focus on fashion, also using leather as the main material. According to Lara Guina: “Our inspiration comes from our customers and people who enjoy this style of footwear; we take into account elegance, quality and customer satisfaction”.

With an deep admiration for the footwear industry, Marta Montalvão has a Master degree in Design and Fashion and a Post-Graduation at the ARS Sutoria. Worried with the demanding urban lifestyle and interested to ally that to comfort, Marta creates models inspired in a casual-chic design. Her products are a fusion of sophisticated and modern aesthetics, combined with straight and smooth lines. Her new collection YALL is a strong bet in the differentiation of materials with a rustic appearance, allied to rubber soles, recalling the comfortable sport shoes soles.

Manuel Dupont brand results from a partnership between Miguel and his bother Vítor and friend Manuel. Moved by the certainty that they could offer an alternative to the existing products in the market, the three young men decided to launch a new project. The French glamour was the starting point, allied to the elegance and quality of Portuguese footwear. "We decided to prove that it is possible to combine design and comfort", says Miguel, adding: "Manuel Dupont is the perfect symbiosis of all that we had pre-defined. On the one hand, is Portuguese, which gives it a guarantee of quality. On the other, it is also shaped to our audience. "The brand focus on modern, comfortable shoes with a distinctive design: "our shoes are, in essence, classic and so timeless. At the same time, surprised by details that make them unique and special", Miguel states.

Buenos Aires is the project of four friends, João Mesquita, Tiago Bilbao, Miguel Basto e Bruno Marfim, all with different academic and professional backgrounds, who decided it was time to have a common project. Inspired by the traditional farming boots from Alentejo, a new kind of footwear was created. “Since then it made sense to get the countryside and traditional elements and adapt it to the day-to-day usage, maintaining the tradition, combining different materials which allows the brand to create unique and differentiated footwear”. The brand aims to consolidate its presence in Portugal, and target other European markets such as Spain, Germany and the Netherlands.