SHERENE MELINDA has expanded its luxury offerings beyond handbags to include leather trainers. Sherene has spent a long time designing these sneakers to ensure they are of the highest standard and the most luxurious quality. Each trainer is carefully handcrafted from leather suede on the exterior and is fully leather lined inside. SHERENE MELINDA’s signature Springbok hair-on-hide is also featured down the side of the trainer, making each trainer unique. The hair-on-hide is available in a range of neutral tones, as well as a variety of vibrant colourful tones. The trainers are also extremely lightweight, making them a comfortable go-to pair of shoes, perfect for everyday use or special occasions. Every trainer is handcrafted with utmost care to ensure the result is the epitome of luxury. 

Interview with Sherene

We interviewed Sherene and asked her a few questions on her ideas behind creating the luxury trainer collection. 

Why did you decide to design a line of Trainers instead of a new handbag collection? 

During the Covid lockdown era, there was significantly less sales activity. This meant I had a lot of downtime to create new ideas and act on my inspiration. Originally, I experimented with silk, and learnt the skills to create hand-printed silk scarves, which I later introduced to my collection. From this small taste of experimentation, I was inspired to take on a greater challenge; trainers! 

Did you always envision SHERENE MELINDA offering trainers? 

I did, yes. At the beginning of my journey, in 2013, I always envisioned SHERENE MELINDA as a brand that offered a range of accessories, including handbags and shoes. I followed my passion at the time and worked on the handbags to begin with. Since the handbag and shoe industry are closely aligned, when the time came, I knew the SHERENE MELINDA trainers also had to be made from leather and perfectly compliment my handbag collections. 

What were the first steps in designing the trainers? 

Firstly, I had to decide on what style of shoe I wanted to create. After careful consideration, I picked the trainer. For me, the trainer symbolises style and comfort, as well as being designed for everyone to wear. After this, I had to figure out my chosen materials. I knew I wanted to include the brands iconic hair-on-hide feature, that is a staple on every single SHERENE MELINDA bag, so both products go hand in hand. I also wanted to ensure the trainers were made from leather, both inside and out. Similarly, I dedicated time to finding the perfect sole for the trainer, with sustainability a key consideration. Due to this, I found the eco-sole, made from 69% sugar resin which is a renewable energy source.  

Were there any hurdles you had to overcome during the process of designing and making the trainers? 

Always. The process of creating a shoe is very different from a handbag, so I had to adapt and learn new skills to overcome this. I also felt that comfort and wearability is the number one key element of a shoe, so I reviewed and tested different ergonomic methods. After many iterations, I finally created a trainer design that fits the shape of each person's foot comfortably and that looks and feels great.

Tell me more about the materials you chose to use? 

The trainers were created using high quality leather suede with SHERENE MELINDA's iconic Springbok hair-on-hide feature. The interior is fully leather lined to compliment the suede, offering a comfortable yet stylish look. The combination of these natural materials keeps them fresh, even after a long day. The gorgeous outer soles of the shoes are incredibly lightweight and are environmentally friendly - made using bioplastics; we call them eco-soles. They are composed primarily from a renewable energy source; 69% sugar cane resin. The inner sole is incredibly supportive and comfortable, another feature that has bought customers back again for their next pair!