Erïk Bjerkesjö is a designer whose work in the arena of men’s footwear has recently caught the attention of The Style Examiner for all the right reasons. Born in 1982 in Gotland, a small island situated outside Stockholm, Sweden, Bjerkesjö showed a keen interest in fashion and footwear from an early age. He went on to study in this field and completed a Masters degree in Advanced Footwear and Accessories design from the Polimoda International Institute of Fashion Design & Marketing in Florence, Italy.
Since graduating from Polimoda, Bjerkesjö has designed exceptional collections of bespoke footwear that he personally produces together with skilled craftsmen in Tuscany, Italy. The meticulous attention to production of Bjerkesjö’s shoes can be seen in the structured stages in which the leather is worked as well as in details such as hand-beveling, elegant punching on the toe caps, the etching of the designer’s signature onto the upper element of the sole, or the inclusion of three 18k gold pins in the heels as a way to pay homage to the classic Viennese heel.
After Bjerkesjö presented his collection of handmade shoes in the surroundings of Florence’s Palazzo Favard during Pitti Uomo 2012, it came as no surprise that Vogue Italia considered that his work revealed “the most innovative tailoring in Florence”. More recently, he was selected as a Finalist in the ‘Who is on Next?’ competition organised jointly by Altaroma, Pitti Immagine and L’Uomo Vogue to identify the future talent of menswear and men’s accessories. Whether he receives the top award in this competition or not, for The Style Examiner Bjerkesjö is already a very worthy winner. The recent news that he is expanding his shoe line to include men’s clothes only confirms Erïk Bjerkesjö’s potential as one of the most promising creative minds in contemporary men’s fashion.