If the Choo fits...

His name is synonymous with luxury - even more so when it is glimpsed as Jimmy Choo Couture, the name of his appointment-only boutique - yet self-confessed "shoemaker" Jimmy Choo is famous for his humility, and as passionate about his work today as he was as an apprentice more than 30 years ago.

The son of a highly regarded Malaysian shoe designer, he was born in Penang and went straight into the family business. Working as his father's apprentice he showed immediate promise, and it comes as no surprise that he crafted his first shoe at the tender age of 11.

Determined to further master the craft of shoe design and manufacture, he travelled to London in the early 1980s to study footwear at Cordwainers' Technical College, which has since become part of the London College of Fashion, one of five colleges that form The University of the Arts, London (the term "cordwainer" had been used since 12th-century Britain to denote artisans who made shoes from new leather, as opposed to cobblers who worked with used material).

Choo sold his first shoe designs under the brand name Lucky Shoes in 1984, two years later starting a custom shoe business using his own name, which operated out of the former Metropolitan Hospital in the east London neighbourhood of Hackney.

The building had been converted into a series of stalls for artisans and small-scale clothing retailers, and future Gucci creative director Alexander McQueen also sold some his earliest designs there.

A few years later British Vogue alumnus Tamara Mellon entered the picture and the rest - as they say - is a part of fashion history.

Despite no longer having anything to do with the fashion giant his ready-to-wear business has become, Choo, who married a fellow student from Cordwainers' College and has a teenage daughter, still makes about five pairs of custom shoes weekly at his workshop in central London.

These Jimmy Choos bear the "handmade" designation on their soles, unlike those sold at top retailers, and in the 30 Jimmy Choo stores around the world. He also paints, meditates and travels, spreading the gospel according to Couture.

When asked how his shop at 18 Connaught St has been faring with all of the doom and gloom coming out of London, he is characteristically honest, admitting down the phone from his home that times are indeed tough.

"It's definitely a difficult time for everyone at the moment," says the shoemaker, who consults with a spiritual adviser on a regular basis, "but we are okay. In Couture we work in small quantity, creating individual shoes. We are very fortunate to have the support of our regular clients, who still want what only we can give them."

He says that it has been hard to sit back and watch some of the world's most creative talents - many of them his peers - struggling to survive, but that it's hard to succeed in a creative endeavour at any time, and the tough do survive.

"I also had a difficult time setting up my business, but you have to be determined, hardworking and most importantly, careful with your budget," he says, a factor that many in the business tend to neglect in favour of hype and profile. When asked for advice on how designers can survive the current climate he doesn't cite moving towards a more commercial approach or focusing more on the avant garde as the key, just good business sense.

"I think that you have to keep your eyes open at all times. You have to build up your reputation and regular client base to support you, and they will stick with you no matter what happens in some way or another."

He travels a lot with the British Council promoting UK education in the Far East, and says this is the area that has made him the most excited about the creative potential of future generations. "I have met so many talented students there, it's difficult to choose between them as they are all stars in the making, which makes me extremely happy."

He is also involved in the development of a new international school for the arts in association with the University of the Arts London (UAL), and is a passionate advocate of education and nurturing the talents of future design stars.

"I have been working with UAL for many years, travelling internationally, doing seminars and workshops, talking to students and encouraging them," he explains, "I believe in the importance of creative education and finding a way to survive doing what makes you happiest."

As aforementioned, one of his early neighbours in London was an equally youthful Alexander McQueen, and the two still have an immense admiration for each other, to this day. Aside from both clothing the skeletal form of Victoria Beckham they are the best of friends, and are always looking for ways in which they can work together to support young and precocious talent.

Choo is currently working on plans to open a Couture Academy to operate alongside his existing practice, and plans to have McQueen on board also as a mentor.

"I would like to train young talented students to pass the knowledge and skills on, as this is so important. My vision is to teach creativity through skills, and to offer future generations of design makers the necessary expertise to both continue and further develop the long-standing traditions of bespoke and handcrafted couture design."

For a number of years design interns working in his London Couture shop have demonstrated excellent conceptual skills but are, in many cases, ill equipped in terms of realisation skills.

In Choo's view the redressing of the balance between theory and practice is long overdue. Does he think there is still an audience for couture, or is it a dying art form?

"Couture is a special service, however it is, as you mentioned, a dying art form," he says philosophically.

"This is why I dream of setting up my training institute to teach the generations to come that it must stay alive."

He believes that you need to find people who are "equipped with the experience and knowledge essential to keep the industry thriving," and that they could be from anywhere in the world.

"One world, one dream, respect each other and pass on the skills," he adds passionately. Despite the global financial crisis and its associated stresses for a creative, Choo says the past few years have seen him "fall in love with my work more.

Over the last 21 years I have built a loyal following, and get to introduce my art to new clients all the time. Life is good."

JIMMY'S ANGELS

Today if you want shoes that actually have anything to do with Jimmy Choo himself, you'll have to purchase them from Jimmy Choo Couture; they are available by appointment only at 18 Connaught St in London and they will set you back a rumoured thousand pounds plus, but they'll put you in some rather prestigious company.

Madonna may have referred to Manolo Blahnik shoes as being "better than sex" in the press, but it was a pair of Jimmy Choo Couture shoes she wore at her wedding to Guy Ritchie. They were clearly the perfect accessory to complement her Stella McCartney-designed dress, 37-carat diamond cross necklace and the antique French bracelet studded with 19 carats of diamonds Ritchie gave her as a wedding gift.

Choo also created wedding shoes for Natalie Imbruglia and Kate Winslet, and Victoria Beckham is a returning client for red carpet appearances.

One of Choo's most famous clients was Princess Diana, whom he designed many pairs for over the years - so many in fact, he can't recall the actual number. He was scheduled to deliver a pair of just-completed gold pumps to her the day after she was killed, and he kept those shoes in memory of his friend.