A-listers everywhere are stepping out in eccentric designer Jerome Rousseau's sexy, edgy creations

Aug 2 , 2013

Jerome Rousseau working on one of his designs. He says his love of design took shape when he was in his teens after watching a music video of the Deee-Lite and was fascinated with their funky footwear.

Jerome Rousseau is having his moment

Jerome Rousseau opened the door to his studio/office clad in a black-and-white striped tee, scarlet pants and polka dot pony hair shoes, his dark hair artfully styled and a welcoming smile.

His appearance is the only sign that a visitor is in the right place: there is no name outside, no indication that this white door on a nondescript building in a semi-residential street in Hollywood leads to the atelier of one of fashion's most talked-about names.

Rousseau is, in the sparest of terms, having his moment. His shoes are stocked by illustrious names like Saks Fifth Avenue, Harvey Nichols, Dover Street Market and Le Bon Marche, with more top-flight retailers signing on every season.

This spring, he launched a new bag line that has caught the attention of buyers. A-listers everywhere are stepping out in his sexy, edgy creations: Charlize Theron, Cameron Diaz, Scarlett Johansson. Just the other week, Catherine Zeta-Jones, who was making her first public appearance after being hospitalised for bipolar disorder, wore a strappy pair of Rousseau sandals at the premiere of her latest film, Red 2. The actress looked so good that the picture of her was everywhere: the one on Yahoo! alone racked up 106 million hits.

"That photo had a ridiculous amount of placements," Rousseau says. "We got loads and loads of mentions."

When Rousseau speaks, his diction is a charming confluence of French (he was born in Quebec) and British (he studied at London's Cordwainers College) accents, with a smattering of Italian (he spent two years designing for Isabella Fiore).

He is enthusiastic and charismatic, and the best sort of designer to have on hand at a trunk show or personal appearance because he is so congenial and displays not a jot of artifice.

"That's genius, isn't it?" he will say, holding up a book filled with images that have inspired him.

When it's 4am and he is jet lagged, he will take to his Instagram account and write back to the legions of fans who tag him while wearing his shoes. "It might take a week, but I'll reply to all those comments," he says.

"People love that you've seen what they have to say about your shoe. I'm so proud when I see that, that I make a point of telling them as well."

Kavita Daswani

Kavita Daswani was born and brought up in Hong Kong and was the fashion editor of the South China Morning Post before relocating to Los Angeles. She continues to contribute features to the publication, and also writes for the Los Angeles Times, The Real Deal, Prestige, Hashtag Legend and Crave magazines. She has also published eight novels.