SHOE BUSINESS
Sole sister
From Hollywood stars to royalty, A-listers are stepping out in a new range of shoes that are comfortable and stylish. We meet the woman behind the business
by HELEN CARROLL
What greater career high could there be than Dame Judi Dench calling your company’s customer care line to thank you for ‘saving’ her with one of the products you had designed? How about if she also mentioned that you had been recommended to her by the Queen? That’s precisely what happened earlier this year to Lisa Kay, footwear designer and owner of Sole Bliss, a company specialising in comfortable shoes, which she runs from a modest base on the outskirts of Watford. It wasn’t a total surprise to Lisa, who was aware that Queen Camilla is a huge fan of her designs. In fact, she has 11 pairs and counting. The range was originally designed for women with bunions but it is now reaching a much wider audience with those seeking relief for their poor, put-upon feet. Lisa, 59, recalls, ‘Dame Judi asked her assistant to pass her the phone and said, “It’s Judi Dench here, I just want to thank you enormously for the shoes. I broke both my big toes and these are the only things I can wear”. ‘We were curious to know where she had heard about us and her answer was, “The Queen Consort is a very good friend of mine and she told me I have to try these shoes”. So we asked what she needed them for and were told, “The Coronation of the King. You’ve saved me!”’