A Footwear Force

Taking charge of her own destiny, homegrown shoe designer Nelissa Hilman plows through obstacles armed with innovative designs and insatiable ambition.

- Liyana Zamzuri

A good pair of shoes – one that’s chic, high quality, comfortable and, dare I say, reasonably priced – is becoming increasingly elusive. The quest to find the perfect fit is a constant struggle for wide-footed individuals, with squeezing into impossibly narrow but irresistibly beautiful shoes now a norm.

It’s this very predicament that fuelled Nelissa Hilman’s eponymous shoe brand. Nelissa Hilman (NH) flats, ankle sandals, and block heeled mules – inspired by la dolce vita – quickly found their way into the wardrobes of fashion insiders.

An unassuming beginning

“Back then, it was really a lot of Project Runway influences,” says Nelissa, who initially tried her hand at making clothes. The then chemical engineer decided the craft wasn’t for her, and as fate would have it, stumbled upon a shoe making course in Florence, Italy, whilst looking for courses to pursue her second degree. “I took a leap of faith and told myself that if it didn’t work out, there would always be corporate life to fall back on.”

She enrolled at Polimoda International Institute of Fashion Design & Marketing and came to love the architecture of shoe making, which she found rather different from making clothes. Not to mention, being in Florence was a fun experience in its own. “I like shoes when I’m making it… I was into making things,” she expresses. Not particularly well-informed in fashion back then, as she readily admits, Nelissa revelled in the process more than anything else. After half a year in Florence, she came home and got a job in a small shoe factory. There, she perfected her artistry and came to understand the differences between Malaysian and Italian craftsmanship. About a year later, she made the decision to launch her own brand.