He has a fast pace and vocabulary Alfredo Piferi, a thirty-year-old guy from Lazio with a well-established London accent. After several years of working in a shoe house, defining the proportions for Made in Italy, two years ago he launched his own brand. Piferi, a completely vegan mission. It’s not at all easy to make, but it’s finally comfortable to wear.
Alfredo Piferi
What were your first steps in life and how did you get here?
I made them on Lake Bracciano, in Anguillare Sabazia. I was born without shoes, but since I put them on I haven’t thought about anything else. One of the first toys was my mother’s red shoe, which she never got to wear. The lake had a fundamental influence on my work; the people there are different than at the sea. The sea is the feeling of something approaching. Instead, the lake is a protected system associated with memory and balance; I find the same thing in the volumes of my shoes, where the lines are proportional, evergreen, but modern. My story is not about exaggeration: I am content to create clear and understandable forms. I’ve come this far with three words in mind: passion, resilience and dedication. There was never a Plan B.
What inspired you to start a completely vegan brand?
Call. There is a lot of talk about sustainability, but little about its aesthetics. Many people have the image of a simple vegan shoe with few design elements. You never know. I want to improve this type of product. The reason I chose production in Italy: durable design and excellent materials. It’s a powerful message: my shoes have caught the attention of luxury shoppers who were still yawning at the mere thought of vegan shoes. Two years later, Piferi came to shows in Paris, New York and London, and the shoes were worn by Jennifer Lopez, Billie Eilish, Salma Hayek, Cate Blanchett… I think this is a very important achievement, not only for me, but for everyone “ conscious” luxury.
What are the biggest challenges for such a product?
They mainly concern how shoes are made. What many people don’t know is that glues also contain animal ingredients, which requires a lot of research. We’ve found some great alternatives, including plastic heels made from recycled ABS plastic. We are inevitably exposed to years of marketing that has led us to believe that luxury shoes are leather shoes. My goal is not only to be more environmentally conscious, but also to develop products that are more durable and long lasting so that the customer can use them longer. They call my stuff vegans but for me they are material innovative. After all, no one would call the Cassina velvet sofa a vegan sofa.
Who were you thinking about when you created the first shoe that bears your name?
I have no specific references, perhaps to life itself and to the characters who live it with me. I love many women and many men. Some of them I think about when I draw: be it Silvia, Tanya, Simone, each product has a certain function that reminds me of a specific customer. In this world full of references, there are no mood boards in Pīferi. I have an aesthetic ideal that goes beyond individual fashion trends, a concept of style, the one who wears it knows it.
Is there proper education and storytelling on this topic, or is fashion under threat of greenwashing?
I think there is a lot of confusion here. I don’t think this system can be completely sustainable, no one needs another brand of shoes; Creating it is itself a self-centered act. I prefer to define my brand as responsible because we can only talk about responsibility. I favor recycled or organic materials in every choice and try to reduce the impact of production as much as possible. But I would never say that Pīferi is a 100% sustainable company. To do this, it must be a closed company: this is a responsible company, to many this may seem like a nuance, but for me this is a necessary clarification.