Gabrielle Thompson had her first case of shoe envy at five years old when the girl next door got a pair of plastic toy heels. Shannon Gunn formed a love affair with shoes at the age of six when she was given a pair of red patent Mary Jane’s. Both of them formed the dream that one day they wanted to be shoe designers!

In 2003, Gabrielle and Shannon crossed paths working as designers for an Australian footwear company – they clicked immediately! Both obsessed with shoes and both having trained in Fashion Design in Australia and in Footwear Design in Italy, they could never find the right shoes in Australia – so they decided to make their own! Thus, the idea for tom gunn was born.

Finding that they shared a similar design aesthetic of clean, modern and simple design pared with beautiful materials, they resigned their jobs and bought one way tickets to Italy determined to come back with their first range. Their mothers thought it was a very bad idea!

tom gunn shoes are designed from the sole up and made in Italy using beautiful leathers and individual styling with a focus on quality and comfort. The philosophy behind tom gunn is that shoes should be little works of art for your feet and they should make the wearer feel special. After all, what woman can resist the thrill of beautiful shoes?

presented at Youth Week Special Event