‘ZYNE’ the handmade luxury Moroccan babouche brand is now international

Meet the Morocco based luxury footwear brand ZYNE, founded by Zineb Britel and Laura Pujol, which’s mission is to bring the ancestral Moroccan footwear known as the “babouche”, and its traditional craftsmanship, into the 21st Century.

The ZYNE story

Both born and raised in Morocco, Zineb Britel and Laura Pujol are the two co-founders of ZYNE. Born in the 90’s, Zineb sturdied Fashion Design at Esmod Paris, and got the chance to work for prestigious French couture houses like Christian Dior and Sonia Rykiel. With that experience and after some time spent in Central Saint Martins in London and Moda Pelle in Italy, she discovered her true passion for shoe design, and decided to explore her own country’s footwear. She joined forces with her friend Laura Pujol, a l’INSEEC graduate, who had great experience in marketing, having worked with top names like Christian Louboutin. They both decided to go back to Morocco, to make a positive impact in fashion and empower local women.

Bringing the “babouche” and its traditional craftsmanship into the 21st Century

ZYNE, which means “beauty” in phonetically spelled Arabic, opened its atelier in 2016. When the two woman started their venture in Morocco, they discovered that despite the skilful design of the local babouche, the finesse was not the standard demanded by fashion houses in Paris, thus, they decided to create one themselves.

They combined the traditional shape of the babouche and the techniques used to make it with contemporary beading and embellishments, always including the classic babouche shape in their collections.

Cooperatives of women working for the brand

At the beginning, the two ladies went to local cooperatives in Casablanca where the women workers had no jobs and few employable skills. They began working with them, teaching them how to make shoes. Soon they had their own space where they could work from.

ZYNE has embroiderers working in their office making their prototypes and testing new techniques. Once a design is confirmed, the prototype goes to the cooperative who add the beads and fabric.

The women workers come from various regions of Morocco, known for their unique embroidery skills. It’s to be noted that each region in Morocco is famous for their ancestral techniques and ideas, and all ZYNE materials are sourced in Morocco.

ZYNE now an internationally know brand

The babouche, iconic shoe worn throughout the Moroccan world for traditional events, during centuries of history, has now made its way into the international scene. The brand is now benefiting from the support of international retailers, such as Net-a-Porter.

Over the past year, the group has also developed a network of wholesale partners, including Level Shoes, Moda Operandi, Lane Crawford in Shanghai, and Bergdorf Goodman in New York. The company remains focused on growing its wholesale channels in the United States, the Middle East and Asia.

Sources: zyneofficial; suitcasemag.com; footwearnews.com