What does it take to be the world’s most expensive shoes? It’s an odd question to answer because for the majority of people, expensive shoes equate to a couple of hundred dollars. For wealthy people and collectors, that number might go up to a few thousand. But any dollar amount beyond that point is just hard to imagine. Nevertheless, we’re all very much aware that there are some pretty ridiculously priced shoes out there. As of today, the most expensive shoes in the world are the Passion Diamond shoes, and they’re remarkably priced at $17 million. Let’s dive into exactly what these shoes are all about and why they cost so much. If you think you’re slaying it with your Christian Louboutins, think again. This article from Footwearnews.com, calculates that you’d need roughly 23,448 pairs of Louboutins to amount to the cost of the Passion Diamond shoes. Prior to the Passion Diamond, the most expensive shoes cost $15.1 million and were designed by fabulous British designer Debbie Wingham.
Basics
Now the spotlight is all on the Passion Diamond shoes. It’s no surprise that the shoes hail from the land of extravagance—Dubai. It seems that everything in Dubai is larger than life, fancier. Everything there seems to just scream money, money, and more money. Jada Dubai, a United Arab Emirates-based brand, created this world’s most expensive shoes, and they partnered with a high-end jeweler—Passion Jewelers. Jada Dubai is famous for creating beautiful shoes for women. Their style is simple elegance, and that idea is certainly visible on the Passion Diamond. As a matter of fact, Jada Dubai only designs shoes that have diamonds in them. The company’s inventory doesn’t fall any cheaper than 7-figure costing shoes. The average cost of a pair of Jada Dubai pumps is about $25,000 USD. The jewelers Jada Dubai has partnered with, Passion Jewelers, are award-winning designers. They create stunning pieces of jewelry, and they even put them on shoes. The Passion Diamond shoes were introduced to the public on September 2018, and since then, it’s been the subject of awe, debate, and desire. The launch event happened at a place in Dubai that’s just as luxurious as the shoes—the only 7-star hotel in the entire world—the Burj Al Arab. It was fitting enough, and the revelation of the shoes was certainly a moment to remember. Only 50 guests were invited to attend the event, and you can imagine that these guests were probably all wealthy beyond measure. The shoes put on display were actually a prototype. Jada Dubai will be custom making the actual Passion Diamond shoes to the customer that wants to buy it.
Time
The shoes took about 9 months to make. That makes sense considering the amount of attention the shoes require. Maria Majari, co-founder of Jada Dubai, said that they only use rare diamonds on their shoes, according to this article. That adds a tremendous value to the total cost of the shoes. Majari was also the one that designed the Passion Diamond Shoes. The pair of high heels is made out of four main materials: gold patent leather, silk, gold, and diamonds. What else could you ever need in a pair of shoes, after all? The pumps are quite sophisticated. The lines are clean, the tips pointy. The heel itself is about 5 inches of the golden stiletto. The outline of the upper is lined with brilliant small diamonds—all 236 of them. At the center of each of the shoe sits one flawless and stunning 15-carat D diamond. We just hope that they use something stronger than super glue to make sure that gem doesn’t go anywhere.
It’s highly unlikely that anyone would ever go out dancing with this particular pair of shoes, but you never really know. The insole bears the name of both companies that worked on the shoes: Jada Dubai and Passion Jewelers. Both names are embossed in pure gold, a simple detail that adds thousands to the value of the Passion Diamond shoes. Majari created the shoes after noticing that there’s not a lot of shoe stores out there that sell ultra high-end shoes. If there were one place in the world that could sustain an ultra high-end business, it would be Dubai. There are tons of millionaires and billionaires that walk around that city every day. Many people have expressed disinterest and distaste for the pair of shoes. The idea that a pair could sell for that much while so much of the world suffers is difficult for some to avoid. Be that as it may, many consider the pair of shoes a work of art, which was the ultimate goal of both Jada Dubai and Passion Jewelers.
Belief
Hemant Karamchandani, CEO of Passion, believed that the most expensive shoes in the world could find a market to belong to. That’s hopeful, to say the least; but it’ll be almost a year now since the shoes were revealed to the world, and so far, there have been no interest about buying the shoes. There could be a couple of culprits, the first being the design. The shoes may look sophisticated, but the designs may come across as outdated. Second, the price is staggering. Jada Dubai and Passion Diamonds are looking for just a single buyer. But regardless of how wealthy a person may be, $17 million is just a whole lot of money to spend on a pair of high heels—especially if there were a lot of other expensive options that aren’t in the millions range. The Passion Diamond shoes are more of a collector’s buy. No one would purchase these shoes to wear them out on the street—at least no one sane. Still, we’re waiting for the day when someone actually makes a purchase. We’d like to see the pair on someone’s feet, and we’re curious to know who it would be.
