About me
Katie Ridges , director of Kneecraft design is a footwear design consultant who splits her time between London and Margate in the UK .
She launched her career over ten years ago when she moved to Shanghai to work with a designer she met on a flight to a trade show in Italy.
That leap of faith lead her to a year of adventure, learning her trade from the ground up. Time was spent either in the design studio , factory or pursuing editorial - a highlight being a visit to the China Vogue office with a bag of shoes on her back and a determination to get a feature. They got a full page spread!
After 3 years working with suppliers for brands such as Firetrap ,Ben Sherman and Patrick Cox she took up a new challenge working in house with UK brand ,Brakeburn to successfully launch it's first collection of footwear and accessories. This role covered sourcing for all product categories ,design and visual content building. As well as managing the team of graphic and clothing designers.
In 2014 Katie went to work in house as part of the Pentland group for Boxfresh. Focusing her time on new concepts and development in materials and outsole design.
In 2016 she launched Kneecraft Design, her first client being J-Shoes ,where she took creative lead for all design, development and art direction. During this time the brand strengthened its position in the U.S market gaining major retail partners.
She currently consults for a range of companies that span all categories of footwear ,clients include French Connection, NICCEE ,Religion ,Slydes Inc and a number of exciting start-ups.
Katie prides herself on being a footwear developer in equal measure to a designer having trained in product design at the prestigious Cordwainer's Collage in London ,where in 2016 she returned as a visiting lecturer.
She has a passion for sustainable design and in recent years has been working with a growing number of clients and suppliers who share the same mindset.
Skills
Accessories Design, Branding, Creative Direction, footwear design, illustrator, Photoshop, Product Development
Sector Experience
Awards
Clients
Crosslow, FCUK, Heel and Buckle, J-Shoes, Just.a.group, Numen, Religion, Slydes, Weatherbeeta Group