When you see Lavati's footwear, it's like overcoming those agonizing moments when you can't put a name to a familiar face. The sneakers and Chelsea boots on the feet of Zayn Malik, Steph Curry, Post Malone, Lewis Hamilton, and Kevin Hart have probably swamped your vision, much like that one guy, who's in that one thing, and now you can finally put a name to the familiar footwear: Lavati.
The brand has been slowly building a buzz by hooking up celebrities with shoes, teasing them on Instagram, and allowing fans subscribed to their newsletter to partake in lotteries that ensure the shoes only end up on the feet of a few loyal (and lucky) followers. "Since we know how the sneakerhead market is and that people want something special, you can't make it for everyone," Lavati co-founder Yossi Shetrit tells Complex. "They don't want to go into Finish Line and be able to buy something that everyone else has."
"The reason why the Yeezys and Jordans are so valuable is because you can't get your hands on it, and when you do, it's a big thrill," Lavati's other co-founder Davidson Petit-Frere adds. "We want to have that same experience with Lavati."
Lavati is the brainchild of Shetrit and Petit-Frere. Shertit recently graduated from FIT's menswear program and also got a degree in footwear design. Petit-Frere is involved with the menswear brand Musika Frère and makes suits for many of the aforementioned celebrities. Petit-Frere's connections are what allowed him to let the celebrities wearing the shoes in on the best-kept-secret in footwear. "That's where I've gotten contacts like Steph Curry, Lewis Hamilton, Kevin Hart," he explains. "All those are customers of mine that I currently make clothes for." The founders add that Jay Z, Future, and Nick Jonas also have a pair of Lavati shoes they haven't been photographed in...yet.
However, Lavati isn't just about the hype. Shetrit and Petit-Frere created the footwear brand in order to make shoes of extremely high quality. There's a suede Chelsea boot in black and beige, black and white low-tops made out of calfskin leather, and high-tops in navy and brown.
All of the Lavati shoes are made in Italy where every detail on every shoe is given individual TLC. "We went to Italy a week ago, and during our trip, we were able to meet all the suppliers who make every component of our shoe," Shertit says. "So it's the soles, the leathers, the laces, even down to the packaging design. When you make product in Italy, each worker specializes in one thing, so there's one guy who makes the laces and one who works with the leather. There's one guy who just puts the sole and the upper together and that's from a totally separate factory from the people who do the stitching for the upper of the shoe."
That attention to detail has left their clientele impressed. "What we love about it is that Steph and Zayn have worn our product more than once," Shertit says. "They both wore it on their birthdays. They wore it in a couple interviews. So they've both been seen in the product three, four, five times at least publicly. So that's a good feeling: that they weren't just wearing it once." Malik even wore the brand's footwear during his recent cover shoot with Complex.
The footwear brand has been rolling out slowly to celebrities. Yes, it's a hook, but the founders have shown they aren't afraid of letting a plan play out, no matter how long it takes. Lavati itself has been in the works for a total of four years, they say. "On paper, it's like, 'Hey, let's go start a shoe brand,'" Shertit says. "But when you want to make a product of the highest-quality, there are so many sampling processes, so many trips to Italy to get that extra stitch perfect. It's the hardest business to be in."
Now, finally, the brand is launching for a general audience. At 11 a.m. on Friday, you can head to the brand's website for a chance to join the ranks of Curry, Malik, and Hamilton with your own Lavati kicks.
