THE BRAND

Casbia is a relatively young footwear brand from Italy which deals with men's shoes. The man is carefully considered and his needs as a buyer and as a wearer are taken into the equation.

The fine line between contemporary fashion, casual footwear, function and aesthetics is very important for Casbia and therefore the Italian footwear brand provides eye-catchers with every season, which on the one hand offers with elegant design and on the other hand captivate with bold and daring elements.

HISTORY

The brand was founded in 2010 by designer Manuele Bianchi and his colleague Edmundo Castillo. Combining their enviable experience in the industry including a successful 20-year partnership at Donna Karan, the two friends became partners to found Casbia as their own baby.

Casbia´s idea is to convey a true sense of design and aesthetics onto a men´s shoe in a contemporary context. Both designers are enthusiastic sneaker lovers and each has over 500 pairs of shoes, mostly sneakers. Being a shoe lover , you become critical at some point which is exactly what happened to Bianchi and Castillo. Both yearned for the next level and now apply their creative energies to their own sneakers.

In the dialogue between sneaker and fashion silhouette, Casbia always refer more to a sneaker brand than a fashion label. The tendency to culture behind it, is important to them , since they are die hard sneaker fanatics.

Casbia should grow slowly. Manuele Bianchi and Edmundo Castillo don’t want to make fast money with their idea. They want to stay true to their line, never compromise, and always remain authentic.They aim to always deliver high-quality product at an attractive price.

DESIGNER

Edmundo Castillo

The designer for footwear comes from Puerto Rico, for him the connection between himself and the realization of his impressions and feelings in the form of shoes is essential. For Castillo, growing up in a family that was largely dominated by women, shoes was an everyday topic, aswell as an object which he learned to love and with which he feels firmly connected.

Castillo studied at the Altos de Chavón School of Art and Design, learning from the footwear designer Antonio Lopez, among others. His teacher also told him that there was more to him than just fashion design in its proper sense. Shoes and their design should become more and more important to him and that is what happened.

Donna Karan was his next focal point and cornerstone for many experiences he made in the industry. Work on the collections was inspiring and always started with the shoes, so there were no limits to his work and creativity. Later on, the clothing is aligned with the shoes. To the customer, the shoe is seen as the perfect finishing touch to a look, when in reality everything starts with it. Edmundo Castillo maintained this mentality and still accompanies him in his work with Casbia today.

Manuele Bianchi

Manuele is a passionate designer and always lets his feelings and impressions from everyday life flow into his work. In his own words, his approach to the design of a shoe is more architectural. He recognizes that designing men´s shoes is a greater challenge than creating women´s shoes. Both Manuele Bianchi and Edmundo Castillo come from the women’s fashion sector and, combining their work with Donna Karan, they have successfully partnered for two decades to build on experiences and skills.

The biggest difference between women's and men's shoes is the limitation in creativity. There are no boundaries for the woman, because everything can be worn. Tolerance towards women's fashion is also greater today in the contemporary and open-hearted scene than with men, even though the gender boundaries of clothing have luckily become very blurred.

SILHOUETTES

Veloce

The Veloce is a highly contemporary, attractive yet simple sneaker, which boasts excellent workmanship and dynamic design in monochromatic colouring. The chunky heel gives the entire shoe an aggressive look, perfect for everyday use and a must-have in every wardrobe.

Fenomeno

With a big bang comes the Fenomeno, the highly anticipated fashion silhouette of Casbia. With its high arch and boot-like sole, it combines elegant elements with tracking vibes and high-end materials. The upper of the Fenomeno is made of soft calf leather paired with 3M and a transparent Ice sole. A unique look that's hard to keep your eyes off.

Atlanta

A modern, contemporary and refined silhouette is the Atlanta, which is dominant at first sight by its profile of geometric shapes in the sole and upper. Its unique lacing system runs diagonally over the entire instep of the foot, and each side of the tongue is individually laced to allow independent adjustments. The shoe is then brought together with a zipper in the middle which allows you to quickly get in and out.

Champion x Atlanta Hi Top Free Agent

The update of the Atlanta comes with a collaboration with Champion for the Atlanta Hi-Top Free Agent for the 2018 Collection. The base of the Atlanta is continued with a long shaft to produce a basketball shoe silhouette. Its unique lacing is also featured in the Hi-Top version and reaches up to the instep. The final detail and highlight of the shoe is the embroidered Champion Logo „C“ which can be interpreted just as well for Casbia.