At a recent shoe signing Manolo Blahnik spoke criticalyl of designer collaborations with the high street, so naturally the news about his collaboration with J. Crew came as a surprise to many. Interestingly, though, the news was a shock to him too.

"I was recently contacted by J.Crew to do something with them, so I sent them over 45 pairs of shoes, and they announced we were doing a collaboration. I had no idea about it!" While that may be true, it does make you question why he sent the shoes over if mass-market collaborations isn't something he would be happy about doing.