meet Mike Brown .. the shoe magician

If life has taught me anything, it has shown and taught me that we can all be tested professionally as well as personally. My professional life has been a series of surprises/tests; jobs taken and enjoyed with great success while never having any previous or formal training for the task.

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I think that Mike Brown, whom I’ve known for decades, never imagined himself in the position he is in today. Without question he challenged himself to start a business which he knew nothing about except he had experimented on himself and literally put his work on display for all to see. I might add that he joins the “perennials” who reinvent themselves in ways that no one could foresee. 

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As you will read in his own words you will learn where life took him and where he found his passion. Glamarama (www.glamarama.shoes )is a passion that grew from a sort of sight gag into a viable business which only time will reveal its success. Mike Brown has become a sort of plastic surgeon of the shoe business but don’t be confused by what that moniker implies; he will work with you from your closet or from his selection. This is no “bedazzled” loving hands at  home shoe decoration!

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I’m truly fascinated and proud to have reconnected with him after so many years and too see that he has achieved such varied successes during his life. So in his own words …. Here’s Mike 

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Jeffrey Felner: Can you sort of give us a synopsis of how you arrived at your present position and what came before?

Mike Brown: I enjoy the LA night-club scene and make my weekly Saturday night pilgrimage to a local 70’s disco for a night of dancing. One night last summer I took an old pair of disco platform shoes and blinged them up with glitter, gemstones and crystals and headed out to dance the night away. Once on the dance floor I noticed people were smiling and pointing and taking pictures of my shoes and began to ask me where I got them. I told them I embellished them, and each time I wore them I got the same questions and soon I began making them for friends which snowballed into cultivating new clients for bespoke designs. So I converted my garage into a studio, opened up a business and I call it … Glamarama Shoes.

I have a degree in Horticulture and Landscape design and while creativity should come as no surprise to me, this iteration of my abilities astonished me as I began to explore beyond the simplicity of platforms and glitter and discover fabrics, styles of shoes, designers and a plethora of shoe history and information that remained unknown to me until this point in time. I never imagined becoming a person with “shoe person” but the more I learned and read and researched the more I became fascinated. I love the process of embellishing new or used shoes and turning the ‘plainspoken’ into ‘bespoken’ as well as taking them from ‘frazzled’ to ‘bedazzled’. It’s like a garden makeover, but for shoes.

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JF: If you could invite any 5 people to dinner; who would they be and why?

MB: Roger Vivier:  He popularized the stiletto heel. His feverish passion for elegance and shoe adornment and extravagance is stellar. His artistry no doubt opened the door for others to follow including myself.  I am in awe of his use of buckles, appliques, pearls, stones and exquisite fabrics. I’d place him to my immediate right and let him cast his sage words to me as I jump into an extremely competitive and enormous business. “This is what I love”, I’d whisper to him and I’d be he’d smile and whisper the exact same words back to me and then we’d toast to success. Coco Chanel: I’d place Mlle. Chanel to my left.  The centerpiece would be a wide vase of white, lavender and pink peonies with white freesia and white roses. I love that she loved her simple yet elegant style of beauty. I’d toast to her success and the indelible mark she left on fashion for decades to come. Our glasses of Cristal would clink and the conversations would commence. Annie Leibovitz: Her magnetic vision of style, detail, choice of wardrobe and placement and textures, comfort and controversy makes her a “must” guest at my table. She’d have so much to contribute with Roger and Coco at the table it would be an honor to eavesdrop on their conversations. Amy Poehler: Simply because she makes me laugh. I love her humor and effervescence. I would love to hear her conversation at my dinner. I love to hear laughter and I think it would be awesome to hear all my invited guests simultaneously burst into gales of laughter while Amy recounted a silly escapade of her life. “Here, here - I propose another toast, this time to Amy Poehler.” Ad last but not least… Audrey Hepburn: Just because of her sheer elegance. I had the amazing fortune to wait on her (yes, once I was a Glorious Food waiter). She was seated next to Estee Lauder at a table I was to serve at the MET gala. She was statuesque, beyond gorgeous and hard for me to keep my gaze off her beauty. There she was sitting next to Estee Lauder and all I could say was, “White or red wine ma’am?” Now I want her to be seated at my table and engage in conversation on who were her favorite fashion trends and looks “I’ll drink to that!”

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JF: Let’s talk about the SHOES! Glamarama; how did this come about and did you ever think you could do this on your own?

“Stop traffic. Turn heads and drop jaws wearing Glamarama shoes.”

MB: I began my business under the name of Mile High Platforms because I only bedazzled platform shoes in the beginning but friends and potential clients would say they couldn’t walk in them but they’d love to have flats, sneakers, sandals or pumps. “Could I create one of my designs in those shoes?” So I changed the name and I came up with Glamarama and constructed a webpage under that name. I like the way the shoes elicit smiles and pique the curiosity about my work. Everyone who wears a pair not only gets to be the center of attention but becomes my “walking advertisement.” (I couldn’t resist writing that). My designs are whimsical, outrageous, and glamorous and yes sometimes gaudy but as Diana Vreeland said “A little bad taste is like a nice splash of paprika. We all need a splash of bad taste-it's hearty, it's healthy, and it’s physical. I think we could use more of it. No taste is what I'm against.” 

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JF: Did you or do you have any mentors or style icons that have influenced you during your career and why?

MB: Roger Vivier, Salvatore Ferragamo, Christian Louboutin, Manolo Blahnik (especially the “Something Blue Pump”), Miu Miu, Stuart Weitzman, Brian Atwood and Adrian Gilbert (who costumed Judy Garland’s ruby red slippers in The Wizard of Oz), Jackie Kennedy Onassis  (loved her style during the 60’s), Grace Kelly, Madonna, Andy Warhol, Grace Jones, David Bowie, Prince and too many more to list…

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JF: What’s the big picture? Where do you see yourself and your brand in 5 years? Brand/product extensions? collaborations?

MB: Through this whirlwind of self-discovery I have found a new passion that intrigues me and has set me on a pathway that quite frankly I’m unaware of where I’ll land but that’s not to say that I don’t have some sense of direction or goals. I could see myself designing shoes for musicians … yes like rock bands … (please not Kiss platforms though) but more contemporary bands who want an individual style that defines them and their music.  I wouldn’t rule out working with an up and coming shoe designer who where we could mesh his or her own style alongside a creative entrepreneur like myself. I would also like to see my shoes on people as wearable and not just of art pieces.  Art shoes are another direction but I’d really like to see clients stepping out wearing a specific design by me that speaks of their individuality and purpose and mine too.

The concepts and admirers and clients are out there - I can’t wait for them to discover Glamarama and hear what they have on their minds!

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I forgot to mention that my shoes are currently FOR SALE in Los Angeles as art collectibles at Alex Roldan’s Salon at The London Hotel. ( ALSO AVAILABLE  as  bespoke WEARABLES)