Her shoes now grace the feet of Gigi Hadid, the Kardashians, and Olivia Palermo, but six years ago Sara Caverley had no design experience at all.
Now Sara, 35, is an international success with Sol Sana, which she launched after realising the market lacked leather footwear that was affordable and fashionable.
Sara had landed a career in fashion for a wholesale distributor in Sydney and spent five years working with retail buyers, giving her a clear view of the market.
The idea struck Sara as she talked to a client of her company who was wearing $1,000 designer sandals, already falling apart after only being worn for two seasons.
Sara Caverley (pictured), 35, is an international success with Sol Sana, launching the fashion footwear company without any design experience or schooling
‘There was nothing available six years ago that was leather, touched on fashion, touched on commercial…at an affordable price point,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
And yet, the customers were coming in with the same requests. Sara realised there was a major gap in the market, and decided she would be the one to fill it.
Sara began reaching out to suppliers and sketching out her first collection, deciding she would create one that she would want to purchase for herself.
‘That’s still been my philosophy,’ she said. ‘I look at the trends and what’s happening overseas, but I put out designs that I personally want to buy.’
Sara launched Sol Sana after realising the market lacked leather footwear that was both affordable and fashionable
The first shoe Sara every designed with a lace-on wooden and leather clog, the ‘very first idea’ she ever had.
‘I would take inspiration from vintage stores and find elements of certain things that I liked from the sixties and seventies, and found a beautiful pair of clogs I wanted to reinvent,’ she said.
Sara built up her first sample range and officially launched the company in 2011, about six months after she first developed the concept.
And Sol Sana started off with a bang, ending up in 20 stores in New South Wales and Queensland in its very first season.
‘That’s all it took to give me an indication that there’s a market out there,’ she said.
‘That’s when we rolled to national agents all across Australia and New Zealand as well.’
Sol Sana started off with a bang, ending up in 20 stores in New South Wales and Queensland in its very first season, and getting a place at David Jones in its second
The brand now counts celebrities like Olivia Palermo (left) and Bella Hadid (right) as its fans
The biggest moment came when Sol Sana landed in David Jones its second season.
‘That was the moment where I was like, I’ve really got something here,’ Sara recalled. ‘They didn’t have any product like what we were doing, that really cemented us as a strong Aussie brand.’
And that feeling has only gotten stronger as the label expanded into 17 countries across the globe and landed on the feet of stars like Bella Hadid.
Sara believes its the combination of style and affordability that has made Sol Sana stand out among the public and celebrities alike, with prices ranging from $95 to $250.
‘We aren’t afraid to touch on the super fashion stuff, but we do have a commercial twist on it,’ she said.
Sara believes its the combination of style and affordability that has made Sol Sana stand out among the public and celebrities alike
At the end of the day, Sara – who currently lives in New York – loves being her own boss and having the freedom of being in charge of her own designs
‘If clear PVC pipes are trending we’ll do a little element on the strap so everyone can buy into the trend, without looking like you should be on a runway somewhere.’
‘And then there’s our sandals, which are simple and minimal and clean. So there’s two aspects of Sol Sana that I think people quite like.’
At the end of the day, Sara – who currently lives in New York – loves being her own boss and having the freedom that comes with being in charge of her own designs.
‘I can be on the street and see a really cool pair of shoes and go back to the studio and sketch some ideas on that,’ she said.
‘There’s a freedom to create any style I think will sell.’
Model Jessica Gomes is another of Sol Sana’s famous fans, pictured here in its sandals