Anyone who knows of Sania Claus Demina, or her shoe designs under eponymous label Sania D’Mina, knows about her lifelong fixation on footwear, her almost forensic approach to comfort, and her refusal to release anything before it’s right. Here, in an exclusive first look for Vogue Scandinavia, the Swedish designer reveals two long-awaited new shoe releases – plus a new campaign
“When we finally go into production with a new shoe, it has to be comfortable in a way few women seem to have experienced, and it has to make me gasp for air with excitement.”
Now, Sania Claus Demina is gasping for air with excitement – twice. For the first time in five years, her label Sania D’Mina is introducing two entirely new silhouettes: a pump and a sandal, both the result of painstaking development stretching back half a decade. The last time a new model entered the collection was in January 2021, with the launch of the now-classic Avenue boot. Since then, the brand has resisted seasonal churn, focusing instead on material and colour refinements while these designs quietly took shape.
Designer Sania Claus Demina with the Avenue boot. Photo: Verona Farrell
Shoes have always been personal for founder and designer Sania Claus Demina. Long before launching her brand, she was studying them obsessively: how the toe meets the ground, how the heel is centred, how a shoe holds the body. Comfort, for Demina, has never been a secondary concern or a marketing angle, it is the starting point. As she puts it: “My list of requirements is long and intense. The shoe must stand the test of time.”
The first of the two new designs is Carla 7, a pump that revisits the most classic shoe imaginable and quietly reengineers it (the '7' being a nod to the heel height in centimetres, though the 'real feel' is just three centimetres). Featuring an ultra-feminine, sharply sculpted heel with an invisible metal insert for stability, Carla is inspired by 1950s vintage heels and the clean confidence of 1990s fashion.
I dream of the day when women no longer accept painful shoes
Sania Claus Demina
Photo: Arton Sefa
Photo: Arton Sefa
“I have been dreaming of making the perfect pair of pumps for ages – the most classic kind of shoe,” Demina says. “There are plenty of pumps in this world, but I dare to say that the shape and actual real comfort we've managed to achieve with these is unmatched.” Crafted with generous space at the front of the foot and extra metal support in the heel, the leather is “a pure dream, both the lining and the upper.” Later this year, Carla will also be released in both higher and lower versions.
The cut at the front was inspired by her very first design, the Elenea slingback, where the aim was to create an elongating effect – a detail that brought Demina to tears when she finally approved the final sample. “I had a good cry of joy and relief,” she says. “The most simple things are always the hardest.”
Photo: Arton Sefa
Photo: Arton Sefa
Alongside Carla comes Cage, a strappy sandal built on the same centred, sharp heel. Drawing on the same 1950s and 1990s references, Cage is defined by cross-lined straps that elongate the leg, paired with adjustable buckles designed to accommodate as many feet as possible – from high arches to wider or flatter shapes. The straps are intentionally flexible, allowing the shoe to move with the wearer while maintaining support.
“The amount of love that went into making this sandal happen is endless. We moved the straps countless times to be able to figure out the best placements for maximised support of the foot, for as many feet as possible. When a shoe truly holds your feet is when they'll actually carry you.”
I had a good cry of joy and relief when I finally approved the final sample. The most simple things are always the hardest.
Sania D'Mina
Together, Carla and Cage reflect a design philosophy that has long defined sania d’mina, regjecting discomfort as a necessary trade-off for beauty. “There are so many misconceptions about what makes a shoe comfortable. I dream of the day when women no longer accept painful shoes.”
To mark this new chapter, the brand unveils a campaign starring Ilirida Krasniqi, a long-time muse of founder and designer Sania Claus Demina, photographed by Arton Sefa. The imagery distils the essence of Sania D’Mina – where modern classic meets vintage treasure.
“I have always been inspired by Ilirida's world of timeless looks with an edge, a look that she brings to life like nobody else,” Demina says of the Danish model. “I remember in the early days of launching my brand, saving photos of her in my mood folders and manifesting to hopefully have the pleasure to see her model my shoes in the future. And here we are! I got emotional seeing these photographs as they truly brought my vision to life with the new shoes. I adore that Ilirida’s brilliant partner Arton Sefa shot the story. A true dream team.”