the one and only rene caovila because he is a master and as a shoe designer thats who inspires me, not so much designs but what he has been able to realise in his designs. then there are the old master cobblers like ferragamo, vivier, perugia. there are more but for me those are the ones that made me want to do what i do. but this is always hard choices and subjective because for me the answers are far more technical rather than visual.