The heritage

The story of the brand name A. Viryent begins with the family tradition of manual shoemaking. It stems from an old shoemaker’s workshop, where handmade shoes have been crafted since 1919.

The idea of naming the brand “A. Viryent” originates from my family tradition of manual shoemaking. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Bartholomey Viryent, one of Napoleon’s soldiers, came to Slovenia. The first of his grandchildren became a cobbler and in 1919 passed on the secrets of the cobbling trade to his son Jakob Virjent, my great grandfather. Jakob then, in turn, passed the knowledge gained to his son Rado, my grandfather. Rado Virjent completed the school for cobblers in Maribor and proceeded to make handcrafted shoes for many decades, all the while meticulously perfecting and honing his skills. It was in my grandfather’s workshop, under his careful guidance where I learned the art and craft of handmade shoemaking.

Combining my family’s rich tradition with the knowledge gained while studying at the Design Department of the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana (where I graduated in November 2004), I started a company of my own. The name “A. Viryent” is therefore as much a tribute to my family and my grandfather in particular, as it is a contemporary lighthouse whose radiance promises unique and thoughtful shoe craftsmanship of the highest quality.

Alja Viryent