A Museum of Memories": Designer Anjali Phougat’s 500-Pair Global Shoe Collection Tells a Story of Craftsmanship and Consciousness

For award-winning fashion designer and entrepreneur Anjali Phougat, footwear has never been a mere accessory or a superficial status symbol. Across a celebrated career that has seen her showcase handcrafted South Asian couture on global runways—including Cannes, Paris Fashion Week, and New York Fashion Week—she has assembled a personal archive of over 500 pairs of shoes collected from around the world. For Phougat, each design represents a distinct milestone, a cultural memory, and an appreciation for intricate craftsmanship rather than passive luxury consumption.

Her fascination with footwear began well before she entered the professional fashion industry. Captivated from an early age by silhouettes, color palettes, and structural detail, she made it a personal tradition to acquire a unique pair of shoes from every international city she visited, whether traveling through Milan, London, Paris, or New York. Over two decades, this practice evolved into an extensive library of design, featuring iconic runway pieces alongside rare, hand-carved finds discovered in hidden artisan workshops across Europe and Asia.

While her collection includes historic pieces from leading global heritage houses such as Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Chanel, Prada, Saint Laurent, Christian Louboutin, Jimmy Choo, and Manolo Blahnik, her personal reverence belongs to Italian master Salvatore Ferragamo. Phougat views her Ferragamo runway shoes as milestone markers in her creative journey, admiring the house’s commitment to sculptural heels, premium leatherwork, and architectural design principles that transcend fleeting seasonal trends.

Maintaining such a massive archive requires meticulous care and a strong commitment to sustainability. Housed in a dedicated closet space, every pair is preserved in its original box with an identification photo attached to the exterior. Through careful maintenance, pieces she acquired nearly twenty years ago remain in pristine condition. Grounded in a mindset of circular fashion, Phougat routinely restores, redesigns, and donates numerous pairs every year, ensuring that high-quality craftsmanship continues its lifecycle with others rather than contributing to textile waste.

In recent years, Phougat’s perspective on her collection has undergone a profound evolution driven by meditation and personal spiritual practices. While she continues to admire footwear as compact architectural art, she no longer ties her personal identity or happiness to material ownership. Recognizing that true peace exists independently of material possessions, she views her collection today as an objective museum of memories—celebrating human creativity and cultural history while remaining fully grounded in present moment awareness.