1) Christian Louboutin is a famous French shoe designer known for his signature red-soled heels. He was inspired to design shoes from a young age after watching dancers in Paris. 2) Louboutin launched his first store in Paris in 1992 and is now a global luxury brand. A key part of his success was developing the "Simple" classic heel collection. 3) Louboutin pioneered the use of a red sole, which became synonymous with his brand and helped drive its success and recognition as a leader in the luxury footwear industry.

1. Christian LouboutinTaylor Hinds & Courtney BallardBUS438, Professor Dan Lake

2. CNN Cliphttp://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/03/24/paris.louboutin.shoes/index.html?iref=allsearch

3. Born in Paris in 1964 as the youngest child of five sisters, Louboutin was drawn to footwear from an early age.

4. Louboutin found his calling as a 17-year-old apprentice in the dressing rooms of Paris' famous cabaret, FoliesBergère.

5. "I would watch the girls going up and down the stairs with these very heavy headdresses on, and they never looked at their shoes," he says. "That's where I learned that shoes are all about posture and proportion.”

6. Always wanted to be a shoe designer, but never thought of it as a profession until he was given a book about shoe designer Roger Vivier.Early Inspiration

7. DesignOne of his earliest memories is seeing a sign prohibiting the wearing of stiletto heels in a Paris museum -- warning of potential damage to the wood floors. "I wanted to defy that. I wanted to create something that broke rules and made women feel confident and empowered.”The actual build of his shoes is architecturally inspired. He cites the gravity-defying buildings of Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer as an influence.

8. HistoryLouboutin quietly built his business during his career’s first decade.

9. Began career as a designer for Charles Jourdan in 1981

10. Freelance stints for YSL and Chanel

11. Worked for Roger Vivier in 1989

12. Worked as a landscaper in ‘90 & ‘91

13. Msr. Louboutin opened his first flagship Paris store in 1992

14. Louboutin showed his shoes above Diane von Furstenberg’s studio on 12th Street (NYC), and she has since become a mentor.The Red SoleMore than a cunning marketing concept, the red sole was a happy accident.

15. While working on a prototype in his studio in 1992, Louboutin searched for a way to match the shoe to a colorful sketch.

16. Feeling that the sole of the shoe was too dark, he painted the bottom with a bottle of red nail polish.

17. "It didn't take me long to learn from my customers that the red soles were very popular with men," Louboutin says, laughing.The Simple CollectionLouboutin used to change his collections frequently, with little brand and design cohesion from one collection to the next.Credits DVF with helping him develop his brand’s direction: “She gave me very important advice: She told me I should always have classics.”Classic round-toe stiletto

18. Neutral, everyday colors

19. Patent or matte finish

20. 70 mm, 85 mm, 100 mm, 120 mmEvery season is completely different for Louboutin, whose collections vary vastly. The collection shoes accompany the Simple collection, which is available year-round.

21. Building an EmpireIt was with the 2004 addition of a second NYC store on Horatio St. that his U.S. business really took off.Louboutin said the shop gave him greater exposure to a younger, hipper customer.Began designing shoes for the catwalks of Chloé, Lanvin, McQueen, Viktor & Rolf, Jean Paul Gaultier, YSL and Roland Mouret.

22. Celebrity ClienteleOprah, Sarah Jessica Parker, Lady Gaga, Victoria Beckham, Blake Lively, Dita von Teese, Katie Holmes, the Kardashians and hundreds of other Hollywood stars among his loyal clientele.Red-soled red carpet appearances increase promotion with little company effort.Featured in Sex & The City Movie

23. Though he doesn’t go out of his way to court the famous, Louboutin values his celebrity endorsers. “I take a lot of pride in the fact that with all the choices in the world, celebrities still choose my shoes,” he said. “Shoes are objects of desire. I’m not going to throw tons of shoes at someone so that they’ll wear them. [The desire] has to come from the person.”

24. Sweet SuccessEven in a year when high-end retail struggled to recover, Christian Louboutin was the force to be reckoned with. His unique grasp of luxury consumers of all ages was never more obvious than in 2010, when he was honored with Footwear News Person of the Year.While other designers were forced to cut staff and reduce their retail footprints, Louboutin expanded his global empire.

25. 20102010 marked an important year of transition, when the brand truly went global with store expansion and new distribution.