Our Story

It all started off (as all good things to do) at a big fat Indian wedding. I saw my favourite uncle, who was the style icon on the family, looking rather timid. He didn't want to get up from his table and went right at the back during the family photograph. So I asked my father what was going on and he said that my uncle was recently asked to wear diabetic footwear and hasn't been the same ever since. 

What were diabetic shoes? Why were they so ugly? A simple search on the internet showed that choice was limited and nobody was making shoes that people would want to wear. This resulted in non-adherence to footwear, even if it meant risking their foot. We also realised that

Every 20 seconds, one foot is amputated due to diabetes in the world today.

Half of these could have been prevented by wearing recommended footwear and adhering to basic footcare measures. Current footwear is unsophisticated, ineffective and expensive and hence nobody wants to wear it. 

This was unacceptable and we started on a journey to change that.

                                

Design Process

Our journey involved four phases: 

  1. India (Identifying design goals) - We first spoke to over 400 stakeholders in India including diabetologists, patients and podiatrists to understand their expectations from diabetic footwear. Then, by compiling this with existing studies on the medical goals of diabetic footwear, we identified four fundamental design goals that we would achieve in our footwear. 
    • Prevent external shock
    • Reduce shear/friction
    • Evenly distribute plantar pressure
    • Accommodate bone deformities
  2. Italy (Art of Shoemaking) - Based on our studies, we realised that it was hard to create good-looking footwear with these design con
    straints. We then spent a lot of time in Italy to understand the art of shoemaking and then innovate at the component level. We believe this to be the only path to creating chic diabetic footwear. 
  3. US (Consulting key thoughtleaders) With our new knowledge, we then went to the US where we spoke to the world-leading experts
    in the diabetic footwear space and constantly reiterated our designs. 

After over two years of research, we have developed a framework for diabetic footwear that allows it be chic, affordable and functional.

                             

All about ‘you’

Our ethos at Dr. Brinsley has been "Always about the customer". Offering high quality and an artfully crafted product isn’t enough in our opinion. The service we offer and the interactions we have are a reflection of the care and dedication that we put into building every aspect of the Dr. Brinsley brand.

We pride ourselves on maintaining a small, family business mentality with the zeal of a fast-growing startup. The service we offer will always be personal, diligent and immediate – each and every time.