Bensimon Now in the Philippines

This is Berry in her Bensimon x Bonpoint sneakers, back when she was 2 years old.

These sneakers don't fit her anymore. But I am saving them for Xavi. Yes, because real boys wear pink. Haha.

This is me in my Bensimons when Berry was a year and a half. I was not strangling her, I was trying to get her to look at the camera. Heehee.

We love our Bensimons. They are so comfortable. And chic. And are real classics. Yes, I sound like such a cliche.

I discovered Bensimon during our New York years via my friend Sarj, who wears them for walking around Manhattan. There were no sexy shoes in that city for us, haha.

I ended up getting my pair at Mick Margo on Commerce Street in the West Village, when I found myself hobbling and needed comfortable shoes, because I got blisters from wearing a pair of Melissas that got wet because some cab splashed water on me while I was on my merry way to meet my friends Rissa and Happy at Cafe Cluny, also in the West Village.

I've been wearing them since then. So imagine my thrill when I got invited to the launch of Bensimon in the Philippines, along with my friends Jackie Go (btw, please vote for her, she's a finalist for best style blog at Globe's Tatt Awards! Go Jackie Go!) and Janice Villanueva. 

I have been a long time fan of Bensimon and was all the more thrilled when I found out they brought in the line for kids too! Yay Berry and Xavi!

There's a slip-on version too. I am going to get one in navy. I can imagine it na with white jeans and a white Alexander Wang t-shirt. Heffortless!

Lest you think Bensimon is only about classic tennis shoes or la tennis Bensimon, it is in fact a lifestyle brand. Started thirty years ago by brothers Serge and Yves Bensimon, with a small shop in the Marais district of Paris, on the famous Rue des Francs Bourgeois street, the brand is "inspired by travel, military and true Parisian fashion" selling not just sneakers but clothing, luggage, fragrance, and well-designed home goods.

In the Philippines, Bensimon is brought in by Terry S.A., distributor of Havaianas, David & Goliath, Dupe and Pininho. Ammiel de Leon, brand director of Bensimon Philippines believes that with Bensimon, they can change the Filipino perception of sneakers into something sophisticated and stylish.

And like those darn Havaianas, I want one in every color! I am not stopping at two. Eeep!

My old Bensimons meet the new, hello hello!

Xavi, you won't be barefoot for long. I am getting you and Atchi Berry a pair each too. Heehee.

Bensimon sneakers are available in Center of Gravity (Forbes Town, Burgos Circle and Centris Walk), Shoe Salon (Glorietta 3, Power Plant Mall Rockwell, Robinson’s Ermita, Shangri-La Plaza Mall and Trinoma Mall), and Shoe Thing (kids styles only: Bonifacio High Street, Eastwood Mall, and Greenbelt 5). 

Prices range from Php2,095 to Php2,565 for men’s and women’s styles and Php1,295 to Php1,795 for the kids’ styles.

For inquiries and updates on Bensimon Philippines, like them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BensimonPhilippines