Bragais Shoes

 Winning walk with the 'Pinoy heart'

By Earl D.C. Bracamonte

Pageant fans from all around the world watched the FB Live colloquium "Winning Walk" with reigning Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi of South Africa and the CEO of Bragais Shoes, Jojo Bragais, the new official footwear of the 69th Miss Universe competition.

"My greatest walk happened with my shoe-making career when I was 20. My journey started with Yvette Santiago (Bb. Pilipinas Supranational 2014), then with Pia Wurtzbach (Miss Universe 2015), to Catriona Gray (Miss Universe 2018), and now with the Miss Universe Organization. It's a career dream for me, ever since," shared Jojo.

"A winning walk is one that a candidate understands, like in a Miss Universe stage. It's been fun knowing that my shoes will now be part of that walk," he added.

For her part, Zozi remembers her winning walk when she was called as part of the Top 3. "A winning walk is one that is done with conviction and pride, not only on the physical level, but what you carry in the inside . . . what you're bringing to the world! Cat's walk will always be memorable. I must have watched her 'Lava Walk' a thousand times for its wow factor," she shared, while opening a Jojo Bragais box containing silver stilettos.

Some citizens call Zozi's gait as the "Wakanda Walk," inspired from the "Black Panther" movie. She said, she will be awaiting for more comments in the thread as to what fans call her kind of walk.

Jojo will soon be working with a few candidates in the shoot of his sponsorship video in Florida. "My shoes are tall but strong, stylish but comfortable, and hand made by the best craftsmen. Theirs - our hearts - the Pinoy heart, is present in every shoe."

There's one design with four colors to the more than 200 shoes that Jojo will bring to the pageant. The Jehza line, inspired from Bb. Philippines Supranational 2018 Jehza Juelar, comes in cream, mocha, cocoa, and metallic silver. "The mocha, with its yellow undertones is best for Asians. The cocoa, with its red undertones, will be flattering for copper skin. We offer color ranges that candidates, and women, can wear as themselves."

At the Bragais Shoes flagship store in Quezon City, there are lines inspired by our Miss Universe queens and local titlists, as well as a beautiful selection for the LGBTQA+ community.

When asked how winning are his shoe designs, Jojo said that he has been working with beauty queens for a long time now and realized that comfortability was a prime concent. "My sister, who is in charge of quality control is the first to try the shoes and ddecide if they are comfy or not. I put something inside every shoe to make it comfortable. I will be working with the girls come first week of May and see how my shoes carry the pressure of the race."

"Even in 2021, it's still a struggle to get something that matches perfectly with one's skin tone. So thank you so much for these Bragais shoes. I will never complain for more shoes," said a beaming Zozi, at the close of the colloquium.

Moderated by Bessie Besana, the FB Live session was also simultaneously broadcast through the IGTV accounts of the Miss Universe Organization and Bragais_Official.

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Images from Instagram