Custodian of Change: Silvia Olcese

Bio

Silvia Olcese is the founder of Macian, the first women’s luxury footwear house producing authentically in Northamptonshire, the historic heart of English shoemaking. With a background in global luxury brands, she created Macian to bring true British craftsmanship back into the women’s space - pairing traditional Goodyear welting with modern, feminine design. Her work centres on longevity, integrity and meaningful luxury: creating products made to last, and building a brand rooted in heritage, restraint and long-term thinking.

Influence & Purpose

WiSL: Tell us about your sphere of influence: the people, ideas, or spaces you shape, and why it matters to you.

SO: My work sits at the intersection of British craft, women’s luxury and long-term thinking. I influence a space that has been somewhat neglected: true English luxury for women, made where the tradition was born, not outsourced and decorated with heritage language.

What matters to me is redefining what luxury means today. Beauty and craftsmanship are essential, but so are durability, honesty and respect for the people who make the product. I speak to women who want elegance without compromise, and to an industry that has often drifted into fast-paced trends and superficial storytelling.

WiSL: What impact are you most proud of creating within your community or industry?

SO: I am proud to be bringing English heritage shoemaking into the women’s luxury space, making this craft relevant and desirable to a broader, modern audience that values beauty, comfort, and longevity.

In the long term, I envision Macian growing beyond footwear into a wider lifestyle universe. There is so much heritage in areas like English outerwear and Scottish cashmere, and I want to help bring that craft back into focus for modern women.

Origins & Voice

WiSL: How did you get started in this space, and what helped you find your unique voice as a changemaker?

SO: My path began in luxury brand management at Ferragamo, then VF, Michael Kors and Swatch. The real shift came when I realised that many so-called sustainable brands were not aspirational, and many luxury brands were not truly sustainable or grounded in meaningful craft.

My voice emerged from that gap. I do not believe in preaching. I believe in building products so well that sustainability becomes a natural consequence. My background allows me to speak both the analytical language of strategy and the emotional language of craft. I bridge the two.

Visibility & Misunderstanding

WiSL: What’s something you wish more people understood about your work or the change you’re driving?

SO: One thing I wish more people understood is that Macian is not a premium brand aspiring to look luxury. It is luxury, created with the same patience and technical discipline that defined classic English shoemaking.

The sustainability conversation is often misunderstood. Sustainability is not a marketing narrative. It is the outcome of hundreds of choices. In footwear, this means using construction methods that allow longevity and repair rather than disposal. A Goodyear-welted shoe can be resoled multiple times throughout its lifetime. This extends its usable life and reduces the waste cycle in a world where more than twenty billion pairs of shoes are produced each year and the majority eventually end up discarded.

People often see the final product. Fewer see the discipline behind it.

Values & Alignment

WiSL: What personal values guide your work, and how do they make you the best person for the career you’ve designed for yourself?

SO: Integrity, restraint and longevity guide everything I do.

Integrity keeps me transparent and grounded. I avoid greenwashing and unnecessary narratives. Restraint pushes me to create fewer, better things. Longevity helps me build a brand with a long-term horizon rather than chase seasonal attention.

There is also a historic connection between Liguria and England that has always been part of my personal story. British families spent their summers on the Ligurian coast for generations. Genoa and England share the same flag through a long maritime history, and Genoa Football Club was founded by the British. These links were simply part of the landscape I grew up in. When I created Macian, I realised how naturally those influences lived within me. The colours of the Ligurian facades, the understated English sensibility and the deep relationship between the two places shape the way I think about heritage and beauty.

I am the right person for this path because I understand both the data and the craft. I am analytical by training but emotionally connected to meaning, history and the places that shaped me.

The Everyday Reality

WiSL: On challenging days, what does your work look or feel like behind the scenes?

SO: On challenging days, my work looks like ten roles compressed into one. It is a mix of product decisions, cashflow, operations, customer conversations and strategic thinking. It can be exhilarating and exhausting, and most of it remains invisible from the outside.

WiSL: On days when you remember why you started, what moments bring you joy and affirmation?

SO: On the days when I remember why I started, it is usually because of a message from a woman who walked all day in Macian shoes and felt beautiful, powerful and comfortable. That always brings me back.

Reflection & Growth

WiSL: Looking back, what advice would you give to yourself at the beginning of this journey?

SO: Looking back, I would tell myself not to wait for permission. I would also say that customer acquisition is harder than it looks and that persistence matters as much as vision. The product will carry you if you stay true to the long game.

WiSL: What leadership qualities are you currently nurturing, and how are you actively developing them?

SO: At the moment I am nurturing patience and clarity. I am learning to slow down, focus on what truly matters and ignore the noise. I am also learning to ask for help earlier and to build a brand that can grow without compromising its soul.

Words by: Silvia Olcese