Le Monde Beryl

Le Monde Béryl is a London-based luxury footwear brand founded in 2016 by Lily Atherton Hanbury and Katya Shyfrin, who met while working in the art world. Inspired by the functionality, thriftiness, and elegance of slippers worn by Venetian gondoliers, the duo creates shoes that are sustainably produced and hand-finished in Italy by master artisans using traditional techniques. Both founders have backgrounds in gemmology and jewellery – the brand's name references a family of gemstones that inspires their diverse colour palette. What began as a single signature slipper has expanded into ballet flats, Mary Janes, loafers, boots, and heels, each with distinctive simplicity. Their minimal waste production approach takes cues from how original gondolier slippers were made from upcycled scraps.