Afshan

As a Pakistani engineer working at Microsoft in Seattle, I never imagined I'd become a shoe entrepreneur. But during a visit home to Pakistan, I discovered beautiful hand-embroidered khussas at a local bazaar and brought them back as gifts for my Microsoft colleagues. Their overwhelming enthusiasm and constant requests for more pairs revealed a gap in the US market that I couldn't ignore.

What truly motivates me is witnessing the transformation in our artisan partners' lives - watching women in rural Pakistani villages who were once dependent on others now earning dignified incomes through their generational craft skills.

Every pair of Fuchsia shoes represents not just comfort and beauty for our customers, but economic empowerment for the 72+ artisans whose intricate handwork makes each shoe a piece of wearable art. My passion stems from building bridges between cultures while creating sustainable livelihoods - proving that authentic craftsmanship and modern comfort can coexist beautifully.

Today, nearly a decade later, Fuchsia has grown from a personal frustration with uncomfortable flats into a movement that celebrates Pakistani heritage while providing women everywhere with shoes that honor both their feet and the hands that made them.