Hidetaka Fukaya, a lover of cats and admirer of their free spirit created his brand il micio (Italian for kitten) in 1999 in Florence. He initially trained in shoemaking under a master in Nagoya before a short stint as a fashion designer. Unable to get shoemaking off of his mind (something I can relate to), he moved to Siena to work as a shoemaker's apprentice. When he launched il micio in 1999, he was the first prominent Japanese bespoke shoemaker in living memory to set up shop overseas.

Being the creative that he is, he has more recently designed a range of products for sale in partner stores, much of which is made in his workshop in Florence.