When spring and summer arrive and the good weather begins, females start putting away their warm clothes and start shopping for the latest seasonal fashions.
IT manager Wang Lei, 30, makes shoes the priority for her shopping list.
"Shoes are like the foundations. If the foundations aren't right, the building won't stand upright and if a woman's balance isn't right, nothing else is," Wang said, quoting designer Jimmy Choo.
"A pair of amazing shoes makes you stand out on any occasion," she added. Wang said she had around 40 pairs of shoes for different occasions, which include work, travel, parties, even for showing-off.
Susanna Nicoletti, communication and marketing director of Sergio Rossi, an Italian women's footwear company, which is renowned for its craftsmanship and feminine designs, said: "Choosing a pair of shoes makes you happy. It's a nice moment when you find time for yourself and try on a pair of shoes. You think about yourself at different events. It's sort of a passion. It's sort of a way of expressing yourself."
Carrie Bradshaw, a fictional character and fashionista in the HBO sitcom Sex and the City, said in one episode: "The fact is, sometimes it's really hard to walk in a single woman's shoes. That's why we need really special ones now and then to make the walk a little more fun."
During spring and summer this year, footwear trends have been described as extremely fun and vibrant. There are classic high heels, metallic finishes, transparent footwear and eye-catching prints.
Transparent shoes, which were inspired by fairy tale character Cinderella's crystal shoes, or those with some transparency, such as heels and straps, together with floral prints, checks, polka dots and geometric patterns, feature in this season's shoes at Kate Spade, J Crew, Valentino and Donna Karan.
For Sergio Rossi, the spring-summer 2013 collection uses bold colors, woven leather, metallic surfaces and crystal intarsia for heels, soles and straps to define its daring and sharp tone.
"Shoes are a piece of art. They are sensuality. It's a mixture of simplicity and purity," said Christophe Melard, president and chief executive officer at Sergio Rossi.
Melard said the new collection has been widely welcomed in China, especially their high heels shoes with platforms. He added the Chinese prefer certain colors, such as pink, light blue, gold and red - with metallic gold details.
"Stripes are among the key trends this season. The Zara collection has lots of bold stripes and other elements such as polka dots, prints, bright summer hues and more," said Ben Xu, assistant communications manager at Zara China. The Spanish fast fashion giant introduced classic black and white striped wedge footwear for the season, which it says is perfect for a visit to the beach or a weekend morning.
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