Legendary footwear maestro Vince Camuto has passed away at the age of 78. WWD reports that the cause of death was cancer.
Camuto grew up in New York City and got into the business at age 18. In his thirties he co-founded the brand Nine West before selling it to the Jones Apparel Group in the late ‘90s. He went on to create his namesake Camuto Group, a multibillion-dollar empire that included various footwear and accessories brands.
Known for being fashion-forward and accessible, Camuto also worked on footwear for brands such as Tory Burch, BCBG Max Azria and Jessica Simpson, in addition to private-label shoes for Banana Republic, Ann Taylor and Dillard’s.
No matter the greatness of his success, Camuto always kept his customer top-of-mind, once saying, “We don’t think that we can fool her [the customer]. We give her the best value.”
