New footwear brand M?t has created a shoe it sees as distinctly Vietnamese, in a pushback against the influence of globalisation.
Industrial designer Huynh Quang Ngoc Han co-founded the brand with Pham Do Kien Quoc, who runs a factory that's been producing shoes for overseas markets for more than 30 years.
The two wanted to use the Phuoc Binh factory's manufacturing expertise to mass produce a high-quality shoe that spoke directly to locals.

Huynh started with the style of the shoe. Acknowledging the popularity of brands such as Converse and Vans in her home market, she chose to do a sneaker, but infused with the design language of contemporary Vietnam.
Patterns on M?t's sole reference the country's geography and heritage. On the underside, there's a segment of the Vietnamese coastline, while along the edge is a texture inspired by traditional roof tiles ? themselves designed to emulate water ripples in homage to the country's rainy season and floods.
Huynh embraced pattern in a nod to "urban life" and as a contrast to the more minimal upper. The laces are hidden from view in her upper design, concealed under flaps.

Eight stitched squares on these flaps hint at the lace loops underneath ? a feature Huynh says symbolises the subtlety and honesty of the Vietnamese people. Meanwhile, the broad fit accommodates "typical Vietnamese wider feet".

"M?t is an attempt to provide a product that truly represents the local market's values and speaks directl...