Manuel "Manolo" Blahnik Rodriguez is a Spanish fashion designer and founder of the eponymous high-end shoe brand. Blahnik was born and raised in Santa Cruz, de la Palma, in the Canary Islands (Spain).

In 1970, Blahnik had a chance to meet Diana Vreeland, the editor-in-chief of U.S. Vogue, while he was traveling in New York. He then presented his portfolio of fashions and set designs to Vreeland, at which point she looked him straight in the eye and said, "Young man, make things, make accessories, make shoes." She admired his shoe sketches and advised him to concentrate on designing footwear. Blahnik followed her advice and worked on designing shoes.

Blahnik's boutiques are located in London, New York, Madrid, Dubai, Stockholm and a host of other major cities all over the world. In 2012, the company signed a long-term deal with the footwear retailer Kurt Geiger to operate Manolo Blahnik boutiques.

Blahnik currently resides in Bath, United Kingdom. -Wikipedia