Saint Crispin's began making bespoke shoes in Germany and Italy around 1985, formally registering the name in Austria in 1992. Phillip Car joined as a partner in 2003, bringing a consultancy and IT background alongside a personal passion for the craft, and took on much of the company's management from there. The workshop, based in Brasov, Romania, employs 28 internally trained craftspeople turning out around 1,500 pairs a year, while a Vienna office and showroom handles new design development, shoes built to appeal to Anglo-Saxon and Mediterranean taste rather than sticking strictly to Viennese tradition.