Hi! I’m Shilpa Iyengar, founder of Alterre.

I started this adventure over a decade ago with my co-founder, Harmony Richards (née Pilobello), when we met at Parsons The New School for Design in New York City. Bonding over our shared dark humor and love of travel, we combined our expertise in footwear and sustainable design to create our dream shoes—versatile, lightweight, and comfortable enough to wear all day.

From our windowless studio, we spent two years perfecting our concept before finally partnering with a fair labor factory that embraced our unique vision and sustainability goals. In 2015, we proudly launched our first footwear collection during New York Fashion Week.

Since then, Alterre has been recognized by major publications like Forbes, Oprah Daily, Brides, and Travel + Leisure. We’re also honored to have received the Butterfly Mark Award for excellence in sustainability.

Beyond creating stylish, sustainable shoes, we’re committed to female empowerment. We donate 5% of profits from every purchase to Restore NYC, helping provide long-term rehabilitation for survivors of sex trafficking.

Recently, Harmony stepped away from Alterre to embrace a new chapter in her life with her growing family. We like to say she’s a butterfly watching over us from afar. Meanwhile, I’m still here, keeping the torch burning—so if you reach out, you’ll likely hear from me directly. That’s the beauty of supporting a small business!