Attention ladies and foot fetishists! On the 16th of September, Selfridges will open The Shoe Galleries, which I can only describe as being a temple dedicated to shoes. If this all sounds slightly over the top, that’s because it is – the Galleries will be the largest collection of shoes under one roof in the world (here’s some quick stats : 150 brands, 55,000 pairs of shoes in stock at any time, and 4,000 pairs on display).

There’ll be a broad spectrum of brands, from heavy-hitters like Chanel, Christian Louboutin, Jimmy Choo and Yves Saint Laurent, to cult labels like Alexander Wang, Repetto and Camilla Skovgaard. For those of us with less deep pockets, there’ll be the likes of Ash, Office, Converse and Topshop. In short, anybody who has feet will be catered for.

The space itself has been designed carefully and indulgently, with art and luxury in mind. Expect to find materials such as alabaster, steel and velvet, and even a hanging garden, for Prada’s sake!

To celebrate the launch, Selfridges are holding a competition for one lucky person to win a year’s supply of shoes. All you have to do to enter is visit the Selfridges website and wax lyrical for a few sentences about shoes. It can be a light-hearted anecdote, or a heartfelt tribute to your favourite pair. Designers such as Anya Hindmarch have already added their stories to the site.

Now excuse me, I’m off to add my story…

Written by Ria Pal