Zeha

Zeha sports shoes have come a long way from equipping the feet of the East German Olympic team in the 1960s to being sold as an exclusive fashion brand on west Berlin's main shopping drag, Kurfürstendamm. This new Zeha Berlin store in Charlottenburg, which opened in September 2009, is the third in the city, and the first in the west. The idea of reviving the East German professional sports shoe brand, which went out of business in the early 1990s, came about by accident. In 2002, Heine and Barré were working for an event management company when a friend dropped by the office wearing a pair of old Zeha trainers. For the two men it was a blast from the past: as aspiring professional athletes in their youth, Heine and Barré had both worn Zehas. With no knowledge of the footwear business, they sought out the help of a former Zeha production manager to get their business off the ground, and by 2007 had opened stores in Prenzlauer Berg and Mitte. The collection still hinges on sports shoes, but has expanded over the years to include non-sports shoes and women's collections.