Markhor 

Markhor started off with the idea that best products are made with passion and investing many hours of tough labor and attention. The team works directly with some of the most skilled craftsmen in the world to make modern design and beautiful products.

The company originated when founders Sidra Qasim and Waqas Ali met with a group of craftsmen in the local village council of their hometown of Okara. Everything in that workshop was literally being handcrafted. The duo learned that some of the most well known luxury brands work with craftsmen in developing countries like Pakistan, India and Vietnam but rarely talk about them. To change this they started working on the idea of Markhor.

The brand is named after endangered breed of wild goat Markhor (Capra falconeri), that is natively found in northern and central mountainous regions of Pakistan and Central Asia.

“We are craftsmen, designers and dreamers who are working together to redefine how handcrafted shoes and accessories are made and delivered.”

Each Markhor product reflects their philosophy that modern design is best brought to life through traditional craftsmanship. Their craftsmen are themselves the product of an 1800 year old process of close learning and innovation.

Markhor was built on the notion that good products are the result of a good and happy community. They invest in the potential of our craftsmen. Markhor shoes fully integrate the values essential to their brand. The leather used for creating Markhor products comes from animals that have been bred only for meat production.

They strongly believe in evolving interactions with customers (friends as they call them) into genuine relationships. The team and the founders regularly interact with Markhor friends through various mediums to stay in touch. Markhor friends not only inspire them to deliver their best, they help them define who they are.

The beginning

The story began in 2010, when Waqas met a shoemaker in Okara called Muhammad Hussain at a local panchayat (council meeting). The two men could not have been more different.

Waqas was a young boy in his early 20s, kindling an interest in social media marketing. Hussain, then in his 50s, loathed the internet and considered the possibility of a nationwide ban on Facebook an absolute necessity. And yet they had the one thing in common that drove them past their differences: both men possessed a brilliant curiosity to learn.

Though Waqas knew nothing about shoe-making, he felt compelled to change Hussain’s opinions about the digital world, and the best way to do it was to connect Hussain’s craft to an international audience online – a journey that was riddled with challenges.

When Waqas first broached the idea of selling shoes online, Hussain’s response was of shock and horror. He said, "I know how people buy a shoe. They hold it. They smell it. And then they move on to the next one. Selling online will rob them of that experience." When Waqas pushed him further, Hussain finally succumbed and said, "This is madness. But I am with you in this madness."

As time passed, they became both students and mentors for each other.