There’s something undeniably elevated about a tan and black pairing. It’s timeless, it’s polished—and when you add a pop of green? Game over. It becomes a whole new level of chic.
This look is designed for momentum. Whether you’re sprinting through meetings or gliding into dinner, it all comes together with the TFR Helene in Black—our sleek, sport-inspired flat made for real life on the go. She’s refined, she’s ready, and she’s the definition of versatile.
For women who do it all (and then some), this is your no-brainer, wear-it-anywhere, do-it-everything shoe. Because your style should work as hard as you do.
 
<h6 style="text-align: center;">SHOP THE LOOK</h6>
<img src="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0726/3951/2858/files/TFR_HELENE_N_BLACK073-LR.jpg?v=1733248920" alt="">
<a href="https://tfrshoes.com/collections/helene/products/helene-20mm-black" title="TFR Helene in Black">TFR Helene in Black</a>

Tan & Black—Your Power Combo Just Got an Upgrade

Step & Style

<h5 dir="ltr"></h5>
Andrea Robinson isn’t just one of the world’s few women to earn the prestigious Master Sommelier title—she’s done it with historic firsts, a camera-ready charm honed over multiple television shows, and a portfolio of groundbreaking collaborations that challenge how we think about wine, business, and womanhood.
Transformation is something Robinson knows intimately as a wine expert, author and educator for programs like the Institute of Culinary Education. She left a promising Wall Street career to pursue her passion for wine, starting from the bottom—literally—volunteering to clean spit buckets at wine schools in New York in exchange for free classes at the renowned Windows on the World Wine School, founded by legendary wine educator Kevin Zraly. The pivot paid off. She became the first American woman to compete in the Concours Mondial des Sommeliers, or Sommelier World Championship, and the first woman named Best Sommelier in the United States by the Sommelier Society of America. Today, she’s one of only 25 women in the U.S. and 279 professionals worldwide to hold the Master Sommelier credential, a feat with a pass rate of around 4 percent. 
It’s exactly the kind of bold, values-driven leap that made Robinson a natural fit for The Extra Mile, a new profile series from luxury footwear brand TFR. A master of perfect pairings, Robinson gravitates toward the TFR Slingback in Champagne—a fitting nod to her go-to pour. “Can you imagine why?” she laughs. As for her favorite wine, “it’s not what most professionals probably would say, but I think I end up at white because of the champagne.”
For Robinson, every choice—from career pivots to style—tells a story.
<h6 dir="ltr">From Wall Street to Wine Country</h6>
Robinson’s wine journey started almost by accident. While studying finance in college, she took a wine-tasting class for fun. 
“I had that lightbulb moment,” she recalls. “It's history, it's science, it's gastronomy, it's art, it's connection, it's culture.”
Her passion for wine had been sparked—equal parts sensory pleasure and intellectual rigor—and followed her to Wall Street. When her analyst program at Morgan Stanley ended, she realized if she didn’t jump now, she may “never have the guts to do it.” So she broke the golden handcuffs, skipped business school, and traveled through Europe on a UL public-transit pass and a youth hostel card, immersing herself in the centuries-old traditions of winemaking “in the hilltop town of Tuscany.”
The result was an entrepreneurial career that blended hospitality with strategy, sensory experience with storytelling. She quickly became a media entity. She hosted three food, wine and beverage shows—Simply Wine with Andrea Immer (Fine Living Network), Pairings with Andrea (Fine Living and Food Network), and Quench (livestreamed monthly on Robinson’s YouTube channel)—bringing beverage education to a national audience with her signature wit and warmth. 
She’s also the force behind The Sipping Point, an upcoming independent film project set to debut in 2026, timed to the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the 50th anniversary of the 1976 Paris Tasting, a historic blind tasting that “transformed an 8,000 year old industry in 50 years time” and forever changed the global wine industry. 
The three-time James Beard Award winner’s inviting, inclusive approach to wine is as rooted in education as it is in deep expertise. Robinson teaches, writes, speaks, and consults for major hospitality brands like Delta Air Lines, where she’s curated the wine program since 2007, all while demystifying wine for newcomers and connoisseurs alike. 
She may have traded Wall Street for Napa Valley, where she’s based today, but Robinson still uses her financial background to pitch her brand as a food and wine expert with experience in hospitality for clients like Norwegian Cruise Line and Starwood Hotels. 
“Wine comes with its own trappings of superiority and self-importance and the stuffy sommelier thing,” Robinson says, explaining the delicate balance. “My approach is [to] become a big student of [a client’s] business, try to get a real clear picture of what they care about, and then ask them if I've gotten that right.”
When working with brands or hosting a tasting, her perspective on both business and wine has a common thread: validation. Whether it’s a brand partner feeling seen in her proposals or a guest discovering a flavor profile that confirms their instincts, Robinson finds joy in giving others that moment of recognition—and the confidence that comes with it. “I really take the world of wine and invite everybody into the sandbox,” she says.
“As long as the discussion around wine highlights the fun, the connectedness, the authenticity— everybody gets it. As long as you're not talking down to people, the people who already knew the answer just feel validated.” 
<h6 dir="ltr">Unmatchable Experiences, Unmatchable Women in Wine </h6>
With a moniker that stands for Timeless Form Reimagined, TFR and Robinson make a natural pairing. For Robinson, wine is both timeless and always evolving—like the unmatchable design and continuous improvement TFR represents—and her own continuous reinvention of what it means to be a woman in wine. 
“It’s timeless in the sense that it is always connected to a place.” To Robinson, “fine wine” doesn’t mean expensive wine, but wine with soul, identity, and intention tied to its source. She makes a point to mention environmental responsibility, and believes wine shouldn’t be treated as commodity, but respected and preserved. “Improvement requires treating the land as the resource that it is, rather than something to be leveraged [and] monetized.” 
When asked what her version of an unmatchable experience would be, Robinson doesn’t hesitate to combine wine with influential women. If she could sit down with anyone, she’d host a long lunch with the late Margrit Mondavi, known not just for wine but for her philanthropy and integration of the arts in Napa Valley, and South African vineyard activist Rosa Kruger, who champions the preservation of ancient vines that are 60 to 130 years old. Compared to regions like Napa, where vineyards are typically replanted every 30 years, Kruger’s work represents a rare kind of living legacy. 
“As people age, we are less productive, but we’re more interesting and have more to say,” Robinson says. “The wines from old vines are kind of cool that way too.” 
To Robinson, these kinds of conversations—where history meets hospitality, and tradition meets reinvention—are what elevate a moment into something lasting. 
“Experiences are kind of by definition unmatchable,” she says. “And so investing in the best of them is so wise, because that’s all we’re here for.”

From Wine to Style: A Guide to Luxury Pairings with One of the World’s Few Female Master Sommeliers

Member Spotlight: Andrea Robinson

There’s Power in Simplicity—and This Color Combo Proves It

Women supporting women is at the heart of TFR Shoes. As a Park City based company, the Women at Sundance event on January 25, 2025 was the perfect place to introduce the TFR collection and to have a hand in uplifting women in the film industry.
The road to co-sponsoring Women at Sundance began with an introduction from Pat Mitchell, a trustee of the Sundance Institute and a fellow member of the International Women’s Forum (IWF). We asked if she was aware of any opportunities to support women at the festival, and through her we learned of this event and its origins. Women at Sundance started in 2011 in the home of finance executive and women’s leadership advocate Jacki Zehner. Zehner, Mitchell, and other founding supporters started with an informal invitation for women to come together and create a stronger presence in the industry. In the 14 years that followed, the event has grown into a movement where industry powerhouses lead important conversations about women in film. Past speakers and guests include icons like Geena Davis, Gloria Steinem, Jennifer Seibel Newsome, and, this year, Amy Redford and Glenn Close (whom I had the pleasure of sitting next to!).
Thanks to Pat’s introduction, TFR connected with Jackie Zehner and the She Money team, who hosted this year’s event at KILN in Park City. 150 women from the film and technology industries attended, creating an inspiring atmosphere of sisterhood and support. TFR Shoes participated in the event’s pop-up shop with She Money, giving guests the opportunity to browse the collection firsthand and try on shoes. The most unforgettable part of the day, however, was Tori standing on stage to share the TFR Shoes story and officially announce the brand’s launch.
Outside of Women at Sundance, TFR Shoes also took part in Park City Fashion Week, held at The Marquis on Main Street. This event showcased local Utah designers and Park City boutiques while attracting hundreds of fashion enthusiasts. Another great chance to introduce TFR Shoes to the local community! Our booth gave guests the opportunity to explore the collection up close, appreciate the craftsmanship, and have their questions answered.
Joining Sundance was a great honor, but also just the beginning for TFR Shoes. As the company continues to grow, we are committed to deepening its roots and forming meaningful partnerships with fellow women-led businesses. Next in Park City is a trunk show at Grace Clothiers on Main Street, from March 13th-15th. Here, audiences who couldn’t make it to Sundance will have a chance to view the collection in person and learn more about TFR’s mission. We look forward to seeing you there!
The enthusiasm at Sundance reaffirmed what we have always believed: that today’s women demand more from their footwear. They won’t sacrifice comfort or function for beauty, they need all three. TFR Shoes was created for women who lead bold, active lives and refuse to be slowed down by their shoes. As TFR Shoes continues to grow and connect, we’re excited to be giving more women access to shoes that support them – in all ways.

Collection debuts at Women at Sundance and Park City Fashion Week

TFR Shoes officially launches at Sundance Film Festival

Our version of a ballet flat gets its name from Hélène de Pourtalès, a pioneer for women in sports and an Olympic champion. As one of the first women to compete in the Olympic games, Hélène paved the way for today’s greats: Katie, Simone, Sha’Carri, Diana, Ilona and so many others.
It’s no secret that we endorse women’s empowerment and equality here at TFR, which means we were, obviously, glued to our televisions for much of July and August watching the Summer Olympics in Paris. For the first time in Olympic history, these 2024 games had an equal number of men and women competing. But it was the women who shone in these games, bringing home more than half of the medals for powerhouses like Team USA, China and Australia, and breaking many records along the way. 
It took a long time to get to gender parity. The first modern Olympics, held in Athens in 1896, had 241 athletes. And they were all males. That same year, it was announced that women would be allowed to compete in the next games to be held in Paris in 1900. There, women were allowed to compete in no more than five disciplines: golf, tennis, sailing, croquet, and equestrianism. Unsurprisingly, this was not welcomed news. But it opened the door for the first 20 women to compete in an Olympic games, including Hélène de Pourtalès.
Hélène’s sport was sailing, an interest ignited by her father when she was a child. She also had great female mentors in the sport, including Baroness Julie von Rothschild, whose passion and competitive spirit earned her the title of “fastest yachting lady” of her day. Hélène married Hermann de Pourtalès, a fellow yachtsman who shared her passion for sailing. They competed together in multiple regattas, eventually qualifying for the 1900 Olympics where they won two medals for Switzerland––a gold and silver––and Hélène became the first female Olympic Gold medalist on May 22, 1900, at the age of 32. 
Hélène's fame after the 1900 Games was short-lived, not least due to the prevailing negative sentiment among the press and rest of society about women in sport. She spent the rest of her life in anonymity. Hélène's passion, competitive spirit, and fearlessness in a place where she wasn’t fully welcome are an inspiration for the women of TFR.
<a href="https://tfrshoes.com/products/helene-20mm-black"><img alt="" src="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0726/3951/2858/files/TFRPRODUCT9.25.202401971_480x480.jpg?v=1728567414" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"></a>
<a href="https://tfrshoes.com/collections/helene/products/helene-20mm-black">SHOP THE HELENE BALLET FLAT</a>

What the early Olympic games have to do with our Helene Ballet Flat

Sport Meets Sophistication: Introducing Helene

<blockquote>
<h5> </h5>
</blockquote>
How I Created Timeless Form Re-imagined
Hello, TFR community. I’m so thankful you’re here. I’m a designer, a wife, a daughter, a sister and a mom—but mostly, I’m a woman who understands how life-changing it is to feel good in your own shoes. After a 25-year career at a major international airline, I worked my way through the ranks of 90,000 employees to become one of the top female leaders. (Unsurprisingly, there were only about 30 of us—but that’s a story we can dig into together another time.)
Like most women, I juggle different roles everyday from self-care to career to family and community. For me, that has always meant being on my feet all day—and literally running—when I need to.
The Spark for TFR
So how did I make the shift from airplanes to shoes? More importantly, why? 
The idea for TFR came to me in 2020 when many of us transitioned from traditional workplaces to work-from-home environments. Our new workday uniform became yoga pants and sneakers paired with a presentable top and a made-up face for virtual meetings. 
Having grown up in a conservative work environment, my closet was full of suits and high-heeled shoes. When it came time to go back to the office, I dreaded those high heels — the physical pain just simply wasn’t worth it anymore. However, I didn’t want to compromise on fashion or give up beautifully designed and constructed shoes. I needed a shoe that helped me look, feel and be my best. My search for a shoe that combined luxury and comfort didn’t lead me to any existing options. So, I decided to create TFR. The name “TFR” stands for “Timeless Form Reimagined,” which encompasses the pillars of everything we believe in. The timelessness of meticulous Italian handcrafting. Form based on the way feet actually move. And reimagining new possibilities for a brand that lifts all women upward and onward. (It’s also my initials—I’ve literally poured myself into this incredible brand.) A New Journey Shortly after I started to explore TFR, life threw me a curveball: I felt a lump doing a self-exam and was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer a few weeks later. I spent the next 6 months going through treatment consisting of multiple surgeries and weeks of radiation therapy. I’d never experienced physical pain like that nor have I felt so completely out of control in my life. Working on shoes became something positive and creative to focus on while my body and mind were battling through hell. A year later, I’m happy to say that I’m cancer-free and have built back my physical and emotional strength. Going through a major life experience like that forced me to deeply reflect on what matters most. So, I decided to make my side project my full-time passion project and retired from the corporate world in a complete reinvention of myself. 
Long Overdue Changes
This journey of creating TFR has been full of learnings about the wearable options women have. Here’s a few crazy aha moments I want to share with you:
First, did you know most women’s shoes are designed by men, with their ideals about what a woman’s foot should look like?
Second, did you know many shoes aren’t actually wear-tested for fit and comfort in the development process?
And third, did you know the crucial aspect of biomechanics is often overlooked in the development process, leading to issues like foot pain, bunions and plantar fasciitis?
Our team includes a fashion designer, a medical podiatrist specializing in women’s foot health, a performance midsole designer, a manufacturing consultant specializing in shoes made in Italy and a personal stylist. This dream team brought both a passion for the product and a representation of the brand.
TFR and You
To me, TFR is about more than just shoes; it's about empowering women to reach for greatness in all aspects of their lives, no matter what form that greatness takes.  I believe we can help each other advance and find our power in a variety of ways, and we are stronger as a collective when women help other women. Our community is here to help and support one another. We believe that the last thing standing in your way should be your shoes. We’re committed to being the bridge between where you need to be and the shoes that take you there. We're here to help women go further, push boundaries, and live without compromise. 
After all, your shoes should match your power and potential, ensuring you look, feel and perform at your best every day.
Don’t stop moving. We’re all behind you. With love and power, Tori (TFR)

Uncovering the inspiration, process, and possibilities behind the most accessible and engaging luxury footwear.