Jose Neves and brand manager Jorge Sampaio founded their footwear label Swear in 2000 after realizing that garage rock-inspired gents were limited to two types of shoes — simple sneakers and vintage boots. The stylish, London-based duo set out to create hybrid sneaker-dress shoes that fit the edgy, minimalist look, and wound up with a massive hit: the Dean. An aggressively pointy, rubber-soled update on the classic wingtip, the Dean sold more than one million pairs worldwide and turned Swear into a UK cult sensation. The brand has since produced more than 100 styles of chukka boots, woven oxfords, high-tops, and other shoes in 1,000 different color combinations, but hasn’t deviated from its casual-cool, youth culture-inspired aesthetic.