During my research and shoe brand hunts, I sometimes notice the same manufacturer name pop up again and again. As I go from one dance wear supply company to another, I check out their sidebars or product list for new and interesting brand names that may also produce pointe shoes. DEHA is one name that I found featured on many Italian dance supply websites.
About The DEHA Dancewear Company
Although DEHA has a large, media-rich website, finding company origins and history has been hard to pinpoint. They set up their website as an ultra-modern site that people can access with apps and separate online shops. DEHA appears to have their headquarters in Lancenigo, a province of Treviso, Italy.
You can access their dance products through the DEHA Ballet Online Shop. Click on Calzature then Donna/ Uomo to see their ballet shoes. Here you will find another baffling item; the Kitri pointe shoe from CK/ SoDanca of Brazil is the only pointe shoe for sale!. Here is the sales page : Calzature Donna/Uomo.
You can see that DEHA has a few ballet slippers, but I don’t know if they are made by DEHA or some other manufacturer. I have some questions :
- Why are you selling Brazilian Kitri’s when you have a DEHA model you can sell on your website?
- Are your ballet slippers made by Sansha too?
- Is your pointe shoe the Sansha Recital by DEHA or the DEHA Recital by Sansha?
Is The DEHA Pointe Shoe Really The Sansha Recital?
DEHA stamp on Sansha Recital
Yes, it is. Anyone who is familiar with the Sansha models will instantly recognize the shape and construction of this shoe as the Recital. The thick top-stitching and toe-box pleating are easy to see on many Sansha models.
Why do people who own successful dance wear companies do this? Most likely to have something to offer a customer who wanders into one of their many locations expecting a full range of dance apparel including a pointe shoe choice.
Pointe Shoe Makers; Stop Blending Our Shoes
Here is my dilemma when it comes to putting a pointe shoe like this into a category; DEHA is an Italian company. Sansha is a French brand name whose shoes are made in China. These shoes are technically and honestly Chinese products made through a French-based supplier for an Italian company. Whoa Nelly! Whoever dreamed that pointe shoe brands would be put into a blender and mixed beyond hope like this? I have a headache, do you?
From a collectors point of view, would a Sansha Recital with a DEHA stamp be special enough to spend money on? I don’t know. Ballet traditions as far as pointe shoe construction have always meant that the markings on the bottom of a dancers shoe were from the MAKER and could be trusted.
For now, the DEHA brand name will not be added to the sidebar as another pointe shoe brand. If you are going to commission a factory to produce a pointe shoe for your company, make a brand-new original model so dancers, ballet bloggers and their readers have something to get excited about.
