The shoemaker, José Pradillo y Pedraza, from Quintanar de la Orden, set up his small shop in Lavapiés in 1886. Under the name of Calzados La Universal, he made and sold shoes at Number 10, Calle Magdalena, which used to be where Cervantes lived.  Following the demolition of this building eleven years later, he moved to Number 13, under the name of Calzados Pradillo. 

The shoes were originally made for wealthy clients, in which their quality and elegance stood out.  In the 1930s, his youngest son, Gonzalo Pradillo, started to design and make orthopaedic shoes and inserts (some of which are still sold today).

Since then, Pradillo has excelled for offering comfortable and anatomical shoes, in which elegance is combined with comfort and a casual style.  Its collection includes Italian and German shoes that it exclusively imports.

Pradillo has other branches at 117, Calle Goya; 85, Calle Guzmán el Bueno; 140 Calle Bravo Murillo; and at 414 Calle Alcalá, in the Alcalá Norte shopping centre.