Heavy Brogue Boots

While I can't say that I am the biggest fan of heavy country brogue boots,  but I have a reader that is facing a dilemma, in what to buy versus what to spend on a pair of brogue boots. Since, I do not wear them nor know of many makes, I thought that I would do this post finding as many as I could, but also leave it up to all of you for any possible recommendations. I think that the criteria is nothing too far over 350 GBP. So I am looking for all of you to leave comments on things that you have found/own that you might be able to post/recommend in the comments section

The reader is currently debating between the two above, which are Trickers (right) and Cheaney (left) but is not completely sold on either one.

I have always like the idea of a brogue boot but have never got into wearing them. This is most likely due to the heavy nature of them and the fact that I am a 5'9", skinny guy, and wearing these with slim jeans just makes me look like a tool. Not to say that I would not wear the pair by Alden, below, which I find very attractive, but then again, they are not so 'country,' they are more like the city brogue boot, being a little bit more slim looking. Even though the one at the very top (which is by Lodger) is quite chunky, I have also been a fan of it, the look of it that is. We actually sell it at Gieves & Hawkes, but I just don't think that it would suit me very much. Nevertheless, I wished that I would look better in a pair of these, as I think that they would make a fantastic shoe to own for English Autumn through Spring. Thanks in advance for any suggestions that you may leave.










Two Above By: Alden

Two Above: Grenson

Two Above: Alfred Sargent

Boots Above: Mark McNairy

Today's Favorites - Grenson Canvas Cap Toe's

I finally saw someone wearing cool and unique shoes, on Savile Row!!! I can't lie, actually this is the second time, but the first, I was heading to work, had my iPod in, and just couldn't be fussed to ask some random guy to take a picture of his shoes. But as this was a customer who came over to chat, I thought to myself, 'why not?' I was stumped, too, because I thought that I was all clever asking him if they were Lodger, as they have a SS11 style just like this, when in fact, they were made by Grenson (must be the higher-end line) as a special make up for this store in London, that I believe he said no longer exists. Anyway, the shoe was some sort of canvas, with a calfskin cap and laces to match and they were cool!! He even had a hat to match, which was even better and I applauded his bravery for wearing such shoes in a city like London, where you never know if it is going to just start raining at any second. Well, enjoy my first pics of an actual pair of customers shoes. I will try and do this more often, but usually being bombarded by black on people's feet, I just really don't see many people wearing worthy shoes.....

Shoe Pricing - From Cost of Production to Retail Price

The hardest thing about starting a shoe line, or really just starting your business plan to a shoe line, is coming up with the price that you want to sell your shoes at, retail value. There are so many factors that will dictate what that final price will be, factors that you might never have thought about before, like the fact that retailers will mark up a shoe's wholesale price 2-3 times over (e.g. wholesale price = $100, retail price would be = $200-$300). But those are just the two end prices, let alone the cost of production versus the cost of what, me, the shoe designer, would pay the factory, for each pair. This is what I am going through right now, as I decide where I want to make my shoes (Italy vs. England) and how I am going to be able to do my best to balance price vs quality. Because all in all, I want to make a good quality, goodyear welted shoe, that can last a good amount of time for my customers, but at the same time don't want them to retail at way above the common man's price range. This dilemma is a big one, and has made me realize why some shoes are indeed, very expensive.











Shoes at Top of Page: Allen Edmonds
Shoes Above: Grenson

In my opinion, globalization is the reason that I, and many other designers/makers are having or had this same problem. If you can remember, there used to be a number of fantastic shoemakers in the US, that made good quality shoes, such as Florsheim and Johnston & Murphy. But now, due to the amount of cheap labor and materials, many of those same companies decided to take that lower-priced route and shirked on their quality of labor and materials, thus resulting in shit shoes. Granted, there were a couple of American makers that stood their ground, such as Allen Edmonds and Alden, but even now, you can see where the quality is slowly deteriorating on Allen Edmond's models, or you will find the same quality, but the price has gone up and you no longer get a pair of extra laces, nice shoe bags or some sort of shoe horn. It's just the shoes and some cloth that they wrap the shoe around. So when you wonder why shoes are so expensive these days, thank globalization for it, because in reality, the high quality, goodyear welted shoes that you think should be cheaper, in fact should not! Grenson, for example, can make a beautiful, well-made shoe, but they have now chosen to re-evaluate their company, and with that decided to start mass producing by having shoes made in India, with either glued or blake stitched soles so that they could retail at $300-$400. Because their high end goodyear welted shoes, would sell for 350-450 GBP, which would then result to around $700. It's not a bad thing, it just is what it is. Companies want to stay afloat, and unfortunately because of the way the world is right now, that's what they have to do.

Shoes Above: Stefano Bemer

Back to my dilemma. I am sitting here thinking, 'Okay, for my customer, I want to make a high styled shoe. Something classic but with a modern touch yet it is absolutely pertinent that I make a good quality shoe or else I would just be a complete hypocrite.' This is what I tell myself. But then, I am stuck with knowing that it will cost me around 120 GBP (minimum) to buy a goodyear welted shoe with high quality leathers from a British factory (and who knows what it actually cost them to make it?). Then let's say that I only want to make 50 GBP profit on each pair. (That's not asking too much now!) That would mean that my wholesale price would be 170 GBP to sell to retailers. So let's say that I sell it to retailer X in London. Their price would at least be 425 GBP. You might say that this is not a lot, and when comparing it to a pair of John Lobbs, it's not a super high price in reality. But now, considering that the British pound is the strongest form of currency and it's market will only be a small part of my business, we have to take into account what that same 170 GBP wholesale shoe would sell for around the world. So now let's assume that retailer Y in the States wants to buy my shoes (and the x-rate is 1.6 dollars to the British pound). That would make my wholesale price at $272 which would then make the retail price $680 and that does not even take into account the tariffs that US custom's is going to tag on. So, to make a simple goodyear welted shoe, with some nice leather that will last the average man around 10-20 years with re-soles, you are looking at 425 GBP or around $700. How many people can afford $700 or 425 GBP shoes? That's my dilemma!










Shoes Above: John Lobb

Gieves & Hawkes New Shoe Collection

 

Every few years it seems that Gieves & Hawkes switches the manufacturer who makes their private label shoes. As there is newly appointed upper management and a new re-vamp of the Gieves & Hawkes Flagship store and company image, the old shoes had had their time and the new line is finally here. What's great about this new line of dress shoes, is that it is under the name of a very old bespoke shoemaking firm that dates back to the early 1900's, here in London. And that name is Pouslen & Skone. If you try and search them in Google, what it will bring you, is to the website of New & Lingwood. This is due to the fact that some time in the early 70's, Poulsen & Skone's business was tanking and New & Lingwood saw an opportunity and therefore purchased the rights to the name. Around this same time, New & Lingwood was also employing George Cleverley on a consultancy basis, as is hinted by the famous 'Butterfly' loafer in this collection and stated to be designed by Cleverley himself. But from then until now, the Poulsen & Skone name has been casually floating in the wind, popping up here and there but is now here to stay, under the Gieves & Hawkes shoe collection.

For a little bit of background knowledge, the Poulsen & Skone shoes, that we carry, are made by Crockett & Jones (the loafers) and Grenson (all of the rest of the models). The prices range from 350 GBP to 425 GBP. The shoes made by Grenson, must be similar in quality to their highest grade line, because their feel reminds me of the handgrade line by C&J or of regular Edward Greens. Needless to say, I was quite shocked when I tried them on and felt how well made that they were, the brogues in particular. I was unaware that Grenson produced to that level of quality. They hugged my foot quite well, as they tend to run a tad bit on the narrow side, and felt as though I could tread around the concrete jungle of London all day long and would still be comfortable. As I have been longing for a burgundy loafer for a long time, I patiently awaiting for the butterfly loafer to arrive in burgundy so that I can add a Poulsen & Skone shoe to my collection!!

Another addition to the new Gieves & Hawkes shoe collection are the more casual shoes, provided by Harry's of London and a boot by Lodger. Gieves & Hawkes' new idea apparently wants to provide every kind of shoe, to go with all of the attire that they sell, in which apart of that is causal wear.Therefore, they teamed up with Harry's to create a comfort shoe selection, ranging from Tod's style loafers to sporty chukka boots, with contoured rubber soles. Another collaboration was with Lodger, to provide a more rugged jean type of boot which certainly appeals to the rainy London city-life. The new collection is also providing what any gentleman's dress line should, and that is a monogrammed Prince Albert loafer, for the distinguished gentleman. (Sorry, I had to try and crack a joke to this relatively dry yet informative post) But in all seriousness, I am quite fond of the new line, it certainly beats the old collection and I am excited to get my first pair in the not so distant future.

Today's Favorites - Grenson Spring/Summer 2011

It really doesn't get much more exciting than this!! For the Spring/Summer 2011 lineup, Grenson is offering all of the things that I wish every company would offer: colored laces, contrasted colored soles, teal/blue colored shoes, some form of saddle shoe, spectators etc. I love the fact that someone (besides me) has made a teal colored shoe that can be sold to the world. I really hope that many distributing stores buy those shoes so that I can catch someone in the act of wearing them. How awesome would that be!! Grenson had a big year in 2010 and I feel that with the direction that it would appear that they are going, 2011 is going to be even bigger! And I am happy about that. It is refreshing to see a major company releasing shoes in non-traditional styles, using lots and lots of COLOR!!!

Photos Courtesy Of: The Shoe Buff

Colored Soles

Shoes: Alden; Photo Courtesy Of: Leather Soul

If you are an avid reader of my blog or know me, you can easily tell that when it comes to shoes, the incorporation of color (bold, bright colors) is very intriguing and important to me. And since I have been writing this blog -- not even a year now -- I already feel that the incorporation of non-classic colors (red's, medium blue's, green's, yellow's etc) has become more and more prominent in the collections of up-and-coming shoe designers, particularly and strangely enough in the collections of American designers such as Duckie Brown, Mark McNairy and Rachel Comey. And obviously before this, you always had Berluti, Paul Smith and other French and Italian shoemakers who weren't afraid to add a good bit of color into their shoes. But no one has yet to truly capture the idea of making a full-on dress shoe with a bright colored sole.

 

Shoes Above: Rachel Comey

While I have always been curious about this, it really hit me yesterday when my friend and fellow blogger, Style Sage, said that he would like to see more shoes with colored soles. And while you see plenty of pictures here of shoes with colored soles, you will notice that there is a trend about them: they are all casual shoes that you would wear with jeans, khaki's, cords etc., not anything that you would pair with your suit. I thought about this. I had always been so preoccupied with shoes that have colorful uppers. Yet this is already in existence and quite saturated (in a small sense). Many companies offer shoes in non-traditional colors but after several hours of searching through my pictures as well as the internet, I could not really find one proper dress shoe that had a sole that vibrantly contrasted.

Shoes Above: Mark McNairy

Imagine how cool it would be to see an all black dress brogue with a dress sole the color of the blue that the shoe directly above and to the left has! And while some of you may not be on board with this idea or be able to even imagine it, I bet that if you were to see it, it just might grow on you, that is if you are the adventurous type. The addition of bright colors into footwear is emerging at a rapid pace. You will see this in spring/summer 2011 collections and I bet that by 2012 there will grow a trend of dress shoemakers who will start to color their soles in non-traditional colors. I will kick it off, by finishing my 6th pair with a nude colored sole and start to think about a vibrant color that I can add to my seventh pair which will be a full brogue in an off-white upper. Help me out and think about what bright color goes best with off-white? Cast your votes in the comment section!

Shoes Above Top Row: ts(s)
Shoes Above Bottom Row: Left - Grenson; Right - Gucci