American shoe company upswing

[MrBern]

click for multi-media slideshow
http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2011/04/20/fashion/20110421-shoes.html?ref=fashion

Over the last few years, as heritage brands have been rediscovered by a new generation of customers, especially young men, labels once seen as relics of American work wear now have an unexpected cool factor, stocked by stylish boutiques and obsessed about on fashion blogs.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/21/fashion/21SHOES.html

 

[SteveAS]

The article refers shoes from Allen Edmonds and Alden as "work wear?!" The quality of the article notwithstanding, it's good to see these American makers starting to receive the respect they deserve from a wider audience.

 

[Tomasso]

The article refers shoes from Allen Edmonds and Alden as "work wear?!"

It doesn't read that way to me.



"It has not been lost on workers at Allen Edmonds, or those at about a half-dozen shoe companies that still produce in the United States, that the craft of shoemaking is experiencing something of a renaissance. Over the last few years, as heritage brands have been rediscovered by a new generation of customers, especially young men, labels once seen as relics of American work wear now have an unexpected cool factor, stocked by stylish boutiques and obsessed about on fashion blogs."

 

[MrBern]

American work wear, not American workwear.

The article refers shoes from Allen Edmonds and Alden as "work wear?!" The quality of the article notwithstanding, it's good to see these American makers starting to receive the respect they deserve from a wider audience.

 

[bl@ster]

Very interesting read. Thanks for sharing.

 

[53Effie]

Yes, very good article. I have recently splurged a bit and have purchased several pairs of Allen Edmonds shoes. I think the quality and style are certainly there and I have to add that they are some of the most comfortable shoes I have owned. Very nice to be able to read about what is going on in the industry. I try hard to buy articles Made in the USA whenever possible; so I am really pleased to see that for now anyway things are on the upswing for the shoe manufacturers.

 

[John in Covina]

There should be some type of backlash building against cheaply made 3rd world origin shoes. The thing is that there are whole generations of Americans that have probably never worn shoes that are properly fitted to their feet. It becomes a revelation to wear shoes that are "just right" not "sort of close" to the way they should fit.

That is why some of the shoe experts can tell you what brand ,size and style works for them.

 

[FStephenMasek]

Thanks for posting the link.

I had a pair of Allen Edmonds a few years ago, but did not like them.

In the early 1980s, I worked at washington University in St. Louis (my alma mater) and walked miles and miles all over the campus. I once bought a pair of "old man" shoes with very thick soles, probably from one of the department stores in Calyton, MO. They turned out to be very comfortable for all of that walking. I wish I remembered the brand. I threw them away when the soles wore out, as I had not yet ever heard or read that dress shoes could be resoled.

 

[The Good]

Occasionally, I consider someday investing for myself a pair of Aldens or Allen Edmonds, but I don't have the funds right now. Would you say that shoes of that caliber, being very expensive, are actually worth the cost? They are elegant, and hopefully stylish depending on the pair, but is this something essential to being a well-dressed man?

 

[Tomasso]

There's really no correlation between quality and fit. A pair of 1k shoes can make mincemeat of your feet and a pair of $50 shoes can be like walking on a cloud. The difference is: A quality shoe is made from better materials and in such a way that it can be resoled several times over, thereby extending its useful life for years and years, even decades. On the other hand, cheaper shoes are made with substandard materials and can't be properly resoled; they're pretty much disposable.

In the final analysis quality made shoes are actually a better value.

 

[MrBern]

ROUGH Collection

Is the Rough wear supposed to compete with Workwear?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjK-A4-i2M0