Epaulet shop - Official Affiliate thread

[Akeem]

What happened to the Brixton line? Nobody does a wingtip boot like Alden. I am guessing it's not unique enough to set it apart from other retailers?

I concur with others that you should keep a few core models around. Forget the preorders for new styles. Nobody wants to wait 2 years for boots. Better to be surprised with a new model every now and then rather than getting frustrated waiting.

 

[budapest12]

Actually Carmina was the gateway to EP for me.

Same. I'm late to this very interesting conversation and I know a decision has already been made but I discovered Epaulet in 2013 after I could not locate Alden's color 8 wingtip boot with commando sole in stock with any stockist. I discovered Carmina as an alternative and my first purchase from Epaulet was a pair of color 8 wingtip boots on York sole (Fitzgerald? Steinway?) that are my most worn pair to this day. I didn't really know much about Alden at that time and was surprised that what I wanted to buy for $700+ dollars was so hard to find and that retailers were telling me that it could be months before they had more in stock. It just seemed weird to me. Since then I've purchased many pairs of Alden, Carmina, and other brands. I have nothing against Alden, per se, but these days I'm leaning toward C&J and other brands. Between the price and the various quirks and difficulties of getting the pair of Aldens you want, and the fact that it takes a lot these days to make me add more to my footwear rotation, Alden is a brand I admire looking at but am unlikely to buy unless the makeup is really extraordinary (in my personal view, of course). Anyway, as far as what Epaulet does, I like the Alden makeups a lot but am fairly indifferent because I am so unlikely to buy. I actually think the Carmina makeups were just as much - or more - of a fit for EP's aesthetic but if something doesn't sell or make money - or otherwise fit in with the business strategy - then I fully understand a decision to stop carrying it.

 

[JR Magat]

I'm another guy that discovered Epaulet through the Alden thread. In this forum, it just seems to be the natural transition to go from nice shoes/boots to want to pair it with nice trousers/shirts/suits, etc. which is where EP came into the picture.

However, I'm also one of the people that has moved on from Alden, not that it isn't a good quality shoe/boot, but because my personal style tastes shifted & that seems to be the case with a lot of EP's Alden market; or (more likely) most of the customers are overstocked in Alden makeups to jump on more pre-orders.

I do think there is a brand association with Alden that still attracts customers to EP - like Mike mentioned, it looks good on the website & display window. If you go to the Alden thread, there are new faces on a regular basis so a new wave of interest will be coming up & hopefully there are EP makeups that attract them to place orders (ie. Alt Wein, Brixton, Indy boots)

I agree with others that a deposit of 50% would be fair and would (hopefully) discourage people from not paying the balance.

 

[Michigan Planner]

@Epaulet - My rambling thoughts regarding Epaulet and Alden:

I hope that you guys keep stocking them into the future, particularly the make-ups that Epaulet seems to have perfected (Innsbruck, Alt Wien, Brixton, etc.). You guys also put together some great one-off make-ups as well and I'd really like to see that continue.

I've ordered my fare share of Alden from Epaulet (both from stock and pre-orders) and my main concern when placing a pre-oder is how long the pre-orders can take.

Like others have mentioned, I wouldn't be opposed to paying a slightly larger deposit and having the pre-order being opened for a shorter amount of time (or being limited to X number of pairs right from the get go, similar to the Leffot model) if that meant that the order could be confirmed by Alden faster, or even before they go on sale, so that the order would be fulfilled faster.

For me, the positives in favor of keeping Alden are:

• consistently sized lasts
• lasts that go well with the Rudy/Walt aesthetic
• finish on their shell cordovan
• their suede (Alden suede is underrated)

I can understand the hassle on Epaulet's end with basic Alden stock that doesn't really sell through all that well or has a high return rate, that's why I'd suggest sticking to the special make-ups, or maybe even slightly different versions of their stock stuff (finding an alpine grain LHS loafer shouldn't be as hard as it seems to be!).

Alden's Barrie, Grant, and Plaza lasts go so great with the Rudy or Walt trousers that I think it would be a hard void to fill in the same qualityrice ratio. Allen Edmonds is available everywhere and though I've tried Carmina, they generally are a bit too sleek for my tastes so I've ended up selling those. The other closest option seems like it would maybe be Vass but if you have a hard time selling Alden, this might be even more difficult (though I love my Vass and have slowly been gravitating more towards them than Alden over the past 12-18 months).

The other thought besides Alden would maybe be Tricker's. I have a few pair and have been very pleased with their quality. They have some designs that are similar to the traditional American look that Alden has, without being as English looking as C&J or Loake or as costly as EG and they seem to be willing to do custom make-ups for pre-orders. However, their sizing does seem to sort of be all over the place and can be difficult to lock down.

 

[CLTesquire]

I know everyone is chatting about Alden at the moment, but would anyone have an opinion as to how the Southwick Estrato wool/mohair blend fabric would breathe in a hot, humid Southern summer? I would definitely go 3/8 lining on the jacket.

Thanks!

 

[applky]

What happened to the Brixton line? Nobody does a wingtip boot like Alden. I am guessing it's not unique enough to set it apart from other retailers?

I concur with others that you should keep a few core models around. Forget the preorders for new styles. Nobody wants to wait 2 years for boots. Better to be surprised with a new model every now and then rather than getting frustrated waiting.

I have to say that as someone who did snag one of the original Ravello Brixtons, those boots would indeed be worth a two-year wait, or even a three-year wait.

But of course your point still stands. As you say, the Alden wingtip boot is second to none, partly because of the design and also partly because the Barrie last is maybe the ultimate boot last (sometimes blobby for shoes, but perfect for boots). The Indy boot and tanker are also unmistakeable.

It seems we're all in agreement that Alden is a common "gateway" product to EP. Mike just has to figure out how best to present it or what to stock. It seems like the very particular styles to EP are:

• Innsbruck Indy
• Alt Wein bluchers, esp in #8 shell
• Brixton boots
• Anything in Cognac Alpine Grain leather

No disrespect to the other makeups, of course. If EP carried one of every one of those four makeups regularly, and then did preorders and maybe some rotating fifth makeup, would that be enough to both solve the Alden issue and still have EP's Aldens be a gateway product to EP's clothing?

 

[peppercorn78]

Will Alden start treating EP less seriously if they decide to stock fewer models?

 

[Steel28]



Will Alden start treating EP less seriously if they decide to stock fewer models?

I consider Mike my friend but Alden has a lot of issues with their service.

 

[unclesam099]

RE: Deposits for special orders - you should bill for your cost as a deposit so that if someone abandons a deposit, you at least have a $0 hit. I'm sure that you're doing that now, but perhaps asking for MORE than your deposit is fair, too, since you have to put time ($$) into building the page, processing the order, associated office time, etc.

RE: Special makeups - these are awesome, and shouldn't be dropped. I don't buy many of them, but it's a nice differentiation between you and a stock model store.

RE: Alden's product - they do make a very nice product, but their price increases are getting harder to swallow. I can get a competitive Carmina shoe now for less money. They used to be about even in price, but Alden depends on a (relatively) large increase year over year.

These are just a few thoughts, hope it all helps. I am wearing my Innsbruck Alt Weins today (and Individualized brown gingham shirt, Southwick Dark Green Corduroy Jacket, Khaki Regimental twill Walt trousers...), so it's certainly a good program!

 

[mmmargeologist]

As a shoe collector, the first thing i would think about when cancelling an order is if I could make up the difference on the secondary market. At $150 deposit, I might not and even if I did, it might not be worth the time and effort. So there is some incentive to just cancel. I would raise the deposit to at least 50% to limit this thinking.

 

[notwithit]

A couple of thoughts from the sidelines, since I'm more of an occasional EP customer and have no immediate plans to purchase Aldens (I have one pair - #8 shell chukkas from J Crew - and I'm much more likely to buy EP sneakers and / or blake-stitched boots in the coming year):

1. People have mentioned that Alden occupies a middle ground - above AE but not on the level of EG, JL, &c. - but to some extent so does Epaulet. I see Epaulet as miles above what's being served up by mass-market brands but not necessarily in the luxury category (beyond some select offerings). Moreover, as many people have mentioned, the Epaulet aesthetic meshes very well with Aldens: classic and 'elevated', for lack of a better term, but not so sleek or formal as to interfere with versatility.

There are, of course, significant differences: Epaulet has a much stronger value-to-price ratio; offers almost unparalleled transparent two-way communication with customers; provides top-notch customer service; and focuses on innovation, improvements, and adapting to meet customer needs with its portfolio of products and services.

2. This probably goes without saying and may not be helpful, but stock offerings should probably be restricted to a few models that are more unique to Epaulet and have a faster sell-through rate (assuming a reduction in purchases won't significantly damage the relationship with Alden).

3. It sounds like an increase in deposit cost and a decrease in wait times should reduce the rate of pre-order abandons, barring situations in which Alden doesn't quite deliver as promised. I would think ideally the deposit would cover the break-even point, although not knowing what it is I can see arguments for coming in somewhere above or below that level. I also think it makes sense to add a kicker of maybe $50 to the deposit on non-standard sizes (reducing the balance price by $50, of course), since abandoned uncommon sizes are more likely to sit on the shelf than standard sizes.

 

[justinkapur]

What originally hooked me to Epaulet was Carmina's offerings, but it was less so that there were so many shops offering Epaulet. It was more that there was someone on Styleforum that offered it before most did. I knew that in order for them to be an affiliate on SF there are fees and other things that go into it. More importantly they were on SF for a long time and had positive feedback after positive feedback. Why do I share this? I was hooked by Epaulet because they were an affiliate that offered a brand that I was interested in. I dont know the answer to this but what other affiliates on this forum offers Alden? Then what other affiliate offers Alden plus other stuff that goes hand in hand with Epaulet?

I think Alden is a great way to hook a customer especially if a customer is looking for them, but with that comes the expansion of what Epaulet offers as well as their amazing customer service. I would say if not Alden then what? I do agree that Alden X Epaulet combos are always intriguing and like I said in my previous post. I was never interested in Alden but the makeups made me really question why I shouldnt buy them? Hence I have bought 2 from Epaulet, and I probably will end up buying the shell cordovan tankers.

 

[bry2000]

As a related aside...I know Epaulet does well with basic business casual clothing and therefore has a lot of business casual customers ("Office Bros", as it were). But I am surprised that of the Office Bro customer base and thread participants, there appear to be very few Finance Bros (or other Economics types). That has really become apparent from this Alden discussion.

 

[bry2000]

Back in the early days, Epaulet sold more 3rd party brands and likely had a much higher % of in-store sales vs on-line sales. Those relationships appear to have flipped in recent years. However, I think it is important for Epaulet to sell some popular 3rd party brands that have name recognition to continue to attract new customers. Does not have to be Alden, but it has to be something that will bring a casual new buyer that can then be transitioned to the high margin Epaulet branded business casual offerings. I don't even thing Epaulet has to make any money on those 3rd party sales as long as new customers become Epaulet customers. Without the hook of a 3rd party brand, I think it will be a challenge to convince non-Epaulet people to buy your minimalist trainers or Chelsea boots when the market is flooded with lookalikes, for instance.

 

[M635Guy]

I'm concerned about the rise of Grant Stone. They are happy to go with cheap, who-knows-how-exploitative labor while coasting on the designs conceived of by Alden (doesn't every GS shoe look like a Barrie longwing?!). I will not ever buy a made-in-China knockoff looking shoe when I'm happy to have an Alden. However, I know I get stopped by a lot of University kids who ask me where I got my shoes; when they run into me the next day at the coffee shop after having researched Alden, they all ask me why one shouldn't buy a JCrew longwing or a GS blucher. I totally get it. I have a friend in town who is probably 4th or 5th on the food chain in a very big pharma company. His idea of killing it sartorially is a Banana Republic slim cut plaid shirt (non-iron!). Lots of dudes just aren't as obsessive as we SF guys are about details. They just "want to look good" and move on for the cheapest price.

I can't say I know the working environment at Grant Stone (or any of the shops in Portugal or Spain for that matter), but I have had a fair amount of interaction over email with Wyatt, the young man who with his father is running the company. The sense I have is he's trying very hard to do things right, and I'd be very surprised if the shop there is anything particularly different than what you'd see in Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Spain or Portugal.

As far as knockoffs, have a look at this picture: (credit to vcleat.com)


Those are five classic American-made longwings. Who is the knockoff? Even the brogue pattern is really similar on four of them. Longwings and PTB's are a staple design - almost every mainstream shoemaker are going to have them. Is the Allen Edmonds Leeds a knockoff? And of who?

As far as the Barrie-lasted comment, I can only judge what I feel on-foot. I own three pairs of Barrie boots and two pairs of shoes. I have one pair of each from GS on their Leo last. While sizing and general shape is similar, the on-foot feel of Barrie vs. Leo is definitely different at the heel, midfoot and toe. Nuances? Yes. Probably as nuanced as the five pairs of shoes above.

Looking at what I have in my closet, the quality discussion isn't one: they're making a really outstanding product. That isn't generally something you see from a sweatshop - it takes skill. I've got no issues with anyone who prefers to buy MiUSA, but for me, I evaluate things made in China the same way I do things made in Spain or anywhere else: by the quality and value they offer. Having owned JCrew, GS, AE and Alden, what they are doing is well above anything JCrew is offering, and frankly any of my AE shoes as well (and I don't say that lightly - I've got a lot of AE in my closet).

I'm going to shut up now, since it isn't my job to advocate for or defend them, but I wish that generalizations and assumptions weren't part of a conversation like this. If Epaulet carried Grant Stone, it would give them an edge in priority for a visit during my short stays in NYC.