The Bespoke Shoes Thread

[kirbya]

The thought of flying to Japan regularity is mind-blowing for me. It is an incredibly long flight. Furthermore, my wife would never let me get away with being gone that long. ?

I’m fine with the European makers right now. One of the other things that I think would prevent me from really committing to the Japanese is that I think That due to the language difference, it would be difficult if not impossible for me to build the same, meaningful relationship with the maker that I can do with someone who speaks English and shares the same western cultural underpinnings. The relationship is so important to me.

 

[ThinkDerm]

The thought of flying to Japan regularity is mind-blowing for me. It is an incredibly long flight. Furthermore, my wife would never let me get away with being gone that long. ?

I’m fine with the European makers right now. One of the other things that I think would prevent me from really committing to the Japanese is that I think That due to the language difference, it would be difficult if not impossible for me to build the same, meaningful relationship with the maker that I can do with someone who speaks English and shares the same western cultural underpinnings. The relationship is so important to me.

Why are you not getting more GC bespoke ever again

 

[dieworkwear]

Kirby, what prompted you to decide that you would absolutely never get another pair of Cleverley bespoke? I’m curious because I just dipped into bespoke and started with GC. Was it just to focus on building out and seeing more bespoke makers, or was it also a factor of the issues you mention: over-personal relationship, reluctance to fix issues, quality control and lack of transparency?

Curious, after hearing all those stories, what makes you want to go to GC?

 

[j ingevaldsson]

Are people here really traveling to Japan to buy shoes? I'm surprised at how often this suggestion comes up.

I've been going to Japan at least once a year now for several years only for shoes... Though not only for ordering shoes, while I'm a customer at three bespoke shoemakers and have quite a few pairs now, it's mainly for the interest on continuing to discover the shoe world there and to get content for my blog. I really love the country and the people there.

And as I've said before, I believe that the concentration of really good bespoke shoemakers is higher in Japan today than anywhere else in the world, mainly due to a fierce competition there and because of their general perfectionist mentality. That said, you also have everything along the "quality line" down to really badly made stuff. And that goes for the rest of the world as well, be it in England, France, Italy, US etc, you have great bespoke shoemakers and lousy bespoke shoemakers, and everything in between. You just have to find the good ones...

The thought of flying to Japan regularity is mind-blowing for me. It is an incredibly long flight. Furthermore, my wife would never let me get away with being gone that long. ?

I’m fine with the European makers right now. One of the other things that I think would prevent me from really committing to the Japanese is that I think That due to the language difference, it would be difficult if not impossible for me to build the same, meaningful relationship with the maker that I can do with someone who speaks English and shares the same western cultural underpinnings. The relationship is so important to me.

As Stefan mentions, many makers in Japan speaks excellent English (they have lived in the UK for years), and they know western culture well (the cultural differences is not something I see as an issue either way, quite to opposite), so it's not a problem to order shoes and get a meaningful, good relationship with many of them (I have excellent relationships with all three I work with there, and this even though one of them is not part of the English trained ones, for him I have a translator helping but it still works great for me). It can be harder to make your way in English with makers in France or Italy..

I'm not saying ordering from Japan is a must for people, just that things mentioned above shouldn't hold people back if they would like to.

 

[shackletonian]

Curious, after hearing all those stories, what makes you want to go to GC?

I actually have had success with GC. One of the AC models fit me perfectly, though some other models on other lasts were a bit off relative to different sizes. I’ve seen other people have very good experiences with GC, but between Kirby’s comments about being absolutely done (after getting 9 pairs) and the comments about the amount of outsourcing (quality control and reticence to fix), it’s just striking.

 

[dieworkwear]

I've been going to Japan at least once a year now for several years only for shoes...

That's an admirable commitment. Salute.

I'm too lazy to even travel across town nowadays for drinks, I can't imagine traveling to Japan for shoes. A friend of mine recently booked a wedding in Mexico and I might teleconference myself in.

I actually have had success with GC. One of the AC models fit me perfectly, though some other models on other lasts were a bit off relative to different sizes. I’ve seen other people have very good experiences with GC, but between Kirby’s comments about being absolutely done (after getting 9 pairs) and the comments about the amount of outsourcing (quality control and reticence to fix), it’s just striking.

I think the AC line is RTW though, right?

I think they're ready-to-wear is fine.

 

[shackletonian]

I think the AC line is RTW though, right?

I think they're ready-to-wear is fine.

I think it is, too. I imagined that if they were producing things like that (or having it produced), then the bespoke would be good, too. It seems to be good for many/most, but clearly not all. I wonder how they decide which client gets which maker (or series of workers). All the same, I’m not worried about my shoes; it’s been a good process so far, and they’ve been very accommodating.

I know you’ve had a disappointing experience with them. I wonder how Kirby came to the rather stark decision to never again do GC bespoke. His reference to having too personal a relationship was also a bit intriguing to me.

 

[dieworkwear]

I think it is, too. I imagined that if they were producing things like that (or having it produced), then the bespoke would be good, too. It seems to be good for many/most, but clearly not all. I wonder how they decide which client gets which maker (or series of workers). All the same, I’m not worried about my shoes; it’s been a good process so far, and they’ve been very accommodating.

I know you’ve had a disappointing experience with them. I wonder how Kirby came to the rather stark decision to never again do GC bespoke. His reference to having too personal a relationship was also a bit intriguing to me.

A good solution to all this: George should measure people's feet for bespoke shoes, but while doing so, peek inside their current shoes to see their RTW size. Then deliver them an AC shoe with the size inside rubbed off with isopropyl alcohol.

 

[kirbya]

I wonder how Kirby came to the rather stark decision to never again do GC bespoke. His reference to having too personal a relationship was also a bit intriguing to me.

Unfortunately the relationship ran it's course, but it didn't have anything to do about the quality of their shoes, which I respect.

 

[j ingevaldsson]

A good solution to all this: George should measure people's feet for bespoke shoes, but while doing so, peek inside their current shoes to see their RTW size. Then deliver them an AC shoe with the size inside rubbed off with isopropyl alcohol.

Brings back memories of when a pair of Goodyear welted bespoke Cleverley shoes were posted here on SF, and they started bribing people to take the picture down...

 

[Stefan88]

Brings back memories of when a pair of Goodyear welted bespoke Cleverley shoes were posted here on SF, and they started bribing people to take the picture down...

What? They actually did that?
Hope the customer was aware he was receiving goodyear welted ?

Oh well, a little gemming never hurt anyone.

 

[dieworkwear]

Brings back memories of when a pair of Goodyear welted bespoke Cleverley shoes were posted here on SF, and they started bribing people to take the picture down...

Wait, really? That's genuinely hilarious. What happened? How did a GYW bespoke shoe even get made?

Someone earlier asked if I was really mad about my situation, and while I definitely would prefer to have my shoes as I ordered them, these stories are also what makes bespoke so fun. I've heard so many insane stories about makers tricking people, and stories about crazy customers. The stories are better than the clothes.

 

[dieworkwear]

What? They actually did that?
Hope the customer was aware he was receiving goodyear welted ?

Oh well, a little gemming never hurt anyone.

He actually only found out when he slipped on the gemming, like a series of banana peels until a piano fell on him, turning him into a human accordion.

 

[dieworkwear]

Gonna buy a bunch of mainline GC shoes and open them up to see if they've been accidentally handwelted, like the golden ticket scene in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.

 

[j ingevaldsson]

What? They actually did that?
Hope the customer was aware he was receiving goodyear welted ?

Oh well, a little gemming never hurt anyone.

Wait, really? That's genuinely hilarious. What happened? How did a GYW bespoke shoe even get made?

Someone earlier asked if I was really mad about my situation, and while I definitely would prefer to have my shoes as I ordered them, these stories are also what makes bespoke so fun. I've heard so many insane stories about makers tricking people, and stories about crazy customers. The stories are better than the clothes.

The customer didn't know it himself, it was brought upon his attention after he posted pics here. Don't know what happened afterwards.

There's so many stories and weird things around Cleverley, to be frank. I've been trying to get answers from them for years now, but they delete comments, block me from their insta account, etc. and George Glasgow Jr. state that he can explain it all and answer questions in a phone call, something I've been trying to get for six months now with mails back and forth with him and his secretary with no success, now he switched over to wanting me to come over to London instead to answer my questions, I've said yes and asked for a date, but no reply since...

The sad thing is that there are many good people working for the company, who does a great job, hate to see them get affected by it all. And there’s still also great things coming out with of there, both bespoke and RTW.

Gonna buy a bunch of mainline GC shoes and open them up to see if they've been accidentally handwelted, like the golden ticket scene in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.

Well, they once again started marketing their RTW as being made in their Mayfair workshop, so maybe there's a good chance for mix-ups...