***The official Alden thread *** Share enthusiasm, reviews, sizing, advice, and photos.

[HorseHide]

Originally Posted by Aries83

Beautiful Deltashell.

edit: That J.Crew code would be great, asides from the fact that J.Crew won't ship to Europe, but will ship to Japan?! What the hell.

I believe it is due to a sizeable duty to EU countries - think the Italian shoe industry might have something to do with that.

 

[jasonfoote303]

"the description on the website clearly stated Barrie last - now it states Grant last" I am an employee of Unionmade and a person who takes his Aldens very seriously. Everyone who knows me on this forum or the store or my blog knows that I work tirelessly to give everyone as much knowledge and accurate information possible about Alden shoes. You need to know that nobody was trying to trick you. We ordered boots that we thought were on the Barrie last and only yesterday did we determine that they were on the Grant. As we are learning, you sometimes get surprises from Alden when you open up the box and things can be different from what you thought you ordered. I understand that the two lasts are different and are not interchangable to everyone. If you are not happy with them on the Grant last, Unionmade will take care of it. Everyone who works at Unionmade is extremely conscious of giving customers outstanding service and product knowledge.

 

[TACO_FLAVORED_KISSES]

Still got these in a 8.5

http://theagatineeyelet.files.wordpr...pg?w=640&h=480

 

[PeterParker]

Originally Posted by jasonfoote303

You need to know that nobody was trying to trick you. We ordered boots that we thought were on the Barrie last and only yesterday did we determine that they were on the Grant. As we are learning, you sometimes get surprises from Alden when you open up the box and things can be different from what you thought you ordered.
I figured this was the case; clearly the Barrie last was chosen by Unionmade for this makeup as a distinguishing feature. The captoe on the Grant last has been done by several other retailers, and as such I would suspect Alden was going through the motions when producing this boot. It is unfortunate that the mixup happened as the last will be a dealbreaker for many. Still, I think it is unfair to swear off doing business with Unionmade when this mixup was beyond their control. They carry a lot of other quality goods aside from Alden that are worth checking out. I can only hope that the boots I designed will turn out as I intended, sans Alden's "modifications".

 

[Cuttingboard]

Originally Posted by John_

My first Aldens in 1999 wre black shell chukkas and they have been the best, most versatile shoe ever. I wear them with suits, khakis, jeans...great for travel because they slip on/off easily and do go with anything. Brown is probably slightly less versatile, and #8 may be even more versatile!

If not now, you can't go wrong with these at some point!

I thought about black but I already have a pair of black chelsea boots...thinking about the dark brown and then a pair of suede for spring/summer.

 

[triumphman]

Originally Posted by PeterParker

Still, I think it is unfair to swear off doing business with Unionmade when this mixup was beyond their control.


Well said!

 

[MickCollins1916]

Originally Posted by Cuttingboard

Mick - You bought the Alden calf skins at Brooks Brothers online? Just curious because I didn't see them online?

Also, went by the Alden DC store and spent some time talking to Joe. Very nice guy and full of knowledge. I'm going back on Monday afternoon to be fitted and hopefully find a nice holiday shoe. There was a gentleman in the store from Italy that bought 3 pair of shoes. Joe says that he does this every time he comes to town.

Do you guys think that I could wear a leather chukka boot like in the picture below with wool dress pants?

Yes. They're not labeled Alden on the Brooks Bros. website. If you put your cursor over the "footwear" link in the left nav, a menu pops up. Click on "dress calfskin" and those shoes are made by Alden, as are the ones listed in the cordovan section.

I agree, Joe's great. He and Kathy are both very nice folks as well as very knowledgeable.

I wear the chukkas in shell with jeans, with some suits, with flannels, cords, etc. I think they're very versatile and really comfortable.

 

[Cuttingboard]

I'm going back to Alden DC on Monday afternoon to have Joe fit me. Looking forward to my first Alden shoe purchase!!

 

[CasinoRoyale]

Thanks for the responses guys. I will probably end up getting various pairs but just starting out I want the most bang for the buck.

I'll probably spring for some Chukkas and branch out from there. Probably make a stop at Leather Soul and have a look around as well.

 

[david3558]

Well, this is just crazy. I bought 3 pairs of boots this week -_-.

1. Alden Indys
2. Alden Indys (Jcrew version)
3. Red Wing Beckman Moc Toe

Picked up my standard brown Indys from my pedorthic center here in Boston, got them for ~$360 out the door. This morning, I ordered the J.Crew model in the same size after a 25% discount, and it came out to around the same price. ......... had a great sale on Red Wing so I got the $300 boot for $210 shipped

I sized down a whole size on my 405's, my pedorthist fitted me to an 8.5; it was definitely a tad snug but after an hours wear it has already stretched out width wise just a tiny bit and made the boot way more comfortable. The steel shank makes a huge difference, definitely makes the boot ridiculously stiff on the bottom, reminds me of walking in my cycling shoes. Overall the fit of the boot is perfect, and actually serves its orthopedic purpose for me. Like Harrison Ford, I have fallen arches and the Thomas Heel is perfect for correcting my slight pronation.

 

[MichaelPemulis]

nice pickups.

i also got a pair of indys this week, and was surprised by how comfortable they are.

also, wanted to add that they are definitely not great winter boots. the neoprene cork sole is super slippery in any amount of snow. they are wearable during the winter season, but i'll be mostly sticking to duck boots when the snow is on the ground in VT (which is pretty much all the time).

 

[Man with Apple]

Originally Posted by jasonfoote303

I am an employee of Unionmade and a person who takes his Aldens very seriously. Everyone who knows me on this forum or the store or my blog knows that I work tirelessly to give everyone as much knowledge and accurate information possible about Alden shoes.

You need to know that nobody was trying to trick you. We ordered boots that we thought were on the Barrie last and only yesterday did we determine that they were on the Grant. As we are learning, you sometimes get surprises from Alden when you open up the box and things can be different from what you thought you ordered.

I understand that the two lasts are different and are not interchangable to everyone. If you are not happy with them on the Grant last, Unionmade will take care of it. Everyone who works at Unionmade is extremely conscious of giving customers outstanding service and product knowledge.

I am one of the few who pre-ordered these boots as well and was disappointed that they were on the grant last rather than the Barrie last. However, I spoke to Spencer and he was extremely helpful and even was so kind as to send me an email with the upcoming unionmade x Alden styles for next year.

I don't think this was any fault of Unionmade, and as someone mentioned, more to Alden just going through the motions. This one bad experience will not stop me from future dealing with Unionmade, and from my personal experience, their customer service is great.

 

[phantomx48]

The true test of any business is seeing how they handle themselves when things go wrong. . .and it seems that "Union" is handling things expertly and trying to accommodate their customers in the best way they can. Clearly they aim for repeat customers, and so next time they offer something I am in the market for, I will not hesitate to pull the trigger.

(except for the pictures with the black background which always make me pick up my laptop and move it around trying to get a clearer look, lol. . .it almost gives the Alden shoes/boots a sense of mystery)

 

[makewayhomer]

studies show that customers actually become MORE loyal to a company if something goes wrong and the the company fixes it to the customers satisfaction

the customer understands that nobody is perfect, and has learned to trust this company when something goes bad

I would certainly order from unionmade

 

[PorterInjax]

Originally Posted by makewayhomer

studies show that customers actually become MORE loyal to a company if something goes wrong and the the company fixes it to the customers satisfaction

the customer understands that nobody is perfect, and has learned to trust this company when something goes bad

I would certainly order from unionmade

While I haven't seen any studies on this it is certainly easy to believe. I manage large capital projects that when all is said and done, I've had thousands (yes, thousands) of people working on it at some time or another. I don't typically judge companies or personnel on the mistake(s) they make, unless it's a real dumbass mistake, but on how they address it.
Here, it doesn't appear that Unionmade did anything wrong and I'm sure they are just as disappointed as the pre-order buyers....remember, the great philosophers before us were right in saying "sometimes, **** happens..."