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Stain on brand new Weston shoes

post #1 of 20
4/11/12 at 8:27am
Thread Starter 

 

Dear all, 
 
first post for me, so if I'm breaking any forum rules I'll happily delete this. 
 
As I was shopping for my first pair of nice shoes (Westons) I noticed a tiny indentation on the left shoe, visible only when a direct reflection was on it. I thought to myself that it should be normal and that I should embrace it as a mark of character (this and also the fact that there was no other pair for my size in stock). 
 
Immediately after buying the shoes, I send them to the local shoemaker to install thin rubber soles and front irons. I got the shoes back after 10 days and before wearing them for the first time, I shined them using the Weston cream that was sold to me with the shoes. This is when a big, visible stain appeared, at the exact spot where I had noticed that indentation I mentioned above: 
 
20120407-untitled-0145.jpg
 
20120407-untitled-0147.jpg
 
20120407-untitled-0148.jpg
 
 
 
 
 
:-(((((((
 
I was destroyed, my brand new shoes had a big stain and I hadn't even wore them :-( I took them back to the Weston shop, fearing that they would refuse to help me due to the rubber soles & irons I had installed; however (albeit a bit suspiciously) they accepted to send them back to the factory, to "re-color" them. I should have them back in more or less one month. 
 
My questions to fellow forum readers are the following: has such thing happened to you before? Also, can I be confident that the stain will not appear again if they just "re-color" them? Should I maybe insist on an exchange? 
 
Thank you in advance for your time and answers. 
 
Regards, 
 
G.
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post #2 of 20
4/11/12 at 8:39am
never had that happen. odd looking "stain:"
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post #3 of 20
4/11/12 at 8:55am
Looks like some of the burnishing was rubbed off. They'll likely strip it back some and redo it. Where did you find those?
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post #4 of 20
4/11/12 at 9:03am
Thread Starter 

Thank you for your answer. If I understand correctly, everything should be fine if they re-do the burnishing. 

 

I bought those in the JM Weston shop in Brussels, Belgium. 

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post #5 of 20
4/11/12 at 9:07am
Yup. If they can't fix it they'll probably send you a new pair with a note.
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post #6 of 20
4/12/12 at 7:27am
Thread Starter 

Again, thank you. For reference purposes, I will post again in this thread (with pictures) as soon as I get the shoes back. :-)

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post #7 of 20
4/12/12 at 9:38am
This had happened to my shoes before, exactly the same thing happened when I haven't even wear it.

They didn't refund but they re coloured the shoe, it is fine but that really puts me off trying that brand again

especially when I only use water, shoe cream and beewax. Just don't do mirror shine until the shoe is worn in, let the wax to cool down first for a couple wears than gradually build it up
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post #8 of 20
4/12/12 at 11:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by NORE View Post

Looks like some of the burnishing was rubbed off. They'll likely strip it back some and redo it. Where did you find those?

I believe what you meant to say was finish and not burnish. They will have to strip off the finish, yes for certain, and apply a new finish. There is no other way.



guzi4real, first of all congratualtions on your purchase. They are gorgeous shoes. What model are they?
Personally, I would contact the factory myself, attaching a photo of the shoes just as you did here.
Provided it is the same pair returned to you-newly restored, my questions to the manufacturer would be:
1) How long after the new finish was applied, were the shoes resting at factory before being returned to the customer?

This is not to accuse anyone of being lazy but to clarify what is the appropriate time that a new finish should rest before applying lotions or creams or waxes.

2) If the answer is to enjoy right away, I would ask the manufacturer to recommend specific lotion and polish and brush products.
I would furthermore state to the manufacturer that I will have the shop I bought them from, demonstrate for me exactly how to apply such products, and should the blemish re-appear in the store that the shoes be replaced free of charge as this pair would be clearly by that point, defective.
If this ends up being the case you can inquire as to how you would be compensated for the cost of the sole rubbers and taps, though you can expect to take a loss. The trade off is that you won't have to pay for the back & forth shipping so all is fair I suppose.

Keep us updated
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post #9 of 20
4/17/12 at 6:34am
Thread Starter 

Thank you add911-11 and Man Of Lint for your precious feedback. 

 

@add911-11: I will definitely follow your advise with the waxing regime in the beginning. This has also put me off trying JM Weston shoes again. In fact on the next week-end I'm going to London and I'll be visiting Santoni (Harrods) and Berluti shops for new shoes :-) 

 

@Man Of Lint: Thank you for your compliments. The model I bought is JM Weston Arabesque in brown (as you can see from the photos). Your suggestion is very helpful but I suspect I will have a very difficult time trying to find a contact email address at the Weston factory. For sure I will ask these questions at the shop when I get the shoes back and in fact I have already told them that I will need a small "demo" to make sure I apply cream & wax correctly... By the way, it's Weston branded products that I used, so I don't know what else they could recommend me to use. 

 

Of course I will let you know when I have news. :-)

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post #10 of 20
4/17/12 at 7:43am
Be careful with Berlutis - their finishes can be fairly fragile as well. Beautiful - but fragile. This is somewhat typical of the highly finished french shoes - it's just a price you pay for the beauty. The amazing thing is that Berluti will refinish your shoes in the shop with only a day or two wait usually. Should refinishing be required.

While in Harrods be sure to check out the 'exotic leather' room.

You might also consider going to the new Corthay shop in London.

And perhaps Edward Green and John Lobb might have a few makeups that are interesting to you. They are practically next door to each other on Jermyn street. I'm thinking the lasts may not be much to your liking but perhaps a few will and EG does some fabulous/durable finishes.
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post #11 of 20
4/17/12 at 8:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gdot View Post

Be careful with Berlutis - their finishes can be fairly fragile as well. Beautiful - but fragile. This is somewhat typical of the highly finished french shoes - it's just a price you pay for the beauty. The amazing thing is that Berluti will refinish your shoes in the shop with only a day or two wait usually. Should refinishing be required.

While in Harrods be sure to check out the 'exotic leather' room.
You might also consider going to the new Corthay shop in London.
And perhaps Edward Green and John Lobb might have a few makeups that are interesting to you. They are practically next door to each other on Jermyn street. I'm thinking the lasts may not be much to your liking but perhaps a few will and EG does some fabulous/durable finishes.

+1 for Corthay, their finishes is less arty than berlutii, very soft leather which doesn't crease at all if the shoe is kept properly.

BTW where is the apparent individual corthay shoe shop in Knightsbridge? I tried to find it but no luck, I do want to bring my family to check their products out so I can get a new one :-)
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post #12 of 20
4/18/12 at 3:40pm
Thread Starter 

Gentlemen, 

 

your valuable recent feedback has encouraged me to do further research for a next pair of shoes --thank you for that! The fragility of Berluti shoes seems to have been covered extensively on the forum and I have ruled them out since this would be a second pair of work shoes that I will eventually end up wearing a lot. I have also ruled out Weston (my experience described in this thread) but also Church (I was initially considering them but posts here suggest a recent rise of prices and drop in quality). 

 

The suggestions you made seem indeed to get consistently favorable comments and some models are just so beautiful! ... I just have some difficulty finding out an estimate of price range these brands might cost --the corresponding websites are not always helpful. Can I therefore ask for your review on the estimates I came up with so far (including shoe trees) ?

 

- John Lobb : starting at 1000 euro ? (based on the price in dollars of a pair of Chelmsford on the US website) 

- Edward Green: starting at 1200-1300 euro ? (based on a couple of forum posts)

- Corthay: starting at 850-900 euro ? (based on articles around the internet)

 

Another question: should I also rule out Santoni shoes? They seemed to be commented as "fragile" too. 

 

Thanks in advance for any help you could provide. 

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post #13 of 20
4/18/12 at 4:35pm
Also never happend to me but I am interested in seeing when re-finished....
Nice shoes....
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post #14 of 20
4/18/12 at 4:36pm
And quality first post!!!
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post #15 of 20
4/18/12 at 5:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by add911_11 View Post

+1 for Corthay, their finishes is less arty than berlutii, very soft leather which doesn't crease at all if the shoe is kept properly.
BTW where is the apparent individual corthay shoe shop in Knightsbridge? I tried to find it but no luck, I do want to bring my family to check their products out so I can get a new one :-)

24 A Montcomb Street, London SW1x8ju

corthaylondon@corthay.com
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