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Carmina vs Meermin

post #1 of 12
10/30/12 at 8:02am
Thread Starter 
I have two pairs of Carminas and really like them. Excellent value. Now I hear all this talk of their sub-brand Meermin. The pictures look quite good, but how are they so cheap? What are the differences?

I reckon this must have been discussed elsewhere, but the Meermin thread is enormous so I'm a bit lost. There's this thread, but it's not very systematic. Does anyone have substantial insight about differences in construction and leather quality? Cheers.
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post #2 of 12
10/30/12 at 8:29am
Not sure if you've seen this, but it may help answer some of your questions:


http://putthison.com/post/27986276299/we-got-it-for-free-meermin-shoes-exaggerations
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post #3 of 12
10/30/12 at 10:51am
It's not a sub brand. They're different firms though run by relatives.

Some Meermins are hand welted - don't know if that's the case with Carmina but it's something that IMO makes a shoe a bit more comfortable.
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post #4 of 12
10/30/12 at 1:24pm

One significant difference is that the finishing on Meermins is consistently poor. I know many on the forum love the brand, but the five or six times I've been in the Claudio Coello shop I've left thinking one is better off with a pair of Allen Edmonds (shapely lasts be damned). This is not to say that the finishing on a pair of Carminas is without fault. I've seen seconds on display as firsts in every Madrid shop, but they are still not so obviously poorly finished as those from Meermin, 

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post #5 of 12
10/30/12 at 1:40pm
Yes Meermin's finishing is honestly, rather poor. I had leather shoes with black blotches everywhere, and had to have it exchanged. I think Carmina's quality control is more stringent.
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post #6 of 12
10/30/12 at 2:10pm
Meermin needs to work on their QC. The fact that I received an MTO shoe with issues that should have been caught is a concern, although not a big one because of location. My classics also had a problem

All my Carmina shoes have been flawless.

Take all this with a grain of salt though, people usually post when they have issues, so I am sure there are more satisfied than unsatisfied customers.
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post #7 of 12
10/30/12 at 2:18pm
Meermins are not that bad for their price. I turn to them (classic models) as my shoes I don't mind getting dirtied, or 'trashed up'.

But yes, it'd help if they improve their QC, and quit increasing their prices so rapidly. biggrin.gif
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post #8 of 12
10/30/12 at 2:18pm
Gyasih, what shoes are those in your profile pic? Girling?
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post #9 of 12
10/30/12 at 2:35pm

Meermin Linea Maestro shoes is probably one of the lowest priced hand-welted shoes.  Visual quality is probably between AE and Alden.  But then again hand-welted shoes will have stronger construction than gemmed.

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post #10 of 12
10/30/12 at 3:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bboysdontcryy View Post

Gyasih, what shoes are those in your profile pic? Girling?

AS Exclusive Moore in oxblood
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post #11 of 12
10/30/12 at 4:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by gyasih View Post

AS Exclusive Moore in oxblood

What last is that on?
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post #12 of 12
10/30/12 at 4:25pm
Ignore that. I think it's the 724.
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