Allen Edmonds Appreciation Thread 2019 - News, Pictures, Clothing, Accessories, etc.

[audog]

Switching out to AE blue 48 inch laces on these non-AE boots. I like the contrast.

View attachment 1105682

It is a nice look.

 

[EZB]

It appears to me that the vibrant half-sole is on top of the JR double sole that is standard (ie, they didn’t cut into the JR sole to make it flush, as would be the case with a v-tread). IF this assessment is correct, the sole would substantially EXTEND the time until a recraft - you’d have to wear through the vibram (which is pretty durable) and then through the JR.

If they were mine, I’d take them to a cobbler and ask if the half-soles could be cleanly removed. Adhesives used on shoes have to be flexible, so it’s probably on there with something like rubber cement.

What's odd is he has the same shoe still listed again on the bay with what looks like the same pictures. How many Cambridge shoes with vibram soles added and worn once can he have?

 

[audog]

Anyone here have a pair of Rainer NST boots who might have pix in the wild?

 

[St Hubbins]

Lone wolves...as they sell down, less and less sizes available. They do not take returns, so I think not.
Just limited/remaining inventory.

And pardon the ongoing
View attachment 1105646

Weaseling successful. I hope they fit. Maybe I’ll return both Levi’s 511 selvedge pairs. Hope I don’t regret not also choosing the hemming service. They will be super long and even with some decent cuffs they’ll have stacks galore. Maybe I’ll use the dyer once to shrink them. Or I can always send them back for hemming.

A slightly expensive experiment but certainly less than most of the other respectable selvedge options. And one more pair of Cone White Oak denim. Thanks again for pointing those out. Hadn’t noticed the Lone Wolves collection before.

 

[BagleyBrown]

 

[BagleyBrown]

Rider boot with some big news, a merger and some significant price drops.
I see some significant price drops already on their site.
*Still not shopping.

Spoiler: Email from Rider about merger

Happy New year!

As we move into 2019, I’d like to once again thank all of our customers, both local and long distance, for continuing to support our small ‘Rider Boot Co’ brand here in Richmond VA! The continual compliments from visitors to the shop, the interest in the nature of what we do from visitors as well as the local press, the wonderful reactions (and patience) to our on-line GMTO’s and the quickly growing interest in our ‘in-house’ made leather goods has been a true blessing for our Family. Thank You!


Now in our third year ‘on the street’, so to speak, there has been something that has slowly started to occupy more and more of my attention. Namely, the growing availability in the market of ‘direct to consumer’ boot and shoe brands along with their attached marketing campaigns claiming to ‘eliminate’ the middle-person. While they actually are simply retailers wearing a different hat, I have still admired their ability to alter the traditional business model. I also, as one who has spent much of the last decade organizing ‘private label’ ranges and production for other brands, know the math. Whether it is a famous Fashion House who invests more in marketing than the final product, or a newer ‘direct’ selling brand who goes straight to internet distribution and paid influencers as the marketing plan, the product cost is more or less stagnant, the consumer price reflects the costs in between the factory and the customer, plus the margin percentage needed by the brand itself. The one thing the fashion brands and the direct brands have in common, with few – if any – exceptions, is that none of them own a factory.

And neither do I.


But, the Corti Family does, and has produced for both sides of this same coin over the years. The Corti’s have also produced our range since the beginning – that would be the ‘Cortina’ stamped on every boot and shoe that we have done. We have never pretended to be a manufacturer, never pretended to offer anything ‘better’ than any other brand, never oversold a philosophy. We have simply worked with Giancarlo and Aldo to put a good product on the market at the best price we could.


We opened our shop here in Richmond, and eliminated wholesale to get the price of our boots down a good amount and feel the value we offer currently is commensurate with the quality. The only way to further reduce the prices would be to possibly start our own manufacturing here at home, which is something I’ve considered regularly over the years. However, to take that step I also knew it would take a very long time, and huge investment to develop new lasts and patterns, and we wouldn’t be able to match the fit and finish of Cortina until I was much closer to the end than the beginning. As my thought process has played out over the last year, Giancarlo has continually gotten closer to the same interest – to grow his family business by organizing his Cortina production (Classic/Traditional patterns, lasts and materials) to be available directly to the final customer. As a matter of fact, as the months have gone by recently, our Rider Boot brand and shop (and his loyalty to us) has somewhat stood in the way of his development.


All of this was mostly in the background until last week…..after hearing about the expansion, and my focus for the coming year, of our own leather goods business here in the shop, the conversation quickly went from Giancarlo saying ‘I have a project I need to discuss with you’ to ‘Rider Boot Co. is now a division of Cortina 1955’. I am very excited to now be the Managing Director of Direct to Consumer sales for Cortina 1955! In addition, the expansion and development of the leather goods business here in the Richmond shop is well under way, and we look forward to developing, producing and offering our own range throughout the coming months.


There are numerous changes in the Cortina x Rider Boot Co. business launching early February, and the most obvious will be that the retail pricing, as indicated by the factory, will be substantially lower. The exact same boots and shoes, those same ones we have delivered to customers for almost 15 years now, will be offered in the range of $225-240 for shoes and $245-295 for boots. By becoming part of the factory, we will be able to offer the entire catalogue of Traditional/Classic shoes and boots. The same shoes and boots that Cortina has supplied to the marketplace for many years now; styles where the fittings, patterns, finishes….all of the development investments…have long been paid for, as well as the Rider Boot Co. styles we have built our business on.


Our principle method of selling will be via our website with fitting advise, with a lower quantity of stock available in our Richmond location. We are now working on the drop schedule, and anticipate 2 product additions each month with weekly deliveries either directly to you or to the shop for personal fitting. This new method of work, for us, will allow a much more consistent delivery timeframe, the ability to focus on existing styles in more leather options making the factory more efficient, eliminate some of the material availability issues we sometimes run into on our GMTO’s and, most attractively, offer at a fantastic end price.


We have much to do over the remaining days of January to prepare for this transition, and if you visit the shop please pardon our mess as we take delivery of new machinery and materials for the leather goods side of our shop. We will also be marking down all current stock as the factory would like as little on the books as possible when we officially combine. Finally, please note that we are pulling customer regular price purchase files (Cortina/Rider Boot items) for the last year and will be sending a long dated discount code that can be used for purchases in the future, that will make up the different cost amounts on our basic boots as closely as possible.


Thank you once again for allowing us to show you around our shop, talk to you about our products, even pour you a drink or two, and we can’t wait to show off what we have in store for the coming year!

 

[audog]

Rider boot with some big news, a merger and some significant price drops.
I see some significant price drops already on their site.
*Still not shopping.

Spoiler: Email from Rider about merger

Happy New year!

As we move into 2019, I’d like to once again thank all of our customers, both local and long distance, for continuing to support our small ‘Rider Boot Co’ brand here in Richmond VA! The continual compliments from visitors to the shop, the interest in the nature of what we do from visitors as well as the local press, the wonderful reactions (and patience) to our on-line GMTO’s and the quickly growing interest in our ‘in-house’ made leather goods has been a true blessing for our Family. Thank You!


Now in our third year ‘on the street’, so to speak, there has been something that has slowly started to occupy more and more of my attention. Namely, the growing availability in the market of ‘direct to consumer’ boot and shoe brands along with their attached marketing campaigns claiming to ‘eliminate’ the middle-person. While they actually are simply retailers wearing a different hat, I have still admired their ability to alter the traditional business model. I also, as one who has spent much of the last decade organizing ‘private label’ ranges and production for other brands, know the math. Whether it is a famous Fashion House who invests more in marketing than the final product, or a newer ‘direct’ selling brand who goes straight to internet distribution and paid influencers as the marketing plan, the product cost is more or less stagnant, the consumer price reflects the costs in between the factory and the customer, plus the margin percentage needed by the brand itself. The one thing the fashion brands and the direct brands have in common, with few – if any – exceptions, is that none of them own a factory.

And neither do I.


But, the Corti Family does, and has produced for both sides of this same coin over the years. The Corti’s have also produced our range since the beginning – that would be the ‘Cortina’ stamped on every boot and shoe that we have done. We have never pretended to be a manufacturer, never pretended to offer anything ‘better’ than any other brand, never oversold a philosophy. We have simply worked with Giancarlo and Aldo to put a good product on the market at the best price we could.


We opened our shop here in Richmond, and eliminated wholesale to get the price of our boots down a good amount and feel the value we offer currently is commensurate with the quality. The only way to further reduce the prices would be to possibly start our own manufacturing here at home, which is something I’ve considered regularly over the years. However, to take that step I also knew it would take a very long time, and huge investment to develop new lasts and patterns, and we wouldn’t be able to match the fit and finish of Cortina until I was much closer to the end than the beginning. As my thought process has played out over the last year, Giancarlo has continually gotten closer to the same interest – to grow his family business by organizing his Cortina production (Classic/Traditional patterns, lasts and materials) to be available directly to the final customer. As a matter of fact, as the months have gone by recently, our Rider Boot brand and shop (and his loyalty to us) has somewhat stood in the way of his development.


All of this was mostly in the background until last week…..after hearing about the expansion, and my focus for the coming year, of our own leather goods business here in the shop, the conversation quickly went from Giancarlo saying ‘I have a project I need to discuss with you’ to ‘Rider Boot Co. is now a division of Cortina 1955’. I am very excited to now be the Managing Director of Direct to Consumer sales for Cortina 1955! In addition, the expansion and development of the leather goods business here in the Richmond shop is well under way, and we look forward to developing, producing and offering our own range throughout the coming months.


There are numerous changes in the Cortina x Rider Boot Co. business launching early February, and the most obvious will be that the retail pricing, as indicated by the factory, will be substantially lower. The exact same boots and shoes, those same ones we have delivered to customers for almost 15 years now, will be offered in the range of $225-240 for shoes and $245-295 for boots. By becoming part of the factory, we will be able to offer the entire catalogue of Traditional/Classic shoes and boots. The same shoes and boots that Cortina has supplied to the marketplace for many years now; styles where the fittings, patterns, finishes….all of the development investments…have long been paid for, as well as the Rider Boot Co. styles we have built our business on.


Our principle method of selling will be via our website with fitting advise, with a lower quantity of stock available in our Richmond location. We are now working on the drop schedule, and anticipate 2 product additions each month with weekly deliveries either directly to you or to the shop for personal fitting. This new method of work, for us, will allow a much more consistent delivery timeframe, the ability to focus on existing styles in more leather options making the factory more efficient, eliminate some of the material availability issues we sometimes run into on our GMTO’s and, most attractively, offer at a fantastic end price.


We have much to do over the remaining days of January to prepare for this transition, and if you visit the shop please pardon our mess as we take delivery of new machinery and materials for the leather goods side of our shop. We will also be marking down all current stock as the factory would like as little on the books as possible when we officially combine. Finally, please note that we are pulling customer regular price purchase files (Cortina/Rider Boot items) for the last year and will be sending a long dated discount code that can be used for purchases in the future, that will make up the different cost amounts on our basic boots as closely as possible.


Thank you once again for allowing us to show you around our shop, talk to you about our products, even pour you a drink or two, and we can’t wait to show off what we have in store for the coming year!

That is very interesting, I don't own any Rider boots, but have looked at them in the past. I may own some in the future. Does anyone here have Rider's and if so, how do they compare to AE/GS/Alden/Oak Street.

 

[donkeyhoatie]

Another nooner from Donkey. Long Branch for a snowy Chicago day before I headed out for Costco/Target/Grocery run. This is the pair that got me started on the AE path. They're big on me, but more tolerable with my thickest wool socks.

I should be out shoveling the 100+ foot driveway, instead of watching football. There's not really enough snow out there to justify breaking out the 70s-era behemoth blower I've got in the garage that I inherited from the FIL. The carbs are so dirty that the backfire is a real crowd-pleaser in the neighborhood every time I shut it down. Children cry. Dogs cower. Women are slightly turned on. And most men secretly wish they were me. I should get it maintained, but it weighs too much to feasibly get it into the car and to the shop, and if I paid a place to pick it up for service, I'd be better off financially just buying a new machine. So, it lives on in awe-inspiring fear with a year-to-year lease on life.

 

[audog]

Another nooner from Donkey. Long Branch for a snowy Chicago day before I headed out for Costco/Target/Grocery run. This is the pair that got me started on the AE path. They're big on me, but more tolerable with my thickest wool socks.

I should be out shoveling the 100+ foot driveway, instead of watching football. There's not really enough snow out there to justify breaking out the 70s-era behemoth blower I've got in the garage that I inherited from the FIL. The carbs are so dirty that the backfire is a real crowd-pleaser in the neighborhood every time I shut it down. Children cry. Dogs cower. Women are slightly turned on. And most men secretly wish they were me. I should get it maintained, but it weighs too much to feasibly get it into the car and to the shop, and if I paid a place to pick it up for service, I'd be better off financially just buying a new machine. So, it lives on in awe-inspiring fear with a year-to-year lease on life.

View attachment 1105804

Something nice about that backfire though, wakes everyone up. Does yours sound like gunfire, or just refuse to shut off?

 

[audog]

I like the length on my Gustins.
I may end up getting them hemmed, but for now I just have to turn them up about 1-1/2” or so.

So, in between shoveling snow today, I experimented with the Gustin jeans. Washed them in the washing machine on not hot, but warm water and then hung them by waist over a heat register until almost dry. Then put them on damp. They shrunk in length a little, and now turn up is only about 1.75 inches as opposed to 4. Because I used a hanger with clip things, was able to keep waist at correct size. May still have them hemmed, but like them better now. I'm thinking the slim would be better than the straight, but it was a Black Friday Mystery jean, so got what I got and for a Levis 511 price.

 

[AEfaninTampa]

Another nooner from Donkey. Long Branch for a snowy Chicago day before I headed out for Costco/Target/Grocery run. This is the pair that got me started on the AE path. They're big on me, but more tolerable with my thickest wool socks.

I should be out shoveling the 100+ foot driveway, instead of watching football. There's not really enough snow out there to justify breaking out the 70s-era behemoth blower I've got in the garage that I inherited from the FIL. The carbs are so dirty that the backfire is a real crowd-pleaser in the neighborhood every time I shut it down. Children cry. Dogs cower. Women are slightly turned on. And most men secretly wish they were me. I should get it maintained, but it weighs too much to feasibly get it into the car and to the shop, and if I paid a place to pick it up for service, I'd be better off financially just buying a new machine. So, it lives on in awe-inspiring fear with a year-to-year lease on life.

View attachment 1105804

Ah, the memories similar to that of “Uncle Buck.”

 

[audog]

Ah, the memories similar to that of “Uncle Buck.”

Good movie.

 

[Shoenut]

Wish I could get a better pick. But the shoes? They know they are having full shots every game and yet this is what they do.

 

[audog]

View attachment 1105820
Wish I could get a better pick. But the shoes? They know they are having full shots every game and yet this is what they do.

Left side of screen shot has more appropriate footwear for suits, all of them COULD afford to wear nice shoes though.

 

[Tool fan]

View attachment 1105820
Wish I could get a better pick. But the shoes? They know they are having full shots every game and yet this is what they do.

Suits really deserve leather dress shoes. I hate this trend of wearing sneakers with dress attire. Ruins the entire look.