Allen Edmonds Appreciation Thread - reviews, pictures, sizing, etc...

[bespoken pa]

I have two oustanding commitments. I was thinking about a mora 2.0 in cappuccino but recent intel suggests this is no longer an option.

 

[rydenfan]

I really like the dark brown shell. I don't see a huge difference between it and the cappuccino. I think a Mora would look great in bark brown or burgundy

 

[Septimus]

Any thoughts on the Kenilworth versus the new Fort Collins? Both are available from Nordstrom and both are available (in various colors) as part of the RDA sale.

Does anyone have either one, and/or can they comment on the fit compared to Park/Fifth Aves?

KENILWORTH:

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/allen-edmonds-kenilworth-oxford


FORT COLLINS:

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/allen-edmonds-fort-collins-plain-toe-derby

Or, possibly the Black Hills (more casual, but also more eyelets, which is nice)...

http://www.allenedmonds.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/producti_SF2905_1_40000000001_-1#BVRRWidgetID

Thoughts? Anyone with experience with the Black Hills?

 

[tifosi]



Received my Dundees today! They were supposed to have a light welt stitch to create a bit more casual look but I was aware of this prior to shipping.

They are a similar makeup to the pair tiffosi got with the difference being mine have a Dainite sole

This is my 4th pair of AE shell but the first I have seen with these bags

Very nice, Ryden! They look great. Congrats.

My Cambridge came with those shoe bags.

 

[jimney]

How long has it taken folks to hear back about the SF MTO offer from Mr. Grangaard?

 

[bespoken pa]

1-2 days for me but I would imagine experiences vary greatly depending on MrG's schedule.

 

[mdubs]



How long has it taken folks to hear back about the SF MTO offer from Mr. Grangaard? 

1-2 days for me but I would imagine experiences vary greatly depending on MrG's schedule.

Personally highly recommended that you contact Allison. PM me if you need her contact info, but someone posted it here yesterday. If you give her a call, you will find out immediately where you stand. That is if it is feasible for you to call.

 

[ChasingBobby]

Finally came in. RL slanton and the AE macneil.

 

[ridethecliche]

I was thinking we were discussing the fact that AE's can regularly be had at prices significantly below those listed on their website, including seconds as a major component of that, which is cheapening the brand, but maybe I was mistaken.

The "masses" are obviously increasing rather than decreasing in internet usage, that's no debate. I would certainly agree that average customers giving consideration towards buying AE may certainly visit their website.

However, I don't agree that simply visiting their website will cause anything near a cheapening of the brand because of frequency of sales. They have a few well placed sales at the same time every year, and they always have a clearance section. The sales have a nice attractive cover photo on their homepage. The models that go on sale during their few well placed sales every year are different from sale to sale. If you were a regular, uninformed consumer looking to purchase some first quality AE's, you may need to buy them during that sale (but if you are an uninformed consumer you wouldn't realize that). Otherwise, you may not see them on sale again for over a year, or more.

Their website doesn't mention anything about seconds, or the shoe bank.

From personal experience, the emails are hit or miss with who gets them, which is beyond me. Just like The Shoe Mart's email for Alden seconds, sometimes you get them and sometimes you don't (again that's my experience, but yours may differ). I am signed up for all emails and mail notices, as far as I know. However, it is actually quite common for someone to get on here and mention something they got in the mail regarding a sale, but I didn't get anything in my mail or email. I've even gone back and resigned up to see if it fixed the problem, to no avail. They remain hit or miss.

All this is irrelevant if you feel like their main website has sales occurring too frequently, at their designated annual times. We will just have to agree to disagree on that. I do think that the sheer number of newbies that come into the thread and ask questions about sales, dates, where to find discounts, what the shoe bank is, whether a price is a good deal, etc., is rather solid evidence that the information isn't readily available without actively searching and inquiring.

I think the seconds help out people like me who like shoes, but are in their early 20's and can't afford to throw down a ton of money for a professional wardrobe. I have a bunch of shoes, most of which I've bought on ebay and at thrift/vintage stores. I've realized that this can go way more hit or miss than I like, so I'd rather stick to a brand I respect. If this works out for them and people my age like their stuff, they'll likely create customers for life that will own a couple of pairs of their shoes while potentially getting more 'expensive' tastes in addition. As for me, I like the way shoes look and their color to pair them with things in my wardrobe. I'm not really looking to learn the nitty gritty of shoes and get something bespoke, but I can throw down 200ish bucks for 2-3 pairs of shoes that I really like and plan to keep for the long haul. Then I must pull the plug.

The seconds are really useful for this. And if people like me buy them, then we end up giving AE money instead of buying used shoes. Like I've said before, I bought a used pair of daltons for like 190. I could get seconds for that much recently. I would have done that in a heartbeat!

 

[peppercorn78]



Personally highly recommended that you contact Allison. PM me if you need her contact info, but someone posted it here yesterday. If you give her a call, you will find out immediately where you stand. That is if it is feasible for you to call.

How long has it taken everyone to hear back from Allison? I emailed on Thursday and then followed up with a voicemail on Monday morning. Still nothing. I'm sure she's busy as heck, just wondering...

 

[wurger]



I think what's being lost in this discussion is that we are in fact buying defective products deemed unfit for retail stores at a discount.  Shoes which are discontinued and defective are offered at deep discounts.  I don't see how offering such shoes at discounted rates reflects poorly on the brand.  I would think the proper metric is primarily quality and price of first quality shoes.  Unless you hit up the AE clearance rack or score some closeouts on 6pm.com or something similar, you generally can't find first quality shoes at deep discounted rates unless RDA is going on (unless I'm doing something wrong).

Of course, being the informed ones, we know that seconds blemishes are often trivial and are willing to give it a go.  The vast majority of people (especially those with the means and inclination to buy AE in the first place), however, would laugh at the thought of paying over $200 for defective shoes.  I still say we are the minority of AE buyer and we are (rightly) rewarded for our due diligence (monitoring sales and outlets across the country on a daily basis) and loyalty (see MTO discount for SF members).  AE knows what it's doing IMO.

yes, correctly pointed out, selling seconds at a discounted rate for me does not lessen the appeal of the brand, instead I see this as an extremely effective method of moving unwanted stock, and AE is very clear to the point that those are seconds.

As for the AE first sales, as MWS stated, it happens at strategic times of the year for certain styles and lines.

 

[Roycru]

As to Seconds, your feet are located quite some distance from your eyes, and, as your feet are often moving, it's sometimes difficult to see exactly what's "wrong" with Seconds, unless the Seconds that you get are two left shoes or a walnut shoe and a black shoe or something else obvious like that.

 

[wurger]

I thought Seconds constitute more than just some visual imperfections on a pair of shoes.

 

[WICaniac]



I thought Seconds constitute more than just some visual imperfections on a pair of shoes.

Often not. I have 2 pairs of seconds (with a 3rd on the way), and I can find nothing wrong in one and discern a slight gouge near the eyelets of the other. My salesman claims that they often cannot identify the flaws of the 2nds they sell.

 

[peppercorn78]

Spiaggias at the airport this am...