Bespoke Shoes

[Mecnun]

I understand that nothing will equal the fit of a bespoke shoe. However what about quality? Is a bespoke G&G or Cleverley shoe much better in quality then a John Lobb RTW? While John Lobbs prestige Line is now about 700-750 pounds a pair of G&G or Cleverley seems to be in the 1500-1600 pound range. İs a bespoke shoe worth 2 John Lobb prestige line shoes?

 

[LabelKing]

One is prompted by goodwill to mention that the esteemed firm of John Lobb London does not give forth a client a trial shoe for their bespoke operations.

 

[shoefan]

A bespoke shoe, such as G&G, is made very differently from that of any factory-made, machine-welted shoe. This difference in construction yields a shoe which is lighter than the RTW shoes, and can offer features such as a true beveled sole and fiddleback waist that are either unavailable or lesser copies on RTW. Further, you can specify things such as the thickness of the sole, the amount of welt that shows, the toe shape, etc. Never mind the potential for a far superior fit, depending on your foot shape and the skill of the lastmaker. Finally, bespoke shoes should use higher quality leathers than that of even the best British RTW shoes.

Is it worth the difference in price? That is subjective. At at 2-for-1 ratio, I think yes.

 

[aportnoy]

There is more than enough room for both RTW and bespoke in any shoe wardrobe.

 

[LARon]

Originally Posted by shoefan

A bespoke shoe, such as G&G, is made very differently from that of any factory-made, machine-welted shoe. This difference in construction yields a shoe which is lighter than the RTW shoes, and can offer features such as a true beveled sole and fiddleback waist that are either unavailable or lesser copies on RTW. Further, you can specify things such as the thickness of the sole, the amount of welt that shows, the toe shape, etc. Never mind the potential for a far superior fit, depending on your foot shape and the skill of the lastmaker. Finally, bespoke shoes should use higher quality leathers than that of even the best British RTW shoes.

Is it worth the difference in price? That is subjective. At at 2-for-1 ratio, I think yes.


Good post.

 

[Concordia]

Not everyone can find a pair of Lobb RTWs that actually fit. Which changes the discussion a little bit.

 

[comrade]

Originally Posted by LabelKing

One is prompted by goodwill to mention that the esteemed firm of John Lobb London does not give forth a client a trial shoe for their bespoke operations.

Yes. It is a matter of faith that they'll get the fit right.

 

[LeatherSOUL]

Cleverley bespoke starts at 2300 pounds, I don't know if this changes your thoughts or not.

 

[Will]

You get the exact style you want and usually the color, which is worth quite a bit if you already have a closet full of shoes. And from a couple feet away they look better than anything machine-made.

On the other hand, unless you have hard to fit feet the fit is often no better than a machine-made shoe. I have eight pair from four makers and only three of them fit better than my Edward Greens. One pair fit considerably worse until I sent it back for six months to be re-made.

 

[poorsod]

Originally Posted by LeatherSOUL

Cleverley bespoke starts at 2300 pounds, I don't know if this changes your thoughts or not.

Wow. I didn't realize that G&G was that much cheaper.

 

[Yale Cameron]

bespoke G an G is also around 2300 pounds, though that includes lasted trees, bags, box.