Carmina Shoes - Definitive Thread (reviews, advice, sizing, etc...) - official thread.

[zag73]

exactly...according to most styfo experts the company is in a death spiral. As exemplified by the 10 or more QC issues experienced by the highly influential, and dare I say extremely impotent...err important styfo members.

Where have you read that Carmina are in a death spiral? Is this real or wishful thinking on your part?

 

[stephenaf2003]

Thank you. But I’m not influential. ?

Or, is that what they want you to think....

 

[stephenaf2003]

Where have you read that Carmina are in a death spiral? Is this real or wishful thinking on your part?

...given the fact they’ve lost you, and apparently several other commenters in this thread as customers, I’m not sure how any sane person could come to any other conclusion.

 

[zag73]

...given the fact they’ve lost you, and apparently several other commenters in this thread as customers, I’m not sure how any sane person could come to any other conclusion.

So, it’s your wishful thinking. I never said they were in a death spiral nor implied they were. What I did say was that they had lost my custom after one year of continuous **** ups. You need to revisit my posts. I’ve even suggested others go by their own experiences. I should also add, my posts have been extremely balanced.

 

[zag73]

...given the fact they’ve lost you, and apparently several other commenters in this thread as customers, I’m not sure how any sane person could come to any other conclusion.

Ever heard of Stockholm Syndrome?

 

[stephenaf2003]

So, it’s your wishful thinking. I never said they were in a death spiral nor implied they were. What I did say was that they had lost my custom after one year of continuous **** ups. You need to revisit my posts. I’ve even suggested others go by their own experiences. I should also add, my posts have been extremely balanced.

...one thing to keep in mind, when I post something it’s only what I think...or is it?

 

[zag73]

...one thing to keep in mind, when I post something it’s only what I think...or is it?

 

[007Bond]

Probably the most concerning matter is I have not seen a post by Carmina since November 2020. The fact that we have so many dissatisfied customers here and no word from them is what concerns me. Normally Carmina is reasonably responsive and before recent post I have seen very few issues posted over the years.

Maybe they are having a hard time with covid maybe the factory was hard hit and they have some new or fill in employees with less experience. They are a smaller company so missing even a few master craftsmen could have a big impact on quality and production.

Anyways just saying we really don't know what is going on at Carmina until someone from Carmina posts.

 

[stephenaf2003]

View attachment 1563200

You get me...this situation has me bewildered

 

[zag73]

Probably the most concerning matter is I have not seen a post by Carmina since November 2020. The fact that we have so many dissatisfied customers here and no word from them is what concerns me. Normally Carmina is reasonably responsive and before recent post I have seen very few issues posted over the years.

Maybe they are having a hard time with covid maybe the factory was hard hit and they have some new or fill in employees with less experience. They are a smaller company so missing even a few master craftsmen could have a big impact on quality and production.

Anyways just saying we really don't know what is going on at Carmina until someone from Carmina posts.

All very valid points. There is nothing to disagree with here. The issues I’ve had are all in the last 12 months.

 

[zag73]

You get me...this situation has me bewildered
View attachment 1563204

Me too. Four orders , which I’ve waited months for and all a complete mess. Finally, we agree on something ?

 

[stephenaf2003]

Me too. Four orders , which I’ve waited months for and all a complete mess. Finally, we agree on something ?

 

[zag73]

View attachment 1563209

 

[stephenaf2003]

View attachment 1563221

 

[stook1]

Well I am glad I don't have those spots on any of the 22 pair of shell that I have (several in natural). Did a quick google search also did not find anyone listing this as normal but who knows. I don't really care as all I was doing was trying to point a few things out for Cal135 in case he was interested. I also though all shell was shaved during the process but not 100% sure.

Also I always thought that museum leathers were hand made with dyes so I would not expect to see a straight edge like it was made with a ruler but ok. Again all I was doing was trying to point a few things out for Cal135 in case he was interested.

Marbled shell is different from museum calf and regular shell colors. the specifics of how it is made is around on SF somewhere but I can't search it out right now. the way that horween produces these shells is what causes the well defined lines that you see frequently. I think that is also the case with the speckles, which I am guessing are follicles. I'm not sure. It would be an interesting Reddit AMA for Horween to do, actually.

I stand by the original view that I expressed that this is primarily an issue of customer education and expectations. To a certain extent, that's on Carmina to very publicly set those expectation. In that sense, one could pitch an argument that the customer didn't understand what they were buying. AE, for example, was better about doing this with their marbled shell rollout. Having said that, at least for Carmina, this was a really niche offering with something like 4 pairs produced or something like that. I'm not even sure that they had a good sense of what differences to expect, how to present it to customers, how to accurately set customer expectations, and how to cut and click the shell to meet customer expectations that they might not have really understood going into it.

Anyway, we're getting off on a tangent here. There are very unique aspects to marbled shell. It isn't for everyone.