Grenson/Paul Stuart - masterpiece only or feathermaster?

[deaddog]

Are all Grenson for Paul Stuart the Masterpiece line? Does Paul Stuart sell Grenson Feathermaster?
Thansk

 

[Roger]

Very doubtful. Don't know for sure, but very much doubt that PS would carry Feathermasters, since they are the lowest line from Grenson and are available from Pediwear for something like 68 GBP (ex VAT) for at least one model at the moment. This works out to about 135 USD. I doubt that PS would carry even the higher-quality Footmasters (or whatever they call this line now), or anything of lower quality than the Masterpieces.

 

[dah328]

I do have some Grensons for Paul Stuart with rubber soles (Dainite, perhaps?) that I'm not sure are made to Masterpiece standards. They do have quality uppers, though, and are fine shoes. Noticeably better than the Footmasters I've seen.

 

[norcaltransplant]

Originally Posted by deaddog

Are all Grenson for Paul Stuart the Masterpiece line? Does Paul Stuart sell Grenson Feathermaster?
Thansk

Paul Stuart also stocks a lower line of Grensons, probably the equivalent of the Footmaster, that retails for $380. They are nice shoes, but definitely nowhere near the same class as the $625 Masterpieces.

Edit: Footmaster, feathermaster. Potatoe', Pota'toe. I should have just described them as the penultimate grade of Grenson.

 

[EL72]

Originally Posted by deaddog

Are all Grenson for Paul Stuart the Masterpiece line? Does Paul Stuart sell Grenson Feathermaster?
Thansk

I am no Paul Stuart expert but I believe those Grensons you bought on eBay were mis-advertised by the seller as being from Paul Stuart. AFAIK, they don't sell Feathermasters, which I believe are only sold in Europe.

 

[Roger]

Originally Posted by norcaltransplant

Edit: Footmaster, feathermaster. Potatoe', Pota'toe. I should have just described them as the penultimate grade of Grenson.
No, actually two different lines. The penultimate line (previously Footmaster) may have been renamed, but the Feathermaster line retains the same name as before and is--as before--Grenson's bottom line. Grenson generally and Feathermasters in particular are readily available from Pediwear.

Edit: Further clarification. Up until about a year or two ago, Grenson's Footmaster line was their penultimate shoe (as noted above). Now the penultimate shoes are split between two lines: the Rose Collection and just Grenson Shoes and Boots--at least that's the way Pediwear have arranged the Grenson collection. These shoes look to be about the equivalent of C&J bench grade shoes in price at least (not having seen them, I can't really comment on quality). Their best shoe for years was, of course, the Masterpiece, but those shoes have been discontinued in Grenson branding and appear to be available only from private labels like Paul Stuart with their "Stuart's Choice" shoes.

It's interesting to note that Grenson advertise their Feathermasters as having been designed in England, although actually manufactured offshore. A number of models are made in Italy; with the rest, no information is given (at least in the webpage blurb).

 

[Roger]

Originally Posted by EL72

I am no Paul Stuart expert but I believe those Grensons you bought on eBay were mis-advertised by the seller as being from Paul Stuart. AFAIK, they don't sell Feathermasters, which I believe are only sold in Europe.
If these are the black wingtips mentioned on another thread, it might be worth noting that the seller said that "Grenson is the maker of shoes for Paul Stuart, one of America's finest clothing stores....", not that the actual shoes for sale came from Paul Stuart. It would certainly be easy to misread this listing and think that he meant the latter, but, in fairness, he was probably indicating only that Grenson in general make high-quality shoes, as evidenced by the fact that Paul Stuart sell them.

 

[deaddog]

That was me who grabbed the shoes from the auction. By no means am I suggesting that the seller guaranteed that the shoes were made for Paul Stuart. But, in addition to the text you cite, its worth noting that the header on the listing read "Grenson Paul Stuart." In any event, I am not saying the seller intentionally misrepresented anything and I would appreciate it if nobody on SF suggested otherwise - the guy has good feedback and I have no reason to believe he is anything but honest. And, if I don't want the shoes I can send them back for a cash refund and just chalk up the shipping charges as a lesson not to pull the trigger before my research is done.