Harry Young Shoes in Toronto

[Franky In T.O.]

Does anyone in Toronto shop at Harry Young? They have 2 locations. One at 67 Front Street East and one right at Yonge & St. Clair near my work which I visited at lunch today.

The men's shoes are downstairs and I'd say 2/3 of the store are on clearance right now. Although I just dropped in to pick up some rubber overshoes, I noticed some really good deals. They carry a mix of mid-end to high end such as Johnston & Murphy, Rockport, Allen-Edmonds, and Donald J. Pliner and a number of others.

David was working downstairs and I appreciated his honesty and matter of factness. Definitely made it comfortable shopping there without any pressure whatsoever.

By the way, the rubber overshoes I picked up were Tingley "Moccasin" style rubbers for $26. They also have another version called "Storm" that looked pretty good. That tends to be the going rate for most rubbers though I've seen less attractive ones go for $35-40. Well, it's hard to find attractive overshoes, IMO, but I find that these ones don't look awful and unsightly like many others I've seen do.

Any experience shopping at Harry Young? A small purchase on my part, but I can say that I was pleased with the experience.

 

[maufic]

How much of a mark down is there on the clearence items?

 

[Franky In T.O.]

There were no signs explicitly saying any %'s, but I simply recall being impressed with the markdowns that I saw. $150 shoes for $80 so almost 50% in that case. What I noticed was less of a mark down on Allen-Edmonds. It appeared to me that the higher end the shoe, the less percentage discount. Though decent savings if you found a shoe you liked nevertheless. Sorry my memory doesn't allow for more precise examples.

By the way, is anyone familiar with the Blondo brand from Canada? I first noticed a pair of boots at The Bay for $150 and then saw the same pair at Harry Young for $135. Not huge savings, but 15 bucks is 15 bucks. While I didn't find the styles to be outstanding, simply average but good, I felt the quality was very good from a waterproofing perspective and the grips seemed solid.

 

[AB01]

I got a Blondo boot at Brown's for $150 (as I have said here so many times). Now it's $125 at Brown's, I think.

I'll check out Harry Young as soon as I have a chance. I'm looking for burgundy shoes. I found some on eBay, but rather get to try them on in person.

 

[Franky In T.O.]

You'll find a few pairs of burgundys at Harry Young for sure.

Was just at Brown's (Eaton Centre) on Sunday. Didn't notice the Blondos there. At $125, I should take a closer look.

Good experience with Blondo?

 

[AB01]

So far, so good.

There are not many other options for waterproof boots that are also for dress. Brown's also sells you a spray. I haven't used it yet.

 

[AB01]

Checked out the store in the afternoon. Small selection. Didn't see anything nice except a zip boot which was $500.
I'm very close to giving up on Toronto for shoes and buying from the Internet.