Japanese Shoes: Bespoke & RTW Super Thread

[terrorsquad]

Nutcracker, any idea how much do the Corno Blu RTW/MTO cost?

 

[Verniza]

I must say, from what I've seen so far Marquess and Emori's style are right up my alley.

Marquess style is so understated and elegant that it is very hard to appreciate unless one looks into the details of his work/shoe.

Beautiful!

 

[Ilovelobbs]

.......

 

[Ilovelobbs]

YOU ARE MINE.....

 

[nutcracker]

"ISETAN JAPAN SENSES "MEN'S FESTIVAL OF JAPANESE CRAFTSMEN", Saturday April 6th, 2013

REPORT Part4

YOHEI FUKUDA

Chisel toes galore. Works of Art? you bet.

The shapes are very assertive. Sorry, no pictures of the soles, but the fiddlebacks were absolute killers.

Hand painted. Amazing colors...all of them

bordeau...

antique finish...has a distinct greenish tint...possibly my favorite color

more!

Test fitting shoes are apparently made as real functional shoes. Even the leather used are the same (with the final Bespoke piece). I think they are better made than almost every shoes I own! Hurts to see them being cut open..

Fukuda-san. From the short conversaion we had, this man seemed like a consumate professional. He showed me a clear file folder stuffed with information on a single order, with pages of life-size photos of the client's foot, from various angles. He also pulled out a 100yrs+ old English made last and explained to me the virtues of their design vs contemporary examples. Whenever he carves out a last, he has this (or these) by his side as a model, and possibly as a physical reminder or linkage to the English shoemaking heritage which he is very much a part of.

He is currently the undisputed king of the hill in the world of Japanese bespoke. Very much deserves so. Translate that to 14 months lead time

Marquess (Kawaguchi) and Fukuda
2 masters, competitors, working besides each other.

my thanks to the 3 shoemakers for the time and also for the permission (to post the pictures online)

 

[gusvs]



You're most welcome.
I've posted these before, but here's some pics of CENTRAL SHOES, one of the nicer RTW shoes

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Central shoes also makes Sanyo Yamacho shoes. When it comes to goodyear welted shoes, possibly the best factory in Japan along with Miyagi Kogyo

they've just released a lot more designs for the summer season, including couple of nice slip ons

Thanks NC for all the pictures from Isetan! Where is the Central Shoes RTW collection available for purchase? I've never seen them in any shop in Japan.

 

[rikod]

What a thread, thanks.

 

[sstomcat]



What a thread, thanks.

+ 1 awesome thread...

 

[Ilovelobbs]

"ISETAN JAPAN SENSES "MEN'S FESTIVAL OF JAPANESE CRAFTSMEN", Saturday April 6th, 2013



Test fitting shoes are apparently made as real functional shoes. Even the leather used are the same (with the final Bespoke piece). I think they are better made than almost every shoes I own! Hurts to see them being cut open..


Fukuda-san. From the short conversaion we had, this man seemed like a consumate professional. He showed me a clear file folder stuffed with information on a single order, with pages of life-size photos of the client's foot, from various angles. He also pulled out a 100yrs+ old English made last and explained to me the virtues of their design vs contemporary examples. Whenever he carves out a last, he has this (or these) by his side as a model, and possibly as a physical reminder or linkage to the English shoemaking heritage which he is very much a part of.

He is currently the undisputed king of the hill in the world of Japanese bespoke. Very much deserves so. Translate that to 14 months lead time

Marquess (Kawaguchi) and Fukuda
2 masters, competitors, working besides each other.

my thanks to the 3 shoemakers for the time and also for the permission (to post the pictures online)

His bespoke prices translate to any where near the average 14 month salary in the US

 

[Trompe le Monde]

insanely nice stuff!

 

[meister]



"ISETAN JAPAN SENSES "MEN'S FESTIVAL OF JAPANESE CRAFTSMEN", Saturday April 6th, 2013

more!

Love the bottom spade sole version.

 

[nutcracker]



Nutcracker, any idea how much do the Corno Blu RTW/MTO cost?

Theres' 2 versions, with same basic design. The benchgrade RTW version are ¥59,000 or so. The MTO versions are ¥89000 yen. with customized last and new pattern from scratch if necessary. $912 USD in today's exchange. Top price for a Japanese RTW shoes, no doubt, but they use better leather, and the amount of work and finish put into the shoes are a cut above those in the ¥50K versions (like the fiddleback soles etc..).

 

[nutcracker]



Thanks NC for all the pictures from Isetan! Where is the Central Shoes RTW collection available for purchase? I've never seen them in any shop in Japan.

Both Central Shoes and Miyagi Kogyo shoes are available in the World Footwear Gallery in Ginza, Harajuku, and the Kioi-cho store.

from the WFG's brochure

 

[striker]

Although they make such exquisite shoes, i wonder what is the percentage of the male japanese population that actually buys or wears them compared to their western counterparts. A lead time of 1 year and a focus on domestic markets seem to indicate that the demand is pretty robust.

Also, generally how do Japanese feel towards established foreign brands from Europe vis a vis their own artisanal offerings?

 

[nutcracker]



Although they make such exquisite shoes, i wonder what is the percentage of the male japanese population that actually buys or wears them compared to their western counterparts. A lead time of 1 year and a focus on domestic markets seem to indicate that the demand is pretty robust.

Also, generally how do Japanese feel towards established foreign brands from Europe vis a vis their own artisanal offerings?

European bespoke makers have had great success doing shows in Japan. Cleverley, G&G, Fosters, Ugolini and who's who have been doing shows in Japan regularly for years. Japan remains one of the most profitable market for European bespoke makers and RTW makers alike. Many Japanese swear by the foreign makers due to their longer experience and perceived quality, and are quite keen about discovering new European talents.

Though older bespoke operations like Otsuka and Ogasawara have been around, the explosion of Japanese Bespoke makers came about quite recently, from the past 15 yrs or so. If you look at the old LAST magazines (from 2002 and on), their contents were mostly foreign brand shoes. Now, in the recent issue of LAST, I say the content is 1/2 Japanese and 1/2 foreign.

Also keep in mind that most Japanese bespoke makers are very small operations, many are one man shows (with a possible apprentice or two). Marquess, for example, has an output of 3 shoes a month.