PSA: Great Source for Gaziano & Girling and Vass Shoes

[2ManyShoes]

Wow. I don't know exactly how new this news is, but based on the prices I'm seeing and have paid (here and elsewhere), Boutique Margo and Ralph in Beligium has the best prices in the world on G&G and Vass. (According to Ralph, they are now the the official distributors of G&G in France and Belgium; I don't know their relationship to Vass.) In fact, I almost couldn't believe the prices I got and held off posting anything about them here until the three pairs I bought from Ralph arrived. These were:

G&G St. James, vintage cedar, size 10 UK

G&G Hayes, black, size 10 UK

Vass Old English Oxford, black, size 44

All three arrived in pefect condition, are NOT seconds, and include the original lasted shoe trees and bags. (The original boxes weren't included, but I don't know if that's because I didn't ask for them.) Talk about a "Sacred crap!" moment when I opened the boxes!

The cost was substantially less than I've seen anywhere else without the trees. If you want to know what I paid, PM me.

I should note that I didn't buy via the website, where the prices are good but not insane. Instead, I contacted Ralph directly at [email protected] and talked to him for quite a while, then bought two pairs of G&G. A few days later I plunked for the Vass, so part of the price I got on those was probably the back and forth we had and the purchase of the two G&Gs.

I discovered the Boutique by following a link in Ralph's e-mail signature after some back and forth about an item he had on eBay. Ralph is a courteous, knowledgable, and helpful guy. The entire transaction was perfect.

If you're wondering if I have any skin in the game, the answer is "maybe a tiny bit." After the shoes arrived, Ralph asked if I could spread the word about the Boutique, and I said I would. I'm happy to do that anyway, but if you say that Larry sent you, I'm sure it it wouldn't hurt next time I can afford another pair of shoes.

OK, so that's the story., No kidding, Ralph is the bomb. Cheers.

 

[Maccimus]

IIRC there was a thread about the shop one or two months ago.

 

[2ManyShoes]

I just checked, and your're right. There was a thread called "Vass Online" in January. (I missed it b/c I only searched for "Margo & Ralph" in topic titles). In that thread, people were curious about what experience people had had with Ralph, but there was no follow-up.

Originally Posted by Maccimus

IIRC there was a thread about the shop one or two months ago.

 

[sf_esq]

Was wondering about these guys, curious how much shipping cost and if you got hit with customs fees (assuming you are in the U.S.).

 

[2ManyShoes]

Yes, I'm in the U.S. Shipping was inlcuded in the prices I paid, and there were no customs fees.

Originally Posted by sf_esq

Was wondering about these guys, curious how much shipping cost and if you got hit with customs fees (assuming you are in the U.S.).

 

[alphaO888]

Is the price you got it at the 700 Euros minus 15% for the VAT? I just sent them an email telling them you referred me. Thanks for the tip!

 

[2ManyShoes]

No, it was quite a bit less than that, and included the shoe trees (which the 700 euro base price does not).

Originally Posted by alphaO888

Is the price you got it at the 700 Euros minus 15% for the VAT? I just sent them an email telling them you referred me. Thanks for the tip!

 

[BrooklynWeGoHard]

Originally Posted by 2ManyShoes

No, it was quite a bit less than that, and included the shoe trees (which the 700 euro base price does not).

how much was it?

 

[Bartolo]

How can they be the 'official distributor in Belgium' if they don't have a real storefront? At least as far as I can tell, they are online-only sellers. I travel to Belgium a few times a year . . . but it doesn't seem they have a real storefront. What am I missing?

 

[SpooPoker]

Originally Posted by BrooklynWeGoHard

how much was it?

+1 - Curious about the final price after your behind the scenes negotiations.

 

[w.o.e.is.me.]

looks like a really good deal.
nothing in my size i'm interested in pulling the trigger on at the moment though.

 

[2ManyShoes]

As I mentioned in the original post, please PM me for the prices I paid.

Originally Posted by BrooklynWeGoHard

how much was it?

 

[2ManyShoes]

Two of the pairs I bought weren't on the site, but Ralph was able to get for me.

Originally Posted by w.o.e.is.me.

looks like a really good deal.
nothing in my size i'm interested in pulling the trigger on at the moment though.

 

[2ManyShoes]

I don't know, that's just what Ralph told me.

Originally Posted by Bartolo

How can they be the 'official distributor in Belgium' if they don't have a real storefront? At least as far as I can tell, they are online-only sellers. I travel to Belgium a few times a year . . . but it doesn't seem they have a real storefront. What am I missing?

 

[Fishball]

Originally Posted by 2ManyShoes

I don't know, that's just what Ralph told me.

G&G website said it also.