The Bespoke Shoes Thread

[nub915]

Jeez 8k. I'm sure they're at a very different level, but I just paid about a third of that for one pair each of work boots, loafers, and a punch cap lace up.

Does anyone have a pair of bespoke John Lobb Paris shoes? 8K is pretty steep. I have the Madison 20s and love them but they are not truly bespoke.

 

[Texasmade]

Does anyone have a pair of bespoke John Lobb Paris shoes? 8K is pretty steep. I have the Madison 20s and love them but they are not truly bespoke.

I have 2 pairs.

 

[nub915]

I have 2 pairs.

What are your thoughts? Good price to value ratio? Good customer service ? Quality relative to other bespoke makers

 

[BColl_Has_Too_Many_Shoes]

Daniel wasn't there first round I believe, but I'm sure if there's interest he can add west coast next time in the US. I know he's just waiting for travel restrictions to lift to go back, a bunch of fittings to be done, and will be in the US regularly.

What's his pricing again? I was thinking ~$4500, but I know you'd be able to provide a definitive.

 

[Texasmade]

What are your thoughts? Great customer service and really good quality but you definitely pay for it. I do plan on commissioning more shoes in the future from them but right now I'm on hold due to other financial commitments (getting a Porsche this year and I need to fix up my house). I'm hoping 2022 I can order another pair of JLP shoes and start the process for the Nick Templeman green suede gatorskin loafers.

Good price to value ratio? No, the price is really high and JLP doesn't really compete on price to value. Main reason why I use them is because they're local (I live in Houston where a boutique is located) and I've been a loyal JL customer for awhile. Doing bespoke JLP was always something I wanted to do.

Good customer service ? Yes, they have excellent CS. I posted about my experience in the JL thread about my first pair where I wasn't too happy with the final product. The director of JLP USA reached out to me privately when he saw the post and asked what was wrong to correct the issue

Quality relative to other bespoke makers Yes, quality is top notch. They only use in-house employees which I think produces better more consistent final products vs other makers who use outerworkers where the final product can be hit and miss. This is pretty evident in JLSJ and GJC.

Smaller independent makers like G&G, Nick, Dominic, and Daniel probably use outerworkers (I'm not 100% sure on this so other members can chime in) but since the volume is much lower the quality still looks pretty good.

See responses.

 

[dieworkwear]

Anyone have any direct experience with Templeman? Does wegan travel to LA?

I have three pairs of shoes from Nicholas and have a fourth pair on order. Of all the bespoke tailors, shoemakers, and other craftspeople I've worked with, he's probably in my top three best experiences. Some points:

1. Nicholas fixes things without needing to be asked. IMO, you're not only paying for the person's skill, but also thier honesty and eye. They should be able to spot things you don't, and fix things when necessary. I have two friends who have worn Nicholas' shoes to trunk shows, and upon seeing some minor issue they didn't spot, Nicholas asked if he could have the shoes back so he could fix them. Compare that with many other bespoke customers, who feel they have to post photos here and ask if something is correct.

2. The experience can be as close or distant as you want. You can go in, ask for a certain style of shoe and leave it all to him. Or you can ask him for very specific details. Obviously, you don't want to be neurotic. But being based in California, I've been able to call Nicholas when it's convenient for me (afternoon), which is nighttime in London. I call him at his home to discuss some small detail in my order, send over photos, and get the exact last shape I want. I can't imagine doing that with a larger company -- the person working at a big company isn't going to take my calls in the evening, check his emails, and talk with me about a photo.

3. He also has a good eye for design. There are simply some things you can't specify and have to rely on the maker's eye. Whether you specify a lot or a little, I think you will always get a pleasing-looking shoe.

4. I enjoy being able to talk about craft-related things with the person making my shoes, which is not always possible with some companies (where the lastmaker may not be present). I also like that Nicholas is very plainspoken.

5. Finally, since this is a lastmaker-run shop, you know who's making your last. With some larger companies, you don't know who made that item. Say you saw a pair of really beautiful GG bespoke shoes. Maybe Wegan made that last; maybe it was someone else. If you go, you may not have the same lastmaker as the person who made the shoes you admired. Nicholas also works with a very small group of people, so again the work is very consistent. If you see a pair of Templeman shoes you like, you will have the exact same hands on your order.

 

[BColl_Has_Too_Many_Shoes]

I have three pairs of shoes from Nicholas and have a fourth pair on order. Of all the bespoke tailors, shoemakers, and other craftspeople I've worked with, he's probably in my top three best experiences. Some points:

1. Nicholas fixes things without needing to be asked. IMO, you're not only paying for the person's skill, but also thier honesty and eye. They should be able to spot things you don't, and fix things when necessary. I have two friends who have worn Nicholas' shoes to trunk shows, and upon seeing some minor issue they didn't spot, Nicholas asked if he could have the shoes back so he could fix them. Compare that with many other bespoke customers, who feel they have to post photos here and ask if something is correct.

2. The experience can be as close or distant as you want. You can go in, ask for a certain style of shoe and leave it all to him. Or you can ask him for very specific details. Obviously, you don't want to be neurotic. But being based in California, I've been able to call Nicholas when it's convenient for me (afternoon), which is nighttime in London. I call him at his home to discuss some small detail in my order, send over photos, and get the exact last shape I want. I can't imagine doing that with a larger company -- the person working at a big company isn't going to take my calls in the evening, check his emails, and talk with me about a photo.

3. He also has a good eye for design. There are simply some things you can't specify and have to rely on the maker's eye. Whether you specify a lot or a little, I think you will always get a pleasing-looking shoe.

4. I enjoy being able to talk about craft-related things with the person making my shoes, which is not always possible with some companies (where the lastmaker may not be present). I also like that Nicholas is very plainspoken.

5. Finally, since this is a lastmaker-run shop, you know who's making your last. With some larger companies, you don't know who made that item. Say you saw a pair of really beautiful GG bespoke shoes. Maybe Wegan made that last; maybe it was someone else. If you go, you may not have the same lastmaker as the person who made the shoes you admired. Nicholas also works with a very small group of people, so again the work is very consistent. If you see a pair of Templeman shoes you like, you will have the exact same hands on your order.

You mentioned Nicholas spotted corrections he wanted to make in others. Has your last pair changed much from your initial pair in terms of fit adjustments?

 

[nub915]

Thanks so much. I think I’ll give him a shot

 

[dieworkwear]

You mentioned Nicholas spotted corrections he wanted to make in others. Has your last pair changed much from your initial pair in terms of fit adjustments?

I've asked for a different shape with each new order, so there are a bunch of changes made to my last, mostly for style reasons.

 

[nub915]

See responses.

Thank you for the very detailed response. Super helpful.

 

[BColl_Has_Too_Many_Shoes]

I've asked for a different shape with each new order, so there are a bunch of changes made to my last, mostly for style reasons.

Great. It definitely keeps each order fresh & interesting.

 

[j ingevaldsson]

[Smaller independent makers like G&G, Nick, Dominic, and Daniel probably use outerworkers (I'm not 100% sure on this so other members can chime in) but since the volume is much lower the quality still looks pretty good.]

See responses.

Regarding this, G&G do all in-house (at least that was the case the last few years with only some exceptions with one or two freelance makers brought in when high amount of orders, they have less staff in the bespoke department now though, but have lastmaker (Toni), closer (Kate) and maker (Kiichiro) so presume still the case).
Nicholas is a lastmaker mainly so use outworkers for closing and bottoming, though I believe only a few which he works consistently with.
Dominic at least can make both lasts and bottom making, not sure if and if so what he does himself and have potential freelancers doing.
Daniel makes lasts and bottom making himself, use freelancer for upper leather.

 

[dauster]

JLP is $8K!? For that, you could commission from Daniel Wegan and Roberto Uggolini while buying a nice bottle of wine. And then pocket some lunch money.

its about convenience and brand name recognition. most people have never heard of daniel wegan (not even all of the old G&G customers I assume) and roberto uggolini. daniel does come to the US though I believe

 

[Texasmade]

its about convenience and brand name recognition. most people have never heard of daniel wegan (not even all of the old G&G customers I assume) and roberto uggolini. daniel does come to the US though I believe

Daniel did an initial trunk show tour late 2019/early 2020 in the US. He hasn't came back since due to Covid 19.

 

[usctrojans31]

I totally understand the mindset of convenience and prestige. A few years ago, there was a thread on why someone would buy Kiton/Brioni instead of going bespoke. My argument at the time was that I understand why an average executive would go to Kiton, drop a bunch of coin and be done with it. The time investment would simply not align with the interest or patience of the average high-end menswear buyer.

But we're talking about fellow Styleforum members taking the next step. By sheer definition of being a member of a forum dedicated to clothing, the average #menswear mindset is less applicable.