Washington DC -- need help finding shoe polish

[auto90403]

I'm looking for Kiwi brand low gloss color renew shoe polish for boat shoes and mocs.

I've called Kiwi to ask for names of Washington area dealers that carry it. Kiwi is surprisingly unhelpful -- they don't really know and they're unable to sell me any themselves.

I can't find it online.

Any shops in the DC area that have a good selection of polishes that might carry this particular item?

Any alternatives to the Kiwi brand?

 

[auto90403]

Never mind.

I found what I was looking for at . . . Safeway.

Kiwi told me Safeway didn't carry it.

 

[arkirshner]

I'm not familiar with the product. What exactly is it and what does it do?

 

[NoVaguy]

I think it is like a shoe paint. With a foam applicator tip?

 

[NoVaguy]

btw, i don't know about the shoe polish, but there might still be a a cobbler in the crystal city underground that carry a fairly substantial line of kiwi polishes and meltonian creams. i remember buying some polish there and it should around the corner from the auntie ?annes? pretzel joint and the shoe shine station (there are a couple wachovia atm's in that corridor). they might also have other kiwi products.

of course, they might be out of business by now. this is from 3 or more years ago....

 

[auto90403]

it's polish for leather shoes that don't take a high gloss polish -- mocs and boat shoes.

kiwi makes a polish called low gloss color renew. it comes in different colors and the kind of same tin as their other polishes. it looks and goes on like any other shoe polish. the only difference is that when you buff it, you don't get a glossy looking shine.

for topsiders where the leather has saltwater stains and faded, washed-out color, the polish restores the shoe to its original color -- but without giving you a shine where you can see your face reflected when you look down.

the polish is damn near impossible to find. a really low-volume item. beyond a few national accounts like sears and jcpenney, kiwi couldn't tell me who sold it here in the Washington area. (sears and penney had no idea what i was talking about.) and the kiwi distributor for Washington didn't bother carrying it because demand was so low.

i finally found it at the safeway on macarthur blvd in the palisades. other safeways don't have it.

but if you wear the kind of shoes that take a low gloss buffing, it's a great polish.