The case for expensive shoes

In your mind, how much is too much for a pair of shoes? $500? $1500? $5000?

When I tell some friends that my newest pair retails for close to $2000, they are stunned. They have, perhaps, never imagined that shoes could cost that much – at least shoes that aren’t bedazzled with jewels and signed by a hip hop star. But my shoes are not sparkly and more important, they don’t carry a famous brand name.

What can be hard to explain is just why these shoes cost as much as they do. Sadly, today, many people equate high cost not necessarily with high quality but with high concept. Big brands, big marketing and exclusivity. The message rather than the thing itself. But for me, true luxury is about the highest quality. And while it happens that that often includes a high price tag, the two are not necessarily directly connected.

Most of us have grown accustomed – and not just with shoes – to poor quality. There has been a rush to the bottom in the mass-market footwear industry and most consumers are unaware of how flimsy and poorly made their shoes are until they start to fall apart after a short time. We are so used to it, however, and the shoes so cheap, we just buy another pair. And over time we spend a fair amount of money topping up landfills and promoting poor working conditions.

That’s the negative side of the current footwear industry. Here’s the positive side.

There are many people making good shoes. Instead of cutting every corner they can, they strive to make the best shoes possible. For these artisans, the price tag is not an artificial number created to represent their brand but a realistic cost of the knowledge, materials, and craftsmanship required to build the shoes.

Consider, first, the materials that go into a shoe. There are various types of leather used for different purposes: the upper, the sole, the internal structure, the lining. There are other materials – cork, metal and thread – that also form the structure of the shoe. Many of these are never seen by the consumer so it would be easy to replace them with lesser quality items. But some makers do not compromise. They source the best leathers they can, from the finest tanneries. Then, they use hand labour and highly skilled techniques to construct the shoes. They do all this because they want to make shoes that are not only be durable but comfortable and stylish. Most of all, these shoes are imbued with their creative vision.

If you are going to take the high road and do everything to the best of your ability, there is a cost associated. However, as a consumer, how can you know that that is the reason for a high price tag? Truth is, it’s up to you to do the research. Ask the seller plenty of questions and also find out what you can about the maker online. What I’ve learned to look for is a shoe maker who:

• uses calf leather, usually qualified as “grade 1” or “full grain” (“genuine leather” is actually a lower grade or quality)
• offers fully welted shoes (“goodyear”, “hand-welted” or similar) which means the sole has not been entirely fused with glue
• makes a small number of shoes every month/year which usually means a focus on craft
• employs a certain amount of hand work (shoes are rarely made completely by hand)
• offers a series of unique lasts, which indicates creative vision in the shoe line

I know it is a big ask for many people to spend thousands of dollars on a pair of shoes but that’s not what I’m arguing. What I’m suggesting is a shift in our thinking away from quantity (lots of cheap shoes) to quality (one or two pairs of truly well-made shoes). And that is an investment in craftspeople, tradition and a more meaningful relationship with our clothes.

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