It’s an unfortunate reality that many modern men, especially but not exclusively American, bemoan dress shoes. Complaints generally focus on the incorrect assumption that all dress shoes are uncomfortable, unattractive or both. If you’ve inflicted your feet to eight hours of standing in improperly made “fashion shoes”; shoes that look the part but have none of the quality construction vital for comfort then I wouldn’t blame you for shunning everything but your sneakers. It turns out though that life demands more than sneakers. Despite the perpetual relaxing of the dress code (my previous job proposed “formal Fridays’ on numerous occasions) a real gentleman should retain a sense of pride in dress, especially in shoes. There is, for better or worse, ample truth to the idea of “dress for success”, or my personal favorite “dress for the job you want, not the job you have”. As such, as an alternative to the four-hole black Dr. Marten’s you’ve been wearing to the office (you know who you are), I recommend a pillar of English cobbling, Grenson Shoes.
Grenson’s own history details its humble beginnings. The company was founded by William Green in 1866 and the original Green & Sons would, after a few years, become the abridged Grenson. The company’s “Green Yard” factory, opened in 1874, was the first in the world to use Goodyear welting for gentlemen’s shoes. Grenson passed through several Generations of family ownership until the 80s and in 2010 it was sold to Tim Little who started giving the brand a facelift. Currently Grenson offers a wide variety of Derbies, Brogues, and Boots that offer style, comfort and the quality that only a top-notch shoemaker can offer. The price for a pair averages around $280.00 to $300.00 which is about standard for quality shoes, though they do have a premium line more similar to Church’s, Barker Black or John Lobb that will start at twice that.
Can you find similarly attractive alternatives at brands like Aldo for roughly half the price? Yes, but the trade off is that they won’t be nearly as comfortable and will wear out much sooner. The thing about a quality pair of shoes, like those from Grenson, is that they are an investment that will last years. With proper care (leather treating when needed is really it, maybe getting them re-soled after a few years) they will still be in your shoe rotation long after that pair of Aldos has fallen apart. I just picked up my pair of Grenson “Tyler” lace ups (the black ones in the image above) last summer and I anticipate they’ll still be a well loved, integral part of my shoe arsenal ten years from now.
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