Latest news with #bespoke
Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
‘It's about more than just shoes, it's about self-respect and confidence'
To paraphrase Dr Seuss in his book Wacky Wednesday, it begins with the shoes. A lot of grown-ups, it seems, were paying attention to the American children's author. The few bespoke shoemakers who remain are experiencing a boom — and a wave of orders are currently clogging their tables. Tailoring is often said to be the highest form of British craftsmanship. But bespoke shoemaking is the ultimate bridge between art and practicality. George Glasgow Jr, the CEO of George Cleverley in the Royal Arcade, has a working life as peripatetic as a Foreign Office mandarin — an indication of the global demand for British bespoke shoes. Thanks to his selfies with the sultan of Brunei and videos of Sylvester Stallone praising them on Instagram, George has managed to create one of the world's most successful luxury shoe brands without spending a penny on marketing. While demand in cities such as New York, LA, Paris and Milan has waned, he says, in the past ten years places like Miami and Nashville are booming. And not everyone is after just one special pair either, he says. 'It is not uncommon to have clients order six to ten pairs at a time.' The reason why they don't just use local shoemakers is simple, he says. There aren't many bespoke shoemakers outside of Britain, France, Italy or Japan. Recently Nicholas Templeman, a British bespoke shoemaker, moved to Vancouver and set up shop there, making him, I daresay, the only true bespoke shoemaker in Canada. It's not an inexpensive club to join. A pair of bespoke shoes often costs north of £5,000 (and well into five figures for exotic skins). And, on top of that, a first pair can often take a year to be made. But according to Tony Gaziano, of the Savile Row bespoke shoemaker Gaziano & Girling, which makes shoes for the King and recently received a royal warrant from him, some people don't care. They just want the experience of going through the process. How do the shoemakers justify the price tag? They make the shoes almost too good to put on feet and so beautiful that their new owners will just marvel at them. (Although longevity and comfort appeal too, Galziano adds, saying that a large proportion of their customers 'are men from the legal or medical professions who are required to wear formal shoes for work'.) Last year, in spite of their high prices, Gaziano & Girling made about 150 pairs — an increase of 25 per cent over the past two years. That might be in part to the fact that, while their quality is extraordinary, by European standards the price tags are quite reasonable. Should you visit John Lobb in Paris (which Hermès bought in 1976) or Berluti, you might pay up to £1,000 more (and, given continental shoes are less structured and lighter weight, British makers can also claim yet more bang for buck). What is true bespoke? Well, it is the process of making shoes by hand, tool and eye. After measurements are taken of the foot, a wooden last is created, which is not a wooden facsimile of the foot, but more the maker's interpretation of the inside of the shoe, and how it should be shaped to flatter the foot. All aspects of the shoe will be built round it, from the hand-patterned leather to the welt that connects the upper to the sole and is sewn by hand. Most British shoemaking of this type is done either in Northampton, the home of British shoemaking, or in garden sheds by outworkers. Some is still done in London; if you walk into John Lobb on St James's Street, all you'll hear is the ticking of the grandfather clock and the tocking of tools. Ditto at Cleverly. A newcomer in some ways is Canons Bespoke, formerly Fosters & Sons, which is run by Simon Bolzoni from a large space in Islington — aptly on Northampton Street. The sudden boom, the owner believes, is because bespoke shoes are an antidote to 'a world of unsatisfying, quick gratification. It requires a complex and unique blend of artistry and engineering, which results in a functional, technical item that actively enhances the wearer's quality of life, while also serving as an expression of their identity.' Because makers take about three to five years to fully train, and the old guard are retiring, professional shoemakers are becoming an ever rarer breed. Canons have 20 — which they will need, given 2024 was their busiest year to date, with sales up 70 per cent compared with 2020. Thankfully, Dean Girling, the other half of Gaziano & Girling, says there are a tranche of young people coming into the trade, 'who are thinking more about working with their hands than tapping a keyboard'. Covid, counterintuitively, also had a positive effect. Not only were men glued to their screens, but they started to appreciate craftsmanship more. On YouTube, a Japanese maker named Ken Kataoka of the house Siroeno Yosui has created a series of videos that regularly receive millions of views. All he does is record the process of crafting a pair of shoes from scratch across a 30-minute video. There is the ASMR draw but also the undeniably entrancing witnessing of an artisan making the very difficult look very easy. There is also the great Texan Kirby Allison, whose mission, which he repeats like a sergeant major's 'left, right, left, right', is to communicate what true 'quality, craftsmanship and tradition' looks like. He has educated middle America in how to be classier and now has 800,000 subscribers and camera crews that make James Cameron seem indie. As he says, 'Shoes are a universal entry point into the world of quality craftsmanship and tradition. Unlike tailored clothing, where personal style varies widely, men tend to share a more consistent appreciation for well-made shoes. The distinction between expensive, entry-level footwear and high-quality shoes is also far more tangible, one can see and feel the difference.' Kirby's audience is over 93 per cent male, between 25 and 44, primarily in America but dotted around the world. He hears from viewers all the time about how his videos inspired them to commission a pair of shoes. 'Many viewers describe a deep sense of personal fulfilment in their decision to begin dressing better. It's about more than just shoes, it's about self-respect and confidence. My job is simply to reveal the beauty and embellish the romance.'
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
On this day in 2015: Treske's six-figure Abu Dhabi church order
On this day in 2015, the York Press reported that a North Yorkshire furniture maker had secured a major overseas order. Thirsk-based Treske was commissioned to design and supply £100,000 worth of bespoke church furniture for St Andrew's Church in Abu Dhabi, including 425 solid oak chairs, an altar table, a solid oak pulpit, a wall cross, and a credence table. The St Andrew's cross was hand-carved into some of the furniture. The furniture was being shipped to St Andrew's Church, in individual crates from Felixstowe, during the week of reporting in 2015. Justin Bartlett, managing director of Treske, said: "This was a very significant order from us, strengthening our presence in the Gulf region." The Abu Dhabi order followed an £80,000 contract to furnish the first Christian crematorium widely open to expatriates in the United Arab Emirates, at Al Foah. More information about Treske is available at
Washington Post
14-07-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
‘The opposite of fast fashion': The romance of a well-made shoe
You're reading Shifts, an illustrated history of the future of work. Sign up to get it in your inbox. When Francis Waplinger started making his own footwear in the mid-2000s, the business of bespoke shoemaking was virtually obsolete in the United States. So he journeyed to Italy, where the craft has been passed down for generations. He now runs a workshop in Brooklyn, where he has plenty of customers — thanks, in part, to a resurgence in classic menswear. I grew up playing soccer and skateboarding, so I was always interested in the newest skate shoes or soccer cleats. I would buy all-black sneakers and airbrush them different colors. I took a couple of shoemaking classes in my early 20s, which were my introduction to more traditional shoe construction. I was just out of college, working at a high-end bed-and-breakfast. I started wearing these shoes that I'd made. I felt a little more confident. More grown-up. Story continues below advertisement Advertisement I became obsessed with finding a way to make beautiful shoes. I started looking for apprenticeships in the United States, but aside from Western bootmaking, there was no apprenticing system, and not even the YouTube videos that we have today. I ended up traveling through Europe with my girlfriend, just searching for someone who could teach me. But things didn't go according to plan. Eventually we ended up in Florence, where I learned everything I know today about shoemaking. For the first two years, I studied in a shoemaking school under a man named Angelo Imperatrice. Angelo had been making shoes since he was 14 years old, living in southern Italy, and he came to Florence when he was in his 20s. He was so full of energy, always with a twinkle in his eye. After that, I worked in the shop of a well-known shoemaker named Roberto Ugolini. His right-hand man, Robertino, also taught me a lot while I was in the shop. Like Angelo, Roberto came from a long line of shoemakers. He was working in the family shoe repair shop when he decided he wanted to learn the craft of bespoke shoemaking. Story continues below advertisement Advertisement Roberto was very direct, but he balanced it out with a sense of humor. When we came back to the United States in 2015, I started my own business in Southampton, New York. We moved to Brooklyn in 2020. It happened to be a time when there was a bit of a renaissance in artisanal products. People were tired of getting junk, tired of fast fashion. What I do is the opposite of fast fashion. Every pair of shoes takes at least 80 hours to make. It can be 16 months from when an order is placed that the customer receives their shoes. My older clients might be businessmen who have always dressed this way. But a lot of the younger ones are part of this sort of gentlemen subculture. They want to dress up and dress more classically. Most of my customers find me through word of mouth. They're interested in luxury, but not pop luxury such as Chanel or Louis Vuitton. There is a luxury in meeting the person who makes the product, of seeing the value of their craft with your own eyes. Story continues below advertisement Advertisement Part of what I do as a shoemaker is preserving knowledge and preserving craft. But it's also about getting people excited about dressing up. There's a practicality to having well-made shoes that you can repair — and there's also romance and nostalgia. Doing this work affects how you see the world. You become sensitive to art and beauty. You develop a sense of history, time and place. I'll notice things other people might not notice, like the patina of an older building that's a little bit worn. I'm drawn to these older buildings that bring in a nostalgia of time, place and character, just like a good pair of shoes can. You can call me old-fashioned, but I think it matters how you present yourself to the world. I'm in the shop most of the time, so I'm not wearing a three-piece suit or anything, but I do pay attention to what's under my apron. I consider it a daily ritual: Each morning, I put on a pair of classic Oxfords. I take them off when I get home. I always wear shoes I've made myself.
CNN
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
Designing for the 1%: Here's what happened at the Paris couture shows
After a week's pause following the men's fashion shows, celebrities, editors and influencers were back in Paris for Haute Couture — where bespoke collections are shown and eventually sold to the world's wealthiest customers. The official fall 2025 schedule felt lighter than usual, with absences from major labels like Valentino (the brand only stages a couture show once a year) and Dior (whose new creative director, Jonathan Anderson, was only appointed a month ago). Many houses are also awaiting official runway debuts from their new designers in September — among these include Chanel, Gucci, Balenciaga, Loewe, and Bottega Veneta. However, there were some bright spots. Glenn Martens' first outing as the creative director of Maison Margiela was a formidable debut. True to Margiela's love for upcycling and reinvention, repurposed materials were given new life, including leather jackets distressed to a cracked, decaying finish. A bodycon dress was stitched from prints of moulding and wallpapers, with raw, fraying edges and paired with a papier-mâché–style mask. Several silhouettes were encased in rigid, transparent plastic shells, and veiled, sometimes with bejeweled faces. Chanel presented its last collection designed by its in-house studio, which has been responsible for the French luxury house's designs following the departure of its creative director Virginie Viard in June 2024 and ahead of her successor Mathieu Blazy's arrival (he will present his first collection this fall). Traditionally held under the glass nave of the Grand Palais, this season, guests were requested to enter through a side entrance into a quieter wing of the building. Here, the brand recreated founder Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel's original couture salons, featuring plush cream carpeting, quilted seating, mirrored walls, and softly lit interiors. A golden wheat stalk and a name tag were placed on each seat — including one for Lorde, who was seated alongside Gracie Abrams, Naomi Campbell, and Caroline de Monaco. The collection drew from Coco Chanel's lifelong affair with British culture — especially the Scottish Highlands, where she first discovered tweed during her decade-long romance with Hugh Grosvenor, the second Duke of Westminster. Standout looks included a chartreuse tweed blouson paired with a baby-blue satin draped skirt; a black satin halter-neck gown cinched with a utility belt complete with flap pockets; and a double-breasted tweed coat layered over a tiered pleated skirt trimmed with lace. 'There was something incredibly graceful and airy… like a fairy tale… coupled with very structured shoulders,' Caroline de Maigret, a model and longtime muse of the brand, told CNN after the show. 'It was a powerful yet graceful woman — and it was almost goth sometimes.' Designer Demna (who only goes by his first name) staged his final collection for Balenciaga, ahead of his departure for Gucci. To mark the end of his ten-year tenure at the house, a plethora of famous faces turned up to show their support. That included Naomi Watts, Nicole Kidman, Alexis Stone (channeling Morticia Addams, complete with 'Thing' on their shoulder), Patrick Schwarzenegger, Katy Perry, recently wedded Lauren Sánchez Bezos — even Demna's successor, Pierpaolo Piccioli. On the runway, Kim Kardashian appeared in a white silk gown inspired by the one worn by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1958 film 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,' and paired with earrings once owned by Taylor herself. Also walking the show was French actress Isabelle Huppert, a longtime ambassador of the brand. Inspired by the 'dress codes of 'La Bourgeoisie', as Demna stated in the show notes, the collection featured polka-dot coat dresses with exaggerated satin lapels; a sculpted black leather gown with an hourglass silhouette; and a houndstooth ensemble referencing founder Cristóbal Balenciaga's 1967 design, which was worn by his muse Danielle Slavik. Waxed floral prints — a nod to Demna's grandmother's tablecloths as well as his early work at Vetements, the edgy label he co-founded — reappeared in the form of a belted, floor-length skirt-suit. Italian fashion designer Giambattista Valli combined two milestones in one day: After being named Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres at a medal ceremony held at his headquarters, he presented his latest couture collection featuring voluminous sorbet dresses with intricately embroidered flowers and 'colors you want to smell and eat,' the designer told CNN during the presentation, which he opted for this season instead of a runway show. France's Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati, was in attendance. Of the award, Valli said: 'It's an extraordinary recognition.' He added: 'It's beautiful to be honored by a country that is half my life — a country that gave me a volume to my voice, that taught me so much.'
CNN
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
Designing for the 1%: Here's what happened at the Paris couture shows
After a week's pause following the men's fashion shows, celebrities, editors and influencers were back in Paris for Haute Couture — where bespoke collections are shown and eventually sold to the world's wealthiest customers. The official fall 2025 schedule felt lighter than usual, with absences from major labels like Valentino (the brand only stages a couture show once a year) and Dior (whose new creative director, Jonathan Anderson, was only appointed a month ago). Many houses are also awaiting official runway debuts from their new designers in September — among these include Chanel, Gucci, Balenciaga, Loewe, and Bottega Veneta. However, there were some bright spots. Glenn Martens' first outing as the creative director of Maison Margiela was a formidable debut. True to Margiela's love for upcycling and reinvention, repurposed materials were given new life, including leather jackets distressed to a cracked, decaying finish. A bodycon dress was stitched from prints of moulding and wallpapers, with raw, fraying edges and paired with a papier-mâché–style mask. Several silhouettes were encased in rigid, transparent plastic shells, and veiled, sometimes with bejeweled faces. Chanel presented its last collection designed by its in-house studio, which has been responsible for the French luxury house's designs following the departure of its creative director Virginie Viard in June 2024 and ahead of her successor Mathieu Blazy's arrival (he will present his first collection this fall). Traditionally held under the glass nave of the Grand Palais, this season, guests were requested to enter through a side entrance into a quieter wing of the building. Here, the brand recreated founder Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel's original couture salons, featuring plush cream carpeting, quilted seating, mirrored walls, and softly lit interiors. A golden wheat stalk and a name tag were placed on each seat — including one for Lorde, who was seated alongside Gracie Abrams, Naomi Campbell, and Caroline de Monaco. The collection drew from Coco Chanel's lifelong affair with British culture — especially the Scottish Highlands, where she first discovered tweed during her decade-long romance with Hugh Grosvenor, the second Duke of Westminster. Standout looks included a chartreuse tweed blouson paired with a baby-blue satin draped skirt; a black satin halter-neck gown cinched with a utility belt complete with flap pockets; and a double-breasted tweed coat layered over a tiered pleated skirt trimmed with lace. 'There was something incredibly graceful and airy… like a fairy tale… coupled with very structured shoulders,' Caroline de Maigret, a model and longtime muse of the brand, told CNN after the show. 'It was a powerful yet graceful woman — and it was almost goth sometimes.' Designer Demna (who only goes by his first name) staged his final collection for Balenciaga, ahead of his departure for Gucci. To mark the end of his ten-year tenure at the house, a plethora of famous faces turned up to show their support. That included Naomi Watts, Nicole Kidman, Alexis Stone (channeling Morticia Addams, complete with 'Thing' on their shoulder), Patrick Schwarzenegger, Katy Perry, recently wedded Lauren Sánchez Bezos — even Demna's successor, Pierpaolo Piccioli. On the runway, Kim Kardashian appeared in a white silk gown inspired by the one worn by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1958 film 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,' and paired with earrings once owned by Taylor herself. Also walking the show was French actress Isabelle Huppert, a longtime ambassador of the brand. Inspired by the 'dress codes of 'La Bourgeoisie', as Demna stated in the show notes, the collection featured polka-dot coat dresses with exaggerated satin lapels; a sculpted black leather gown with an hourglass silhouette; and a houndstooth ensemble referencing founder Cristóbal Balenciaga's 1967 design, which was worn by his muse Danielle Slavik. Waxed floral prints — a nod to Demna's grandmother's tablecloths as well as his early work at Vetements, the edgy label he co-founded — reappeared in the form of a belted, floor-length skirt-suit. Italian fashion designer Giambattista Valli combined two milestones in one day: After being named Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres at a medal ceremony held at his headquarters, he presented his latest couture collection featuring voluminous sorbet dresses with intricately embroidered flowers and 'colors you want to smell and eat,' the designer told CNN during the presentation, which he opted for this season instead of a runway show. France's Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati, was in attendance. Of the award, Valli said: 'It's an extraordinary recognition.' He added: 'It's beautiful to be honored by a country that is half my life — a country that gave me a volume to my voice, that taught me so much.'
