Why You Buy Bespoke Suits First
After four bespoke suits made in Hong Kong over the past few years, and now embarking on my second British bespoke suit, I find it hard to see how I could ever stop getting a particular thrill out of it. But it will be a while before I pay for bespoke shoes.
Ignore for the moment that I can’t afford bespoke shoes. (I can buy bespoke suits off Savile Row or in the City from £800 and up, but I’ve yet to find a bespoke shoe maker who is as proportionately affordable.) Even if I was spending the usual £3000 or so for a Savile Row suit, I’m not sure I’d be spending £2000 on bespoke shoes.
Equally, when you read the experiences of older men they still buy ready-to-wear shoes even though they never buy ready-to-wear suits anymore.
I think the reason is that a bespoke suit is both more comfortable to wear and flattering. Bespoke shoes are pretty much just about comfort.
A bespoke suit is more comfortable because it hugs your contours and your proportions. It ensures that the waist doesn’t restrict you when you turn or reach for something. And (more impressively, since that last aspect of fit could be achieved by just buying a bigger suit) it allows your arms to move independently without dragging the body of jacket wherever it goes.
So, it’s more comfortable. But that comfort also produces flattery and beauty. If you are relatively slim, the jacket is likely to be more pinched at the waist, giving you broader shoulders and a sharp silhouette. The shoulders will follow yours exactly, creating a smooth, sculpted body of cloth. Overall, as the Dictionary of English Trades (1804) describes the work of a cutter, it will “create a good shape where nature has not granted one”.
But shoes look beautiful no matter how badly they fit. OK if the fit is really terrible the leather might be distorted and bulge (if too small) or crease in the wrong place and leave an awkward curl at the toe (if too big). And a bespoke shoe does follow the lines of your feet better, making it look a little daintier and sculpted.
But generally, being a little big or a little small makes no difference aesthetically. Most of the aspects of shoes associated with bespoke, like a slim and bevelled waist, can also be found on high-end ready-to-wear (like Gaziano & Girling, for example, or Lodger’s English contemporary last).
So for now, I’ll be sticking with ready-to-wear shoes.
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I don’t understand the title, “Why You Buy Bespoke Shoes First.” Seems like it should be “Why You Buy Bespoke Suits First.”
Comment by Kurt — September 19, 2009 #
Maybe you can get a note from your foot doctor, lol.
Pay for it with insurance, or use it as a tax writeoff for business.
Comment by Fashion "style" of Leadership — September 19, 2009 #
Hi Simon
Interesting piece.
Are men finally embracing women’s attitude to shoes? After all, we are prepared to suffer for beautiful shoes - too small, too high, can’t walk in them - don’t care, they are gorgeous!
(A word of caution; remember how cranky women are at the end of a day or evening in heels?! Any guy who has worn a pair of ill-fitting shoes for the day will know that it is sheer hell…you can’t concentrate and you simply don’t feel as confident.
…or maybe it is an age thing?
As you get older comfort becomes increasingly important (greater sense of mortality, bits hurting, aches and pains etc.) and, as with bespoke suits, the beauty of bespoke shoes is indeed the fit and comfort.
For those with odd, misshapen and generally hobbit-like feet it is also the aesthetic of turning clod hoppers into things of beauty. So we design our bespoke shoes to enhance the positive and to mask the negative - slimming down the look of wide feet, making tiny feet look bigger and making shorter men seem taller.
One aspect of the debate that intrigues me is the fact that bespoke is referred to as the ultimate in shoemaking.
Bespoke is not the zenith, that is a position reserved entirely for handsewn shoes…and THAT is why many men buy bespoke and made-to-order - for the craftsmanship. They are durable, repairable and like many hand made things, look better with age.
After all, why have a Porsche when you can have a hand-built Bugatti?
P.S. We’re looking forward to welcoming all those guys who are crushing their feet into too small shoes or sliding about in too bit shoes, as customers in the future. There’s nothing like hammer toes, bunions and fallen arches to focus ones mind on bespoke - or the thought of living our your old age in pasty shaped shoes or sneakers!
P.P.S.
Please can you broaden your shoe horizons beyond Gaziano & Girling and Lodger? There are a lot of great shoemakers and shoe brands out there!
Comment by deborah carre — September 21, 2009 #
Dear Simon.
You mentioned that one can get bespoke suits Off Savile Row around 800 GBP. That sounds great! Could you advise me where I could find something like that?
Kind regards,
Matylee from Switzerland
Comment by Matylee — September 22, 2009 #
You must have pretty regular shaped feet. You are lucky.
I would reverse your whole article. I have a very regular body and off the peg suits fit me great.
My feet on the other hand are weird lumps and regular shoes cripple me. My bespoke shoes fit me, caress me and make my feet look normal to the untrained eye.
The bespoke shoemaker’s skill is combining these 2 features.
So for me bespoke suits can wait, mate!
Thank you
Comment by mark pepperday — September 22, 2009 #