https://simplecast.com In this podcast series Jesper Ingevaldsson of Shoegazing, one of the world's largest websites on classic men's shoes, does in-depth interviews with various shoe people from all over the world, where each episode will focus on a specific topic related to the interviewee. For much more on classic quality shoes, visit Shoegazing.com. en Fri, 20 Mar 2026 15:13:26 +0000 Fri, 20 Mar 2026 15:13:37 +0000 https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/05b10726-0c9e-446e-b68a-9ca8cedafd33/0c1a5905-3e8b-4534-a710-448edaa4cb59/3000x3000/shoegazing-podcast-3.jpg?aid=rss_feed https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com episodic In this podcast series Jesper Ingevaldsson of Shoegazing, one of the world's largest websites on classic men's shoes, does in-depth interviews with various shoe people from all over the world, where each episode will focus on a specific topic related to the interviewee. For much more on classic quality shoes, visit Shoegazing.com. Jesper Ingevaldsson false https://feeds.simplecast.com/vGJWzQVC men's shoes, menswear, classic shoes, shoegazing podcast, goodyear welted shoes, shoes, shoegazing Jesper Ingevaldsson shoegazingblog@gmail.com af498aa4-287d-45dc-ae87-7fef9b3f8b30 Fri, 20 Mar 2026 15:13:26 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson, Seiji McCarthy) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-37-qa-special-with-seiji-mccarthy-k02_tHeP Ep. 37 - Q&A Special with Seiji McCarthy Jesper Ingevaldsson, Seiji McCarthy 00:50:01 This around it's time for another Q&A Special, and the one who gets to answer all the questions is the American / Japanese shoemaker Seiji McCarthy. He's based in Tokyo since many years where he runs his very successful shoe brand that primarily makes classic American styled bespoke, MTM and MTO shoes. You can hear more about his journey in episode 25 of the podcast. Some of the questions he'll answer are on why there’s not more American bespoke shoemakers making classic American style shoes, how his workshop is set up, if lastmaking skill is affected by more makers offering handmade MTO shoes, and much more. This around it's time for another Q&A Special, and the one who gets to answer all the questions is the American / Japanese shoemaker Seiji McCarthy. He's based in Tokyo since many years where he runs his very successful shoe brand that primarily makes classic American styled bespoke, MTM and MTO shoes. You can hear more about his journey in episode 25 of the podcast. Some of the questions he'll answer are on why there’s not more American bespoke shoemakers making classic American style shoes, how his workshop is set up, if lastmaking skill is affected by more makers offering handmade MTO shoes, and much more. menswear, bespoke, shoemaking, welted shoes, shoes, japan, style, goodyear welted false full 37 c01e6933-fc19-447e-a56d-fa1974f8340a Mon, 22 Dec 2025 18:23:43 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-36-daniel-bucheli-majordome-about-finding-a-unique-design-language-4ceVqKcp Ep. 36 - Daniel Bucheli, Majordome, about finding a unique design language Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:48:37 For this one, I met up with Daniel Bucheli of the Swiss shoe company Majordome. It was founded in 2012 in Zurich, they now have stores in the hometown as well as Lausanne, Bern and New York. Majordome started off doing only Goodyear welted Made to Order and Made to Measure shoes, and still today custom orders account for about half their sales. Even if the brand has a foundation of more classic styles, what they are most known for today are their more unique designs, these are often more casual models that work with contrasts, but never over the top, always highly wearable. Stuff like their boat shoe model, casual oxford, blucher boot or galosh sneaker are all ones that have a distinct Majordome character. Check out their Instagram to understand what I mean, if you're not yet familiar with them. With Daniel Bucheli I talk a lot about the design aspect and how a brand can find its own aesthetic language, and of course a lot more. For this one, I met up with Daniel Bucheli of the Swiss shoe company Majordome. It was founded in 2012 in Zurich, they now have stores in the hometown as well as Lausanne, Bern and New York. Majordome started off doing only Goodyear welted Made to Order and Made to Measure shoes, and still today custom orders account for about half their sales. Even if the brand has a foundation of more classic styles, what they are most known for today are their more unique designs, these are often more casual models that work with contrasts, but never over the top, always highly wearable. Stuff like their boat shoe model, casual oxford, blucher boot or galosh sneaker are all ones that have a distinct Majordome character. Check out their Instagram to understand what I mean, if you're not yet familiar with them. With Daniel Bucheli I talk a lot about the design aspect and how a brand can find its own aesthetic language, and of course a lot more. men's shoes, goodyear welted shoes, menswear, luxury goods, shoemaking, shoegazing false full 36 dd165737-66f9-4c3e-ba3f-44bc4897c60a Thu, 30 Oct 2025 12:40:38 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-35-sebastian-tarek-about-shoemaking-education-CVku4SB9 Ep. 35 - Sebastian Tarek, about shoemaking education Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:03:46 For this episode, I met up with the Australian born, UK-based, shoemaker Sebastian Tarek. Apart from running his own bespoke shoe brand and doing outwork for various London-based bespoke shoemakers, he has also for many years been involved in teaching shoemaking both at colleges and in other ways, and is highly engaged in the topic of education. With focus on the UK but also looking at it at a wider perspective, we talk about how the ways to become a shoemaker has changed through the years, what the possibilities are today for those who want to learn to make shoes by hand, and what needs to be done to preserve and develop shoemaking education in the future. Among other things. For this episode, I met up with the Australian born, UK-based, shoemaker Sebastian Tarek. Apart from running his own bespoke shoe brand and doing outwork for various London-based bespoke shoemakers, he has also for many years been involved in teaching shoemaking both at colleges and in other ways, and is highly engaged in the topic of education. With focus on the UK but also looking at it at a wider perspective, we talk about how the ways to become a shoemaker has changed through the years, what the possibilities are today for those who want to learn to make shoes by hand, and what needs to be done to preserve and develop shoemaking education in the future. Among other things. goodyear welted shoes, menswear, luxury goods, handmade shoes, shoemaking, handcraft false full 35 6b4c1cc5-c011-4329-a51b-5caf69c9a3d8 Mon, 21 Apr 2025 18:40:45 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-34-rob-james-euroleathers-about-leather-wholesaling-I_HHawt7 Ep. 34 - Rob James, Euroleathers, about leather wholesaling Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:52:00 In this episode we are putting the spotlight on an integral part of the shoe industry, that aren't that known to the wider audience since it doesn't deal with the regular consumer: the leather wholesalers. One of the leading such for the shoe industry in the UK is Euroleathers, where Rob James is a Director. Earlier this spring I visited him and the family business in Northamptonshire, had a tour of the warehouse, and sat down with Rob to talk about the company, about wholesalers part in the shoemaking sector, about leather quality, about what types of leathers that are quickly on the rise, and much more. In this episode we are putting the spotlight on an integral part of the shoe industry, that aren't that known to the wider audience since it doesn't deal with the regular consumer: the leather wholesalers. One of the leading such for the shoe industry in the UK is Euroleathers, where Rob James is a Director. Earlier this spring I visited him and the family business in Northamptonshire, had a tour of the warehouse, and sat down with Rob to talk about the company, about wholesalers part in the shoemaking sector, about leather quality, about what types of leathers that are quickly on the rise, and much more. false full 34 2ba0c000-b68b-4e44-b4f3-ba52a75b6ec1 Sun, 26 Jan 2025 18:14:58 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Takashi Horiguchi, Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-33-takashi-horiguchi-super-8-shoes-about-vintage-mens-shoes-VEVz_Lku Ep. 33 - Takashi Horiguchi, Super 8 Shoes, about vintage men's shoes Takashi Horiguchi, Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:33:23 With this episode we are back in Japan again, back in Tokyo, where I met Takashi Horiguchi, or "Gucci" as he mostly is called, who run the acclaimed vintage classic men's shoe store Super 8 Shoes. A store that focus on American and British shoes from the 1950's to 1980's, known for the overall very good condition of the selection they offer, and quite a large amount of New Old Stock, old shoes that are unworn. The store also has a repair workshop. During the 15+ years that Gucci has worked with vintage shoes, he's been extremely dedicated in acquiring knowledge about old shoes, which he now pass on to his customers, both in his physical store and online. Much of the stock in the store comes from numerous trips to mainly the US, where he's been hunting for good vintage shoes himself. We talk about his journey with Super 8 Shoes, about how vintage footwear differ from the shoes made today, how the interest in vintage men's shoes has developed, and much more. With this episode we are back in Japan again, back in Tokyo, where I met Takashi Horiguchi, or "Gucci" as he mostly is called, who run the acclaimed vintage classic men's shoe store Super 8 Shoes. A store that focus on American and British shoes from the 1950's to 1980's, known for the overall very good condition of the selection they offer, and quite a large amount of New Old Stock, old shoes that are unworn. The store also has a repair workshop. During the 15+ years that Gucci has worked with vintage shoes, he's been extremely dedicated in acquiring knowledge about old shoes, which he now pass on to his customers, both in his physical store and online. Much of the stock in the store comes from numerous trips to mainly the US, where he's been hunting for good vintage shoes himself. We talk about his journey with Super 8 Shoes, about how vintage footwear differ from the shoes made today, how the interest in vintage men's shoes has developed, and much more. men's shoes, vintage shoes, goodyear welted shoes, classic shoes, vintage, menswear, japan false full 33 af60fb49-d13e-4ba1-897f-50fec681d11c Sun, 20 Oct 2024 18:00:48 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Daniel Wegan, Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-32-qa-special-nr-3-with-daniel-wegan-catella-shoemaker-1pDNpVsr Ep. 32 - Q&A Special nr. 3 with Daniel Wegan, Catella Shoemaker Daniel Wegan, Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:54:19 It's time for another edition of the appreciated Question and answers specials, with Daniel Wegan of Catella Shoemaker. Daniel made a name of himself when he for several years ran the bespoke department at the English company Gaziano & Girling, now since some years he has his own bespoke shoe brand Catella. He also won the shoemaking world championships in 2019. In this episode some of the topics covered are how the bespoke shoe world has changed since he started some 15 years ago, we talk about why he has stopped posting on Instagram, we go into how sneakers are influencing the world of classic shoes, and much more. It's time for another edition of the appreciated Question and answers specials, with Daniel Wegan of Catella Shoemaker. Daniel made a name of himself when he for several years ran the bespoke department at the English company Gaziano & Girling, now since some years he has his own bespoke shoe brand Catella. He also won the shoemaking world championships in 2019. In this episode some of the topics covered are how the bespoke shoe world has changed since he started some 15 years ago, we talk about why he has stopped posting on Instagram, we go into how sneakers are influencing the world of classic shoes, and much more. men's shoes, menswear, luxury goods, handmade shoes, bespoke, men's fashion, fashion, shoegazing, luxury false full 32 9417a42d-17b6-4b39-99c4-579e2009d3f9 Sun, 26 May 2024 20:42:37 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jim McCormack, Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-31-jim-mccormack-about-life-as-a-freelance-bespoke-shoemaker-atdpuuDd Ep. 31 - Jim McCormack, about life as a freelance bespoke shoemaker Jim McCormack, Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:14:41 For this episode I met up with Jim McCormack, a legendary bespoke shoemaker in England, who has spent over five decades in the trade. For more or less all of these years, he has worked as an outworker, doing bottom making for many different firms. England is the country in the world where the outworker system is the most extended. We talk a lot about the freelance system, how it works, the pros and cons and so on. But before that we cover Jim McCormack's own journey into the shoemaking world, hear stories from for exampleJohn Lobb back in the 70's, go through the different stages of the bespoke shoemaking scene in the UK the past 50 years, and much more. For this episode I met up with Jim McCormack, a legendary bespoke shoemaker in England, who has spent over five decades in the trade. For more or less all of these years, he has worked as an outworker, doing bottom making for many different firms. England is the country in the world where the outworker system is the most extended. We talk a lot about the freelance system, how it works, the pros and cons and so on. But before that we cover Jim McCormack's own journey into the shoemaking world, hear stories from for exampleJohn Lobb back in the 70's, go through the different stages of the bespoke shoemaking scene in the UK the past 50 years, and much more. handmade shoes, bespoke, shoemaking false full 31 823c1079-d147-4cb2-a48d-1523fb743fb8 Sun, 3 Mar 2024 23:05:29 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Ben Robinson, Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-30-ben-robinson-stitchdown-about-the-workwear-boot-scene-28MsmIDt Ep. 30 - Ben Robinson, Stitchdown, about the workwear boot scene Ben Robinson, Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:04:26 For episode 30 I sat down with Ben Robinson of Stitchdown. As you likely know, Shoegazing's focus on the site, podcast, events etc is on classic dress shoes, well Stitchdown is sort of the equivalent within the world of workwear boots, or heritage boots, or whatever you want to call it. In short, Ben knows a whole lot about boots and rugged footwear. So, apart from learning how Ben ended up in the shoe world and the journey with Stitchdown, we talked about the incredible boom that workwear boots has seen in recent years, the reason behind it and where it's going, we talked about why good quality footwear of all kinds will and need to continue to be popular, and much more. For episode 30 I sat down with Ben Robinson of Stitchdown. As you likely know, Shoegazing's focus on the site, podcast, events etc is on classic dress shoes, well Stitchdown is sort of the equivalent within the world of workwear boots, or heritage boots, or whatever you want to call it. In short, Ben knows a whole lot about boots and rugged footwear. So, apart from learning how Ben ended up in the shoe world and the journey with Stitchdown, we talked about the incredible boom that workwear boots has seen in recent years, the reason behind it and where it's going, we talked about why good quality footwear of all kinds will and need to continue to be popular, and much more. men's shoes, workwear boots, menswear, boots, shoes, workwear, heritage boots, shoegazing, shoegazing podcast false full 30 425099a0-5afe-49df-9ec3-90704e06b657 Sun, 22 Oct 2023 20:11:39 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-29-steven-taffel-leffot-about-the-classic-shoe-scene-in-the-us-QqkrKYDA Ep. 29 - Steven Taffel, Leffot, about the classic shoe scene in the US Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:34:22 For this episode, number 29, I visited the well-renowned shoe store Leffot in New York and talked to the founder and owner Steven Taffel. When the world entered the digital era, Leffot was one of the first influential multi-brand stores specialising in classic, mainly welted, men's shoes, and it has had a big impact both on its customer base and on other stores around the world that have been inspired by it. With Steven's long background in the business we went deep on the classic shoe industry in the US and how it has evolved and look to evolve going forward, but we also of course talked about his own journey. For this episode, number 29, I visited the well-renowned shoe store Leffot in New York and talked to the founder and owner Steven Taffel. When the world entered the digital era, Leffot was one of the first influential multi-brand stores specialising in classic, mainly welted, men's shoes, and it has had a big impact both on its customer base and on other stores around the world that have been inspired by it. With Steven's long background in the business we went deep on the classic shoe industry in the US and how it has evolved and look to evolve going forward, but we also of course talked about his own journey. men's shoes, menswear, welted shoes, fashion, shoes, goodyear welted false full 29 2aa695be-1901-417f-ba8f-3c6998072402 Sun, 13 Aug 2023 19:08:44 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-28-william-efe-laborde-about-connecting-historic-shoemaking-with-the-present-8tUNUWBr Ep. 28 - William Efe Laborde, about connecting historic shoemaking with the present Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:59:02 In this episode, aim is to connect historic shoemaking with the present, and we do this together with William Efe Laborde. An independent bespoke shoemaker based in London, who has a huge interest in old shoes, tools and leathers which he both brings in to his own shoemaking, and as a side business he also refurbish and sell old vintage tools. Given that classic shoes in general use old traditional construction methods, of course a lot is similar in how shoes are made now compared to 100 years ago or so. But also a lot has changed. We talk about what was better back then than now, and also the other way around. Learn which area of shoemaking that William Efe Laborde thinks is at an all time high now in present time, why the best tools were made before World War II, and much more. In this episode, aim is to connect historic shoemaking with the present, and we do this together with William Efe Laborde. An independent bespoke shoemaker based in London, who has a huge interest in old shoes, tools and leathers which he both brings in to his own shoemaking, and as a side business he also refurbish and sell old vintage tools. Given that classic shoes in general use old traditional construction methods, of course a lot is similar in how shoes are made now compared to 100 years ago or so. But also a lot has changed. We talk about what was better back then than now, and also the other way around. Learn which area of shoemaking that William Efe Laborde thinks is at an all time high now in present time, why the best tools were made before World War II, and much more. vintage shoes, historic shoes, menswear, bespoke, shoemaking, welted shoes false full 28 008f1fe7-87e9-4c23-b62f-c11795f7b001 Fri, 26 May 2023 17:55:29 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-27-qa-special-nr-2-with-daniel-wegan-catella-shoemaker-a8frEwqs Ep. 27 - Q&A Special nr. 2 with Daniel Wegan, Catella Shoemaker Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:04:03 This is the second Q&A Special with Daniel Wegan, the first one was really popular, so we thought we'd do another round. For those who don't know, Daniel Wegan is a Swede who since many years live in the UK in Kettering, Northampton. He used to work for the bespoke department of Gaziano & Girling, but a few years ago he left to start his own brand Catella. Worth mentioning as well is that he won the World Championships of Shoemaking in 2019. We go through a bunch of topics in this episode, for example we talk about the differences between working at a bigger firm and running his own brand, about the challenges to find good leather, about the use of modern technology in shoemaking, what bespoke shoemakers need to do to continue to be relevant, and much more. This is the second Q&A Special with Daniel Wegan, the first one was really popular, so we thought we'd do another round. For those who don't know, Daniel Wegan is a Swede who since many years live in the UK in Kettering, Northampton. He used to work for the bespoke department of Gaziano & Girling, but a few years ago he left to start his own brand Catella. Worth mentioning as well is that he won the World Championships of Shoemaking in 2019. We go through a bunch of topics in this episode, for example we talk about the differences between working at a bigger firm and running his own brand, about the challenges to find good leather, about the use of modern technology in shoemaking, what bespoke shoemakers need to do to continue to be relevant, and much more. men's shoes, classic style, classic shoes, menswear, bespoke, bespoke shoes, shoes false full 27 6bf62831-fcb3-47ac-a942-1f146c8a0c77 Wed, 8 Feb 2023 20:41:41 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-26-anders-sundstrom-paul-brunngard-about-the-ingredients-in-shoe-care-products-eZn7WbQ8 Ep. 26 - Anders Sundström, Paul Brunngård, about the ingredients in shoe care products Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:00:13 In this episode we will go all in on the nitty gritty of shoe care. We do this together with Anders Sundström, who has developed the new premium shoe care range Paul Brunngård, for the Swedish company with the same name. Paul Brunngård is the largest shoe care company in Scandinavia, but previously focus has been on more basic shoe care products and eco-friendly stuff. Now they wanted to develop their own range of premium products, a task given to the shoe care expert Anders Sundström. We will talk a bit about Anders background and his work with developing the nicely designed Paul Brunngård shoe care range, and then go into the details of what shoe care products contains, how the various ingredients affect leather, the good and the bad, and so on. If you like when the podcast nerd in on things, this episode is for you. In this episode we will go all in on the nitty gritty of shoe care. We do this together with Anders Sundström, who has developed the new premium shoe care range Paul Brunngård, for the Swedish company with the same name. Paul Brunngård is the largest shoe care company in Scandinavia, but previously focus has been on more basic shoe care products and eco-friendly stuff. Now they wanted to develop their own range of premium products, a task given to the shoe care expert Anders Sundström. We will talk a bit about Anders background and his work with developing the nicely designed Paul Brunngård shoe care range, and then go into the details of what shoe care products contains, how the various ingredients affect leather, the good and the bad, and so on. If you like when the podcast nerd in on things, this episode is for you. false full 26 0f1822dc-1ef0-492d-867a-c2beb974cded Mon, 19 Dec 2022 18:46:08 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-25-seiji-mccarthy-about-revamping-a-shoe-brand-Wn5IvGpK Ep. 25 - Seiji McCarthy, about revamping a shoe brand Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:47:58 In this episode you'll get to meet Seiji McCarthy, a shoemaker with an American father and a Japanese mother, who grew up in Philadelphia on the US East coast but now since seven years lives in Tokyo, Japan. Here he is merging the Japanese highly skilled craftsmanship with traditional American style footwear. This was not always the case though, up until a few years ago he did more dressy, British-Japanese style shoes, but Seiji felt that it wasn't fully him and what he really wanted to do, so he decided to revamp the brand. We'll talk a lot about this process, and about how his American heritage started to blossom first when he lived in Japan with the passion you can find here for this, about how he really wish to be a part of the Japanese preservation of American style, and much more. In this episode you'll get to meet Seiji McCarthy, a shoemaker with an American father and a Japanese mother, who grew up in Philadelphia on the US East coast but now since seven years lives in Tokyo, Japan. Here he is merging the Japanese highly skilled craftsmanship with traditional American style footwear. This was not always the case though, up until a few years ago he did more dressy, British-Japanese style shoes, but Seiji felt that it wasn't fully him and what he really wanted to do, so he decided to revamp the brand. We'll talk a lot about this process, and about how his American heritage started to blossom first when he lived in Japan with the passion you can find here for this, about how he really wish to be a part of the Japanese preservation of American style, and much more. false full 25 41b8df8b-664e-4d00-a384-7068db62a7b1 Sun, 30 Oct 2022 17:42:15 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-24-qa-special-with-yohei-fukuda-YkFaMspK Ep. 24 - Q&A Special with Yohei Fukuda Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:44:41 It's time for the second special edition Q&A episode, where you listeners and readers of Shoegazing.com gets to ask questions to some big names from the quality shoe industry. This round it's the most famous of all Japanese bespoke shoemakers that is answering your questions, Yohei Fukuda. Since about 14 years his bespoke shoes and nowadays also top class RTW and MTO offerings has been a holy grail for many shoe lovers around the world. Hear him give his best advice to aspiring shoemakers, talk about how the demand for bespoke shoes is in Japan, answer questions on how much time that is spent on making his shoes, reveal the secrets behind his amazing photos, and much more. It's time for the second special edition Q&A episode, where you listeners and readers of Shoegazing.com gets to ask questions to some big names from the quality shoe industry. This round it's the most famous of all Japanese bespoke shoemakers that is answering your questions, Yohei Fukuda. Since about 14 years his bespoke shoes and nowadays also top class RTW and MTO offerings has been a holy grail for many shoe lovers around the world. Hear him give his best advice to aspiring shoemakers, talk about how the demand for bespoke shoes is in Japan, answer questions on how much time that is spent on making his shoes, reveal the secrets behind his amazing photos, and much more. false full 24 6a3a4eb2-0a15-4c39-a841-05bc85cd36e0 Sun, 9 Oct 2022 18:42:35 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-23-affan-mohammed-bridlen-about-making-premium-shoes-in-lower-wage-countries-PVqY29FE Ep. 23 - Affan Mohammed, Bridlen, about making premium shoes in lower wage countries Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:08:37 Affan Mohammed is the Managing Director of Bridlen Shoes, an Indian maker of Goodyear welted footwear that is getting more and more attention both domestically and internationally. Founded by Affan's father Hasan who had worked his whole life with leather craft and shoemaking, and Mr. Watanabe from Japan, who among other things was involved in the start of Meermin. To make high quality Goodyear welted shoes like Bridlen in India, a country with lower wages which mainly has a reputation of doing cheaper shoes, comes with its own set of challenges. We talked a lot around this topic, about how India is going through a big transformation in many regards, about Bridlen's special construction techniques like stitching the Goodyear seam directly to the leather insole and what they call 3D upper making, and much more. Affan Mohammed is the Managing Director of Bridlen Shoes, an Indian maker of Goodyear welted footwear that is getting more and more attention both domestically and internationally. Founded by Affan's father Hasan who had worked his whole life with leather craft and shoemaking, and Mr. Watanabe from Japan, who among other things was involved in the start of Meermin. To make high quality Goodyear welted shoes like Bridlen in India, a country with lower wages which mainly has a reputation of doing cheaper shoes, comes with its own set of challenges. We talked a lot around this topic, about how India is going through a big transformation in many regards, about Bridlen's special construction techniques like stitching the Goodyear seam directly to the leather insole and what they call 3D upper making, and much more. false full 23 928e157d-a62b-4031-8d49-f94a55d6c45a Wed, 31 Aug 2022 11:00:00 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-22-jean-michel-casalonga-berluti-about-running-a-large-bespoke-workshop-7D9615of Ep. 22 - Jean-Michel Casalonga, Berluti, about running a large bespoke workshop Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:04:27 This episode, number 22, will be featuring no other than Jean-Michel Casalonga. He is the main lastmaker and workshop manager of Berluti's Paris workshop. The French company Berluti is one of the bigger quality shoe brands in the world, nowadays more of a full fashion menswear brand , owned by the luxury conglomerate LVMH, with stores all around the world. Berluti has two workshops making their bespoke shoes, one in Paris above their original Rue Marbeuf store just next to the Champs Élysées, led by Jean-Michel, and one outside Angers in Western France, led by Anthony Delos. Hear Jean-Michel Casalonga tell the interesting story of how he in a relatively unorthodox way managed to get his place at Berluti, hear about his love of lastmaking and how he wants to raise its status in France, about how it is to run a large bespoke workshop doing all in-house and the pros and cons of this set-up compared to the use of freelancers, and much, much more. This episode, number 22, will be featuring no other than Jean-Michel Casalonga. He is the main lastmaker and workshop manager of Berluti's Paris workshop. The French company Berluti is one of the bigger quality shoe brands in the world, nowadays more of a full fashion menswear brand , owned by the luxury conglomerate LVMH, with stores all around the world. Berluti has two workshops making their bespoke shoes, one in Paris above their original Rue Marbeuf store just next to the Champs Élysées, led by Jean-Michel, and one outside Angers in Western France, led by Anthony Delos. Hear Jean-Michel Casalonga tell the interesting story of how he in a relatively unorthodox way managed to get his place at Berluti, hear about his love of lastmaking and how he wants to raise its status in France, about how it is to run a large bespoke workshop doing all in-house and the pros and cons of this set-up compared to the use of freelancers, and much, much more. goodyear welted shoes, menswear, bespoke, bespoke shoes, shoes, shoegazing, goodyear welted false full 22 854a9148-5e4a-4a31-9c32-a4fd2c6b9db3 Fri, 15 Apr 2022 18:34:00 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-21-emil-rahmana-putra-winson-midas-about-the-indonesian-boot-and-shoemaking-scene-NDV0v2YG Ep. 21 - Emil Rahmana Putra, Winson / Midas, about the Indonesian boot and shoemaking scene Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:29:04 In this episode we put the spotlight on the thriving boot and shoemaking scene in Indonesia, we do this together with Emil Rahmana Putra. He is the founder of the two brands Winson and Midas Bootmaker, where the first now is making the finest fully handmade dress shoes in the country, a true premium product of absolute top quality, while Midas focus on more affordable still excellent handmade Ready to Wear and Made to Order workwear boots. The company I work for, Skolyx, has been collaborating with Emil on a range of Ready to Wear Midas boots, and in recent years there are many around the world who have discovered the huge scene of especially workwear boot brands that comes out of Indonesia. The tradition of making boots by hand goes back to when the country was a Dutch colony, and today traditional shoe and bootmaking as well as other types of leather craftsmanship are relatively large industries for Indonesia. As you will hear, Emil Rahmana Putra is one of these obsessive souls that we have in the shoemaking world, we talked about how he ended up in the shoe industry and managed to build two successful brands, about how he to a large extent actually is a self-trained shoemaker, about his view on the success and challenges for the Indonesian boot and shoemaking scene, and much more. In this episode we put the spotlight on the thriving boot and shoemaking scene in Indonesia, we do this together with Emil Rahmana Putra. He is the founder of the two brands Winson and Midas Bootmaker, where the first now is making the finest fully handmade dress shoes in the country, a true premium product of absolute top quality, while Midas focus on more affordable still excellent handmade Ready to Wear and Made to Order workwear boots. The company I work for, Skolyx, has been collaborating with Emil on a range of Ready to Wear Midas boots, and in recent years there are many around the world who have discovered the huge scene of especially workwear boot brands that comes out of Indonesia. The tradition of making boots by hand goes back to when the country was a Dutch colony, and today traditional shoe and bootmaking as well as other types of leather craftsmanship are relatively large industries for Indonesia. As you will hear, Emil Rahmana Putra is one of these obsessive souls that we have in the shoemaking world, we talked about how he ended up in the shoe industry and managed to build two successful brands, about how he to a large extent actually is a self-trained shoemaker, about his view on the success and challenges for the Indonesian boot and shoemaking scene, and much more. false full 21 c77eac0b-bf34-4c99-a59e-636e52528a62 Fri, 21 Jan 2022 17:53:30 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-20-patrick-frei-about-making-shoes-with-an-own-identity-AagybBXO Ep. 20 - Patrick Frei, about making shoes with an own identity Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:51:23 In this episode you'll get to meet the very charismatic bespoke shoemaker Patrick Frei from Germany. He made a name of himself more widely when he won the World Championships in Shoemaking in 2018, and is seen by many as one of the greatest shoemakers around today. He works out of his workshop in Freiburg in Southwest of Germany, together with his shoemaking partner Kazuya Kimura. For those of you who have seen shoes made by the Patrick Frei workshop, you'll know they have a distinct personal character, an originality and identity one can't find anywhere else. How one achieves this is one of the main topics of our conversation, but we also we talk about his rather special way into shoemaking sort of through juggling on the streets of South America, about his interesting approach on lastmaking, about the balance between tradition and playfulness, about his obsession with small details, and much more. In this episode you'll get to meet the very charismatic bespoke shoemaker Patrick Frei from Germany. He made a name of himself more widely when he won the World Championships in Shoemaking in 2018, and is seen by many as one of the greatest shoemakers around today. He works out of his workshop in Freiburg in Southwest of Germany, together with his shoemaking partner Kazuya Kimura. For those of you who have seen shoes made by the Patrick Frei workshop, you'll know they have a distinct personal character, an originality and identity one can't find anywhere else. How one achieves this is one of the main topics of our conversation, but we also we talk about his rather special way into shoemaking sort of through juggling on the streets of South America, about his interesting approach on lastmaking, about the balance between tradition and playfulness, about his obsession with small details, and much more. false full 20 240f87de-db63-4bc1-9fbe-f6735dbf1b6d Sun, 14 Nov 2021 19:30:42 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-19-jacques-kress-tanneries-haas-about-calf-leather-tanning-RpSsvB1X Ep. 19 - Jacques Kress, Tanneries Haas, about calf leather tanning Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:46:31 For this episode I once again was able to sit down with the interviewee in person. A couple of weeks ago I travelled to Germany and France, and one of the stops was Tanneries Haas, one of the leading calf leather tanneries in Europe. Here I met Jacques Kress, Export manager and responsible for all the Tanneries Haas' clients from the shoe industry, who has a background as European agent for Allen Edmonds. In this conversation with Jacques we'll get to know the background of the famous tannery, we go through the process of chrome tanning and the rather special way they work with their customers, we talk about how the luxury goods market have taken over from the shoe industry as the main customer for quality calf, discuss the environmental impact of chrome tanning, and much more. For this episode I once again was able to sit down with the interviewee in person. A couple of weeks ago I travelled to Germany and France, and one of the stops was Tanneries Haas, one of the leading calf leather tanneries in Europe. Here I met Jacques Kress, Export manager and responsible for all the Tanneries Haas' clients from the shoe industry, who has a background as European agent for Allen Edmonds. In this conversation with Jacques we'll get to know the background of the famous tannery, we go through the process of chrome tanning and the rather special way they work with their customers, we talk about how the luxury goods market have taken over from the shoe industry as the main customer for quality calf, discuss the environmental impact of chrome tanning, and much more. false full 19 2d290313-c848-4807-9dd3-cbc164071b15 Fri, 8 Oct 2021 15:12:40 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Andre Simha, Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-18-andre-simha-about-collecting-shoes-m5HtlG9T Ep. 18 - André Simha, about collecting shoes Andre Simha, Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:36:50 In this episode we are meeting a proper shoe collector - André Simha, from Geneva, Switzerland. Known to many as andrel42 on Instagram, where he shows off his seriously impressive shoe collection, with around 300 pairs of welted shoes from literally all over the world. For over four decades he's had a big interest in classic shoes, and owns everything from the most famous brands down to very obscure new makers very few have heard of. We talk about what it is that drives him to continue to buy new shoes, discuss practical things like storage and shoe care, gets his experience of various shoemaking countries and brands, and much more. In this episode we are meeting a proper shoe collector - André Simha, from Geneva, Switzerland. Known to many as andrel42 on Instagram, where he shows off his seriously impressive shoe collection, with around 300 pairs of welted shoes from literally all over the world. For over four decades he's had a big interest in classic shoes, and owns everything from the most famous brands down to very obscure new makers very few have heard of. We talk about what it is that drives him to continue to buy new shoes, discuss practical things like storage and shoe care, gets his experience of various shoemaking countries and brands, and much more. men's shoes, classic shoes, shoes, shoegazing false full 18 68650ccb-2a0a-45ff-89b7-ee4fdb64cf76 Sun, 1 Aug 2021 19:38:50 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-17-nicholas-templeman-about-the-experience-ordering-bespoke-shoes-9jvOjMxM Ep. 17 - Nicholas Templeman, about the experience ordering bespoke shoes Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:52:35 This time we're going to go in-depth on the experience of ordering bespoke shoes, this from a bespoke shoemakers viewpoint. Nicholas Templeman is an independent bespoke maker based in London, England, who left his job at the legendary workshop of John Lobb to set up his own brand. He has a reputation of being very service-minded, going that extra length to make both the process and the final products something special for the clients. We talked a lot on the customer experience topic, but also about for example his journey into shoemaking, about pros and cons with traditional British ways of doing bespoke fittings, about Covid and what a mess it has made of the bespoke footwear and clothing worlds in many regards, and much more. This time we're going to go in-depth on the experience of ordering bespoke shoes, this from a bespoke shoemakers viewpoint. Nicholas Templeman is an independent bespoke maker based in London, England, who left his job at the legendary workshop of John Lobb to set up his own brand. He has a reputation of being very service-minded, going that extra length to make both the process and the final products something special for the clients. We talked a lot on the customer experience topic, but also about for example his journey into shoemaking, about pros and cons with traditional British ways of doing bespoke fittings, about Covid and what a mess it has made of the bespoke footwear and clothing worlds in many regards, and much more. men's shoes, classic shoes, menswear, bespoke, welted shoes, bespoke shoes, shoegazing false full 17 ff465b94-5c8d-4423-85e1-44d2f80df4dd Sun, 16 May 2021 16:05:02 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-15-rezs-kuti-vass-shoes-about-handmade-shoes-from-hungary-b86MIiYH Ep. 16 - Rezső Kuti, Vass Shoes, about handmade shoes from Hungary Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:40:24 In this episode I talk with Rezső Kuti of the Hungarian brand Vass Shoes, certainly the most famous shoe brand of the country, who've been making hand welted fully handmade shoes since the 1970's. Rezső worked as Sales Manager for the company for about a decade and built up its internationally successful MTO programme, he then spent a couple of years as Factory Manager for Heinrich Dinkelacker's Budapest factory and started the brand Passus Shoes, before re-joining Vass as Sales Consultant about 1,5 years ago. We of course talk a lot about Vass, about the reasons for the brand's fame around the world, about the massive challenges that the covid situation has put them in and how they've run a lot of sales simply to not have to lay off their shoemakers and staff, etc, but also about the Hungarian quality shoe business in general, with a long heritage and a characteristic style as a base, where most still do everything all by hand. In this episode I talk with Rezső Kuti of the Hungarian brand Vass Shoes, certainly the most famous shoe brand of the country, who've been making hand welted fully handmade shoes since the 1970's. Rezső worked as Sales Manager for the company for about a decade and built up its internationally successful MTO programme, he then spent a couple of years as Factory Manager for Heinrich Dinkelacker's Budapest factory and started the brand Passus Shoes, before re-joining Vass as Sales Consultant about 1,5 years ago. We of course talk a lot about Vass, about the reasons for the brand's fame around the world, about the massive challenges that the covid situation has put them in and how they've run a lot of sales simply to not have to lay off their shoemakers and staff, etc, but also about the Hungarian quality shoe business in general, with a long heritage and a characteristic style as a base, where most still do everything all by hand. false full 16 7c79f8ac-6b56-4b73-af49-f3086d9221f4 Sun, 21 Mar 2021 14:07:15 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-15-leon-fan-medallion-shoes-about-succeeding-in-china-Rr08HZJL Ep. 15 - Leon Fan, Medallion Shoes, about succeeding in China Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:41:35 In this episode we meet Leon Fan, who together with Kevin Li founded the famous shoe store Medallion Shoes, now with two huge brick and mortar stores in Beijing and Shanghai in China. They have sort of become the Chinese equivalent to the Isetan Men's shoe department in Tokyo, Japan, in the way it's not only setting a big mark on the huge domestic market, but also internationally. This also goes for the brand of fully handmade Ready to Wear, Made to Order and bespoke shoes Acme Shoemaker, where Leon Fan also is a co-founder. We of course talked a lot about Medallion Shoes and how they have worked to become so successful, but also about things like the Chinese classic quality shoe market in general and about the increasingly interesting field of quality shoe brands and shoemakers coming out of China. In this episode we meet Leon Fan, who together with Kevin Li founded the famous shoe store Medallion Shoes, now with two huge brick and mortar stores in Beijing and Shanghai in China. They have sort of become the Chinese equivalent to the Isetan Men's shoe department in Tokyo, Japan, in the way it's not only setting a big mark on the huge domestic market, but also internationally. This also goes for the brand of fully handmade Ready to Wear, Made to Order and bespoke shoes Acme Shoemaker, where Leon Fan also is a co-founder. We of course talked a lot about Medallion Shoes and how they have worked to become so successful, but also about things like the Chinese classic quality shoe market in general and about the increasingly interesting field of quality shoe brands and shoemakers coming out of China. false full 15 9dfaaf40-7100-4559-8fbd-3f688d477526 Sat, 31 Oct 2020 11:57:18 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-14-qa-special-with-daniel-wegan-catella-shoemaker-cgwnWt_I Ep. 14 - Q&A Special with Daniel Wegan, Catella Shoemaker Jesper Ingevaldsson 01:04:26 The Shoegazing Podcast is back, this time with a new type of special edition episodes that will pop-up every now and then, called Q&A Specials. Basically you listeners and readers of Shoegazing.com get to ask questions to some famous names from the classic shoe industry. This round is with Daniel Wegan, the Swede who made a name of himself working at the bespoke department of Gaziano & Girling in England for ten years. He placed second in the World Championships in Shoemaking 2018, and then won the title in 2019. Last year he left G&G to start his own bespoke brand, Catella Shoemaker. In this Q&A Special though, it’s you who have decided the topics. A big thanks to all who sent in questions, couldn’t fit in all, but we got a lot covered in the near hour we talked, among other things Daniel’s view on the current boom of more casual footwear and how he thinks this will affect his business, a breakdown on why bespoke shoes cost so much, about preventing work-related injuries as a shoemaker, how he works with the bottom of the lasts, why he is often wearing cheap New Balance shoes himself, and much more. Enjoy the listen! The Shoegazing Podcast is back, this time with a new type of special edition episodes that will pop-up every now and then, called Q&A Specials. Basically you listeners and readers of Shoegazing.com get to ask questions to some famous names from the classic shoe industry. This round is with Daniel Wegan, the Swede who made a name of himself working at the bespoke department of Gaziano & Girling in England for ten years. He placed second in the World Championships in Shoemaking 2018, and then won the title in 2019. Last year he left G&G to start his own bespoke brand, Catella Shoemaker. In this Q&A Special though, it’s you who have decided the topics. A big thanks to all who sent in questions, couldn’t fit in all, but we got a lot covered in the near hour we talked, among other things Daniel’s view on the current boom of more casual footwear and how he thinks this will affect his business, a breakdown on why bespoke shoes cost so much, about preventing work-related injuries as a shoemaker, how he works with the bottom of the lasts, why he is often wearing cheap New Balance shoes himself, and much more. Enjoy the listen! false full 14 578860fc-2763-4105-bd7a-a53b01affb0b Sun, 13 Sep 2020 20:26:39 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-13-carina-eneroth-skomakeri-framat-about-the-situation-for-cobblers-xuEM1G2I Ep. 13 - Carina Eneroth, Skomakeri Framåt, about the situation for cobblers Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:38:00 This time it’s all about shoe repairs and cobblers. I met up with Carina Eneroth of Skomakeri Framåt, which sort of translates to Cobblery Forward, a cobbler and bespoke shoemaker based in Stockholm, Sweden. She’s been in the business for almost four decades now, and apart from being one of the owners of Skomakeri Framåt, with a Royal Warrant of Appointment to the Swedish Royal family, she’s also on the board for the Swedish Cobbler’s Association. With the mature shoe repair industry in Sweden as a base, but with lots of international lookouts, we talked some about the history of the cobbler trade, and a lot about the current situation with both how corona has affected the industry, but also how things were before and likely will be in the future. An interesting talk for all who want to know more about cobbler’s situation today. This time it’s all about shoe repairs and cobblers. I met up with Carina Eneroth of Skomakeri Framåt, which sort of translates to Cobblery Forward, a cobbler and bespoke shoemaker based in Stockholm, Sweden. She’s been in the business for almost four decades now, and apart from being one of the owners of Skomakeri Framåt, with a Royal Warrant of Appointment to the Swedish Royal family, she’s also on the board for the Swedish Cobbler’s Association. With the mature shoe repair industry in Sweden as a base, but with lots of international lookouts, we talked some about the history of the cobbler trade, and a lot about the current situation with both how corona has affected the industry, but also how things were before and likely will be in the future. An interesting talk for all who want to know more about cobbler’s situation today. false full 13 f44726b2-f354-4ff6-8c6f-77b4c61c37cc Sun, 9 Aug 2020 19:32:06 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-12-kostas-mandilaris-the-noble-shoe-about-selling-shoes-digitally-tS_Vimdm Ep. 12 - Kostas Mandilaris, The Noble Shoe, about selling shoes digitally Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:32:29 We live in a digital world, and nowadays a lot of both marketing and sales takes place solely online in various ways. One online shoe retailer who have successfully used all the digital possibilities is Kostas Mandilaris of The Noble Shoe, who sells among others Carlos Santos, Paolo Scafora and Crockett & Jones. In this episode we talk about the benefits and challenges with selling relatively expensive quality shoes only online, about how to work with digital marketing in various ways, and much more. This is actually the first episode that’s been recorded after the coronavirus has turned the world upside down, and since one can’t travel like normal and I very much prefer to do these podcast interviews in person, we will likely see some more local Nordic folks represented the coming months. Luckily, we have lots of interesting shoe people up here. We live in a digital world, and nowadays a lot of both marketing and sales takes place solely online in various ways. One online shoe retailer who have successfully used all the digital possibilities is Kostas Mandilaris of The Noble Shoe, who sells among others Carlos Santos, Paolo Scafora and Crockett & Jones. In this episode we talk about the benefits and challenges with selling relatively expensive quality shoes only online, about how to work with digital marketing in various ways, and much more. This is actually the first episode that’s been recorded after the coronavirus has turned the world upside down, and since one can’t travel like normal and I very much prefer to do these podcast interviews in person, we will likely see some more local Nordic folks represented the coming months. Luckily, we have lots of interesting shoe people up here. false full 12 0ea4d004-8cd0-4d76-b1dd-f51cf9998221 Sun, 21 Jun 2020 14:32:13 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson, Takashi Fukuda) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-11-takashi-fukuda-isetan-about-isetan-mens-influence-on-the-quality-shoe-scene-_uHOBvdb Ep. 11 - Takashi Fukuda, Isetan, about Isetan Men’s influence on the quality shoe scene Jesper Ingevaldsson, Takashi Fukuda 00:18:17 For this episode I met Takashi Fukuda, who is a legendary buyer at the department store Isetan Men’s in Tokyo. For many years he has been the head buyer at their shoe department, and has been highly influential on what will be found on the shoe shelves at Isetan Men’s. Isetan is a Japanese chain of department stores, with it’s huge flagship store in Shinjuku in central Tokyo. There they have one building dedicated to women’s fashion and more, and one whole building with only men’s clothing and accessories. The shoe department of Isetan Men’s is likely the largest one in the world when it comes to quality shoes. It is an incredible place for shoe lovers, with everything from low-end Blake stitched shoes up to some of the best bespoke shoes in the world, and everything in between. I usually travel to Japan and Tokyo once a year, and the first day I arrive I always head directly to Isetan Men’s to browse the shelves and to see what’s new since my last visit. For makers of quality shoes, not just Japanese but from all over the world, Isetan Men’s is the single most prestigious store to be represented at. They have a huge impact on what will be popular among the Japanese, which together with the US is the largest market for quality shoes there is. And since other stores and shoe agencies from around the world always have an eye at Isetan Men’s, what is found here often quickly get traction also in Europe, the US and elsewhere as well. So, I sat down to talk with Takashi Fukuda about the impact that Isetan Men’s has had on the shoe industry in Japan, and abroad, how they work when bringing in new brands, and how they are going to keep its relevance in the increasingly digital world. Takashi Fukuda isn’t the best English speaker, hope for leniency, but I’m sure you’ll find it a good listen anyway. For this episode I met Takashi Fukuda, who is a legendary buyer at the department store Isetan Men’s in Tokyo. For many years he has been the head buyer at their shoe department, and has been highly influential on what will be found on the shoe shelves at Isetan Men’s. Isetan is a Japanese chain of department stores, with it’s huge flagship store in Shinjuku in central Tokyo. There they have one building dedicated to women’s fashion and more, and one whole building with only men’s clothing and accessories. The shoe department of Isetan Men’s is likely the largest one in the world when it comes to quality shoes. It is an incredible place for shoe lovers, with everything from low-end Blake stitched shoes up to some of the best bespoke shoes in the world, and everything in between. I usually travel to Japan and Tokyo once a year, and the first day I arrive I always head directly to Isetan Men’s to browse the shelves and to see what’s new since my last visit. For makers of quality shoes, not just Japanese but from all over the world, Isetan Men’s is the single most prestigious store to be represented at. They have a huge impact on what will be popular among the Japanese, which together with the US is the largest market for quality shoes there is. And since other stores and shoe agencies from around the world always have an eye at Isetan Men’s, what is found here often quickly get traction also in Europe, the US and elsewhere as well. So, I sat down to talk with Takashi Fukuda about the impact that Isetan Men’s has had on the shoe industry in Japan, and abroad, how they work when bringing in new brands, and how they are going to keep its relevance in the increasingly digital world. Takashi Fukuda isn’t the best English speaker, hope for leniency, but I’m sure you’ll find it a good listen anyway. men's shoes, classic shoes, isetan, menswear, isetan men's, shoegazing, shoegazing podcast, goodyear welted false full 11 86fd0e08-2c0d-4d82-93fc-e93f47e2ad14 Fri, 22 May 2020 12:10:54 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-10-jonathan-church-cheaney-about-leaving-private-label-production-Ghqe1IjV Ep. 10, Jonathan Church, Cheaney, about leaving private label production Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:18:47 This episode was recorded at the Micam shoe fair in Milan, Italy, back in February. In this episode we’re meeting Jonathan Church, one of the owners of the British firm Cheaney & Sons. Jonathan has worked in the footwear industry for three decades, first in the firm bearing his family name, Church’s, later with Cheaney. Cheaney was one of the last Northampton based shoe factories to transcend from focusing on Private Label to sell shoes under their own name, which they did after Jonathan and his cousin William Church acquired the company in 2009. It has resulted in a massive increase in both turnover and profits. Our talk focus around this topic, but we also talk about his experience of the Prada takeover of Church’s, and about Brexit. This episode was recorded at the Micam shoe fair in Milan, Italy, back in February. In this episode we’re meeting Jonathan Church, one of the owners of the British firm Cheaney & Sons. Jonathan has worked in the footwear industry for three decades, first in the firm bearing his family name, Church’s, later with Cheaney. Cheaney was one of the last Northampton based shoe factories to transcend from focusing on Private Label to sell shoes under their own name, which they did after Jonathan and his cousin William Church acquired the company in 2009. It has resulted in a massive increase in both turnover and profits. Our talk focus around this topic, but we also talk about his experience of the Prada takeover of Church’s, and about Brexit. men's shoes, goodyear welted shoes, classic shoes, menswear, bespoke, shoes, shoegazing false full 10 effaaee3-d603-4c76-a94f-358db055269d Fri, 24 Apr 2020 16:52:51 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-9-robin-chang-about-asian-made-quality-shoes-p_LPSIPy Ep. 9 - Robin Chang, about Asian-made quality shoes Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:29:24 This time you will meet Robin Chang, founder of the leading quality shoe store in Taiwan, Oak Room, located in the capital Taipei. He has been involved in the shoe business for many years, and is considered one of the foremost experts on the classic shoe industry in Asia. In this episode we will focus on the situation for factories making classic quality shoes as well as bespoke shoemakers in Asia, outside of Japan. It’s a topic that many in Europe or the US know very little of. Things are happening quickly in this part of the world, and this industry has come further than many believe. We will talk about how China has already moved away from being a low cost production country for shoes, nowadays it’s countries like Laos and Vietnam where manufacturing of quality shoes is growing the quickest. This has meant that we now see a lot of new Chinese independent shoemakers making fully handmade shoes, raised in a shoe industry that in parts have moved on, and now thanks to social media they can reach customers themselves. We also talk about for example how the very affordable, often very well-made Asian made quality shoes will be pushing European manufacturers, as they come into play as proper competition, we will go into the situation with customers in the domestic countries, and much, much more. You have a very informative half an hour in front of you, enjoy! This time you will meet Robin Chang, founder of the leading quality shoe store in Taiwan, Oak Room, located in the capital Taipei. He has been involved in the shoe business for many years, and is considered one of the foremost experts on the classic shoe industry in Asia. In this episode we will focus on the situation for factories making classic quality shoes as well as bespoke shoemakers in Asia, outside of Japan. It’s a topic that many in Europe or the US know very little of. Things are happening quickly in this part of the world, and this industry has come further than many believe. We will talk about how China has already moved away from being a low cost production country for shoes, nowadays it’s countries like Laos and Vietnam where manufacturing of quality shoes is growing the quickest. This has meant that we now see a lot of new Chinese independent shoemakers making fully handmade shoes, raised in a shoe industry that in parts have moved on, and now thanks to social media they can reach customers themselves. We also talk about for example how the very affordable, often very well-made Asian made quality shoes will be pushing European manufacturers, as they come into play as proper competition, we will go into the situation with customers in the domestic countries, and much, much more. You have a very informative half an hour in front of you, enjoy! men's shoes, goodyear welted shoes, classic shoes, menswear, bespoke, shoes, shoegazing false full 9 f3c39674-0aa2-4b9b-9a72-4710db7cce51 Fri, 20 Mar 2020 12:28:11 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-8-richard-utting-loake-about-succeeding-internationally-6roC3rSF Ep. 8 - Richard Utting, Loake, about succeeding internationally Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:30:06 This episode was recorded at the Micam shoe fair in Milan, Italy, back in February. I sat down with Richard Utting, Export Manager at Loake, the famous British manufacturer of Goodyear welted shoes. Loake was a brand that, contrary to many other Northampton based companies, first got big on the domestic market and then went on to grow internationally. Richard Utting has been a large part of this journey, and we had a very interesting talk about everything from how to succeed internationally and why it’s beneficial to be on different markets, to how brand building has increased importance also for makers of classic shoes and of course about Brexit. This episode was recorded at the Micam shoe fair in Milan, Italy, back in February. I sat down with Richard Utting, Export Manager at Loake, the famous British manufacturer of Goodyear welted shoes. Loake was a brand that, contrary to many other Northampton based companies, first got big on the domestic market and then went on to grow internationally. Richard Utting has been a large part of this journey, and we had a very interesting talk about everything from how to succeed internationally and why it’s beneficial to be on different markets, to how brand building has increased importance also for makers of classic shoes and of course about Brexit. false full 8 457f7296-e081-4cf2-b702-66401953b21a Sun, 1 Mar 2020 14:49:39 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-7-christophe-corthay-about-shoes-and-art-cBOq38Jc Ep. 7 - Christophe Corthay, about shoes and art Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:33:34 Christophe Corthay is a legendary bespoke shoemaker from France. He has spent more than three decades making shoes, previously with his brother Pierre at Maison Corthay, but nowadays he runs Atelier du Tranchet together with Sebastian "Toulouz" Algans and Phillippe de Paillette. Those who’ve seen their shoes know that most of them are truly artistic creations, that looks like nothing you see from other brands. So I decided to talk to Christophe Corthay about the sometimes slightly controversial topic: shoes and art. Christophe Corthay is a legendary bespoke shoemaker from France. He has spent more than three decades making shoes, previously with his brother Pierre at Maison Corthay, but nowadays he runs Atelier du Tranchet together with Sebastian "Toulouz" Algans and Phillippe de Paillette. Those who’ve seen their shoes know that most of them are truly artistic creations, that looks like nothing you see from other brands. So I decided to talk to Christophe Corthay about the sometimes slightly controversial topic: shoes and art. false full 7 d0f7ae65-8162-4c4a-acc6-0e1c864e25c6 Sun, 19 Jan 2020 15:32:10 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-6-maslow-so-mori-of-shoemakers-about-merging-bespoke-and-factory-made-FlPEKr6R Ep. 6 - Maslow So, Mori of Shoemakers, about merging bespoke and factory-made Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:35:59 In this episode of the Shoegazing Podcast I met Maslow So from Hong Kong, the man behind the brand Mori of Shoemakers, who in a very interesting way try to combine elements from bespoke shoes with factory-made RTW shoes. Mori has various bespoke shoemakers from around the world designing lasts and models, and then a factory in China producing hand welted lovely looking shoes offered at a very competitive price. We sat down and talked about this project, and about merging bespoke and factory-made. In this episode of the Shoegazing Podcast I met Maslow So from Hong Kong, the man behind the brand Mori of Shoemakers, who in a very interesting way try to combine elements from bespoke shoes with factory-made RTW shoes. Mori has various bespoke shoemakers from around the world designing lasts and models, and then a factory in China producing hand welted lovely looking shoes offered at a very competitive price. We sat down and talked about this project, and about merging bespoke and factory-made. false full 6 e1d79fb9-5e23-4151-b676-8175c5800af7 Sun, 15 Dec 2019 18:26:58 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-5-hiro-yanagimachi-about-the-japanese-bespoke-shoe-scene-ajeHCO_2 Ep. 5 - Hiro Yanagimachi, about the Japanese bespoke shoe scene Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:30:23 Meet the famous shoemaker Hiro Yanagimachi, one of the pioneers of the new wave of Japanese bespoke shoemaking. When he started his business two decades ago there were only a few Japanese making bespoke shoes, today there’s more than 50 bespoke shoemakers in the country, now one of the leading scenes in the world. How this came to be is what we focused our discussion around. Meet the famous shoemaker Hiro Yanagimachi, one of the pioneers of the new wave of Japanese bespoke shoemaking. When he started his business two decades ago there were only a few Japanese making bespoke shoes, today there’s more than 50 bespoke shoemakers in the country, now one of the leading scenes in the world. How this came to be is what we focused our discussion around. men's shoes, goodyear welted shoes, menswear, bespoke, fashion, shoes, japan, shoegazing false full 5 148b0ffd-d49d-4d47-86d8-b084f19304ab Sun, 24 Nov 2019 17:29:28 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson, Tom Brone) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-4-tom-brone-sons-of-henrey-about-starting-a-new-shoe-brand-4k4rl2ii Ep. 4 - Tom Brone, Sons of Henrey, about starting a new shoe brand Jesper Ingevaldsson, Tom Brone 00:40:12 What's the main challenges when setting up a new shoe brand, how is it to be a small player working together with a big factory, and how do you succeed in today's highly competitive market? These are some of the questions that Tom Brone, the man behind the brand Sons of Henrey, answers in this episode. What's the main challenges when setting up a new shoe brand, how is it to be a small player working together with a big factory, and how do you succeed in today's highly competitive market? These are some of the questions that Tom Brone, the man behind the brand Sons of Henrey, answers in this episode. men's shoes, classic shoes, menswear, handmade shoes, men's fashion, fashion, goodyear welted false full 4 d1a7b783-36bb-4794-b9fd-364ec793734c Fri, 25 Oct 2019 12:44:28 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Daniel Wegan, Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-3-daniel-wegan-about-dedication-0bBotA2o Ep. 3 - Daniel Wegan, about dedication Daniel Wegan, Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:46:02 Hear bespoke shoemaker Daniel Wegan talk about dedication, which took him to the bespoke department of Gaziano & Girling, made him the head of the same department, and this year he won the World Championships in Shoemaking. He also gives a bunch of advice to aspiring shoemakers. Hear bespoke shoemaker Daniel Wegan talk about dedication, which took him to the bespoke department of Gaziano & Girling, made him the head of the same department, and this year he won the World Championships in Shoemaking. He also gives a bunch of advice to aspiring shoemakers. men's shoes, classic shoes, menswear, shoemaking, bespoke shoes false full 3 954de1b8-b2be-42f5-b012-be45f2a286b8 Tue, 17 Sep 2019 21:51:45 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson, Yohei Fukuda) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-2-yohei-fukuda-about-brand-building-CGT8X5F_ Ep. 2 - Yohei Fukuda, about brand building Jesper Ingevaldsson, Yohei Fukuda 00:27:47 In this episode, I met the famous Japanese bespoke shoemaker Yohei Fukuda, who besides making some of the finest shoes in the world, also have been very successful with creating a brand image, something quite difficult especially for small bespoke shoemakers. It’s around this topic we focused our discussion. In this episode, I met the famous Japanese bespoke shoemaker Yohei Fukuda, who besides making some of the finest shoes in the world, also have been very successful with creating a brand image, something quite difficult especially for small bespoke shoemakers. It’s around this topic we focused our discussion. men's shoes, classic shoes, bespoke, bespoke shoes, japan, brand building, shoegazing, goodyear welted false full 2 b031d109-f56f-4235-905f-ad85f5d9f7e7 Thu, 18 Jul 2019 20:36:00 +0000 shoegazingblog@gmail.com (Jesper Ingevaldsson) https://shoegazing-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/ep-1-patrik-lof-skoaktiebolaget-about-multi-brand-shoe-stores-_RC5HZNB Ep. 1 - Patrik Löf, Skoaktiebolaget, about multi-brand shoe stores Jesper Ingevaldsson 00:39:29 For the first edition of the Shoegazing Podcast, I sat down with Patrik Löf, founder and owner of the famous Swedish shoe shop Skoaktiebolaget, to talk about the journey they have been on and about the past, current and future situation for multi-brand men’s shoe stores. For the first edition of the Shoegazing Podcast, I sat down with Patrik Löf, founder and owner of the famous Swedish shoe shop Skoaktiebolaget, to talk about the journey they have been on and about the past, current and future situation for multi-brand men’s shoe stores. skoaktiebolaget, men's shoes, classic shoes, menswear, shoegazing, shoegazing podcast false full 1