Minus a few exceptions, men can't buy a good pair of dress shoes for under $350.
The idea of the $150 dress shoe (most of which have cemented on soles and corrected grain leather, those noted in this article are of course not that) is a false economy.
You will go through multiple pairs of said junk shoes before you would go through one pair of well made welted shoes.
Think of it this way: “You are either in your bed or in your shoes. So it pays to invest in both.” Remarked John Wildsmith, who was an English shoemaker.
Luckily, the price of that investment has become more reasonable over the past few years with a plethora of upstart men’s dress shoe brands popping up across the globe. A man doesn’t have to just look to England, Italy and America to find well-made dress shoes. Singapore, Spain, Portugal, China and Mexico are all capable of producing quality shoes at a reasonable price.
However, to find many of these brands you often had to head to the Internet. Whether or not you would buy a pair of dress shoes online without trying them on first is a matter of personal preference. But just know that if you are open to it, you often have the opportunity of getting a better value.
For those of you not comfortable with doing so, there are solid options to be had in person. But as is often the case, you get what you pay for, so you should expect to get a substantially better shoe for $350 than $135.
So without further delay, here’s a list of 12 brands you should check out for less than $350.
Meermin
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: More English than anything else (you’ll find my review of them here).
Construction method: Goodyear welted, hand welted.
Company location: Mallorca, Spain.
Point of manufacture: China and Spain.
Price: $215-350.
Point of sale: Online and occasional trunk show.
Markowski
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: Combination of English and Italian, the French would likely say French though.
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: Paris, France.
Point of manufacture: Spain.
Price: $225-300.
Point of sale: Online, in-store (France only).
Septieme Largeur
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: Combination of English and Italian, the French would likely say French though (you’ll find my review of them here).
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: Paris, France.
Point of manufacture: Spain.
Price: $300-350.
Point of sale: Online, in-store (France only).
Ed Et Al
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: More English than anything else (you’ll find a trusted review of them here).
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: Singapore.
Point of manufacture: Singapore.
Price: $240
Point of sale: Online.
Loake 1880
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: English.
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: Kettering, England.
Point of manufacture: England.
Price: $320-350.
Point of sale: Online, retailers in UK.
Charles Tyrwhitt
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: English.
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: London, England.
Point of manufacture: England, unspecified other country.
Price: $199-325.
Point of sale: Online, Charles Tyrwhitt stores.
Jack Erwin
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: A combination of English and Italian (you’ll find my review of them here).
Construction method: Blake.
Company Location: NYC.
Point of manufacture: Portugal.
Price: $195.
Point of sale: Online, periodic trunk shows and open houses in NYC.
Kent Wang/ DC Lewis
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: English
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company Location: Texas.
Point of manufacture: China.
Price: $350.
Point of sale: Online.
John Doe
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: English
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: Mexico.
Point of manufacture: Mexico.
Price: $135.
Point of sale: Online.
Paul Evans
The Fine Young Gentleman
Style: Combination of English and Italian (you’ll find my review here).
Construction method: Blake and Goodyear welted.
Company location: NYC.
Point of manufacture: Italy and Spain.
Price: $350.
Point of sale: Online, periodic trunk shows in NYC.
Herring Classic
Justin Jeffers
Style: English.
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: England.
Point of manufacture: England.
Price: $280-340.
Point of sale: Online.
Allen Edmonds
Allen Edmonds
Style: American.
Construction method: Goodyear welted.
Company location: Wisconsin.
Point of manufacture: USA, South America.
Price: $345.
Point of sale: Online, Allen Edmond store, other retailers.
Need more advice on shoes?
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/a-guide-to-dress-shoes-under-350-2013-11?op=1#ixzz2lwsAXPjg
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