Herring Shoes Journal

Ever bought something new and find yourself saying you got it in the sale or justifying the purchase because it was cheap? Brits, especially, seem to think a bargain makes a purchase worthwhile, but I would seriously question that.

I am not saying expensive goods are all entirely necessary but buying quality does usually make sense.

Our previous blogs on slow fashion highlighted the green credentials of buying something that is built for longevity or, in the case of our welted shoes, can be repaired many times. However, there are many more justifications to have at the ready when you choose a pair of our shoes or boots.

Introducing our Eight Excellent Excuses to invest in footwear….

Supporting the UK manufacturer
This feels especially important right now with many factories having to close at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. We all want to see these businesses survive. These traditional businesses are at the heart of working communities.

Supporting the skilled worker
The lifeblood of these factories are their skilled workers. Some of our shoes are painstakingly and lovingly made by hand so they deserve a higher price tag. If you have never worn a handmade pair of shoes, you may not understand the difference. The difference is how they feel on your feet; this cannot be replicated by mass factory produced items.

Investing in art
Yes, art. Quality shoes are truly beautiful! They make you stand out for all the right reasons while a scuffed pair of mass-produced shoes will fade into the background. As discussed above, they are designed and made by extremely skilled craftsmen and women…artists in their field. Your support is testament to your support for the retail and fashion artist.

Being kind to the environment
If you are hanging onto your shoes and boots, then you are joining the slow fashion movement, which is an altogether much kinder and greener way to live. Wearable items are clogging up landfill and this must change. I suggest starting with your feet.

Investing in quality materials
This links to the above in that handmade leather shoes feel just great. Our customers often worry they are too tight when they first arrive, but they give in all the right places to mould to your feet in a sweet, joyful way to customise themselves to your shape-de-pied.

If you needed another excuse to buy real leather, then let me remind you that there are leathers and then there are leathers. Cordovan, for example, oozes quality. The tanning process is complex and labour intensive…but the results are, quite frankly, gorgeous… and, more boringly, durable. This makes Cordovan shoes highly covetable, as  celebrated in Jerry Tharapos’s recent blog for Herring, Be daring, be dashing, be burgundy.

Saving money
Yep, you heard right. If you divide the cost of your quality footwear across the number of years you own them for, they will work out cheaper than re-buying poor quality shoes every year or every few years. Your return on your investment, or footwear ROI, will repay you for every year you own them. And if you invest in lasted shoes or boots, you will gain extra years of wear as they will be repairable.

Putting a spring in your step
We can literally do this with rubber-soled shoes or boots! However, decent footwear will also give you confidence. If you think about how an uncomfortable pair of shoes can make you feel both down at heel and in the mouth, then consider the opposite effect of a quality equivalent. You will feel taller, skipp-ier and generally more awesome!

Bringing you long-term joy
A cheap, high fashion item is often only good enough for an Instagram post and then it is discarded. That post may have given you a short-term boost of happiness, but the bubble will burst once the initial outing, party, post has ended. A quality item that still looks good and fits well, will give you repeat joy. Every time you on pull on or lace up your quality shoes or boots on your feet, you will feel immense satisfaction for all the reasons above. And who does not need a little bit of joy right now?