Herring Shoes Journal

I hold my hands up, we like to talk about shoe care. Our blog post Why shoe care really matters, and our most watched YouTube video Polishing shoes part 1 are popular examples. We are passionate about it. It goes hand in hand with our products and we want everyone to get the most out of their shoes and leather products.

So, why are we writing another post about this subject? This is my fault. I was watching the news the other night and there was a segment investigating the apparent decline of people polishing their shoes. I was puzzled as to how this had made the news but they went on to explain that one of the world’s most famous shoe polish manufacturers, Kiwi, is pulling their products from UK shelves. This grabbed my attention, as did the fact they had a friend of Herring Shoes and menswear expert Nick Carvell on there offering his insight.

I decided to get in touch with Nick directly and he was happy to chat to me about this in more detail and answer a couple of questions for us to delve a little deeper into what this means.

Thanks for agreeing to chat with us today Nick, it’s great to catch up again.

We know the decline in people polishing their shoes can be attributed mainly to Covid and working from home, what other factors do you think are involved? Do you worry that there is a generational gap when it comes to traditions such as shoe polishing? Is it our responsibility to make sure the next generation knows how to care for their leather products?

“There are definitely multiple factors at play here, but a key one is the continued breakdown of dress codes which is allowing more men to express their personal style in more situations than ever before. As opposed to, say, our grandfathers’ generations, it’s rare now for a man to have a true distinction between their work and casual wardrobes. Of course, this affects the shoes a man needs at his disposal. If anything, formal shoes are having a resurgence in popularity right now among Millennials and Gen Z – just took at a streetwear label like Aimé Leon Dore that’s currently styling tracksuits with loafers. However, unlike the loafers of previous generations available in black or brown, these traditional formal shoe silhouettes are being reinterpreted in a variety of eye-catching coloured leathers, vegan fabrics, suedes and silks. That’s on top of care for trainers or shoes cut from technical fabrics. I’d say a young man now needs far more skills than their father’s or grandfather’s generation for preserving their shoe wardrobe. That’s where the experts need to step in (pun intended!)”

What do you think 2023 will bring in regards to the public’s dress sense and footwear? Do you anticipate a pick up of slow fashion and in turn more leather products being purchased or are we in for a new wave of ‘fashion’ throwaway items?

“I hope there will be a pickup. Fast fashion and a ravenous trend cycle has definitely warped how a lot of us think about shoes: buy cheap, wear until they fall apart, buy something else. The idea of polishing and caring for shoes to preserve them long term if they’re bought with a short-term mindset can get lost. However, it’s encouraging to see that many of the brands trending with younger people now focus hard on sustainability and good quality materials (not just animal hides, but also more environmentally-friendly man-made fabrics like mushroom leather). The idea of buying less, but buying better is gaining ever more traction in society, and that mindset will necessarily affect the shoe market. Of course, what that doesn’t mean an overnight resurgence in the popularity of uber-trad styles like the double-monk strap or opera pump in the mainstream. Brands are sill going to have to move with the times to offer the silhouettes, colours and materials people want. However, what it does mean, hopefully, is that more shoes are being purchased with a mindset that they are going to be in that person’s wardrobe for a very long time, meaning that person is necessarily more open to the idea of repairing, restoring and preserving those shoes as the years go by, rather than sending them to landfill.”

Cheers Nick, we appreciate your time and look forward to speaking with you again. To find out more about Nick and to sign up to his newsletter (highly recommended), then please click through to his website here

For those of us who still need a good quality polish, don’t worry, we are one of the largest stockists of Saphir polishing products online. We even have our own range of creams available for those who are on a budget, and a superb value valet box Herring cedar valet box with footrest which is currently in the sale.

Our message is simple: Keep caring for your leather shoes and accessories, and keep supporting slow fashion. Shoe polishing should not be banished to the dark ages and it’s our responsibility to make sure we pass on the knowledge of how to care for our shoes.