Cheap plastic shoes

I like going for a nice meal out with the mrs every now and then and I’m surprised by the amount of people you see turn up in cheap curled up plastic shoes sad thing to notice I know, I can remember going back years when most shoes where still made in the uk and shops like saxone sold reasonably priced shoes that where well made and would last for ages with a bit of polish and still look good I bought a pair when I left school and had them for 10 years and nowadays you have to spend a small fortune to get shoes of a similar quality, unless I am looking through rose tinted glasses

After I stopped wearing a suit and tie for work I had virtually no call for a nice pair of shoes... if I had a nice meal or any sort of function I'd just run out for a pair of what you'd consider cheap shoes (Ted Baker or Lambretta usually, whatever I liked the look of). They last a while, but cheap enough to be disposable.
Trainers on the other hand... I happily spend a couple of hundred quid on a pair, and for a while that was pretty much a WEEKLY occurance. A few years ago Footlocker had the best new-years sale I've ever seen, before or since, and they delivered my order on a pallet.

So yeah, I tend not to care much about dress shoes. Churches, Loakes etc... all well and good and I've been impressed with the quality of them, but for me they don't really serve a purpose.

For me it’s the lack of polish used
It seems nobody knows how to bull a shoe or boot anymore.
I can’t stand having scuffed shoes.
Even expensive shoes look sh1te when scuffed up

I saw the title and wondered if it was a Radiohead follow up song..... But I do agree with OP's sentiment having read it. Cheers, John B4

Just like clothes retailers, the shoe sector has lost nearly all its mid market brands.

Saxone, Barretts, Dolcis and no doubt others all gone from the high street.

There's Diechman now and M and s I suppose. Office have there own ranges I think still that aren't too expensive.



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Originally Posted by JohnB4

I saw the title and wondered if it was a Radiohead follow up song..... But I do agree with OP's sentiment having read it. Cheers, John B4

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Very good

I thought it was going to be a rant about Crocs

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I have far too many pairs from English Bootmakers (in some part thanks to TZ)

Whatever happened to Jones Bootmakers ?

I bought a pair of Desert Docs from their Cheltenham store a few years ago... before it closed.

Wore them today...

z

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Originally Posted by JohnB4

I saw the title and wondered if it was a Radiohead follow up song.....

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Or possibly ZZ Top.

My toes and heels are always bull polish.

One pair feels like the toe is 4k clarity lol.

Love seeing someone else with a similar passion.

Ran out of breath there. They might be expensive curled up plastic shoes, would that be better?

Most of the guys I know buy cheap shoes and bin them when they’re dead. One mate gets through three pairs of formal-ish work shoes per year.

No point polishing something you have no pride in owning, don’t look after, and will be in the bin in 4 months anyway.

My formative years & one of a number of mantras I respect “ , the shine on your shoes says a lot about you “ .
From a loyal Kiwi Polish diehard .


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Originally Posted by JohnB4

I saw the title and wondered if it was a Radiohead follow up song.....

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Made me chuckle!

My late father, God bless him, used to say;

“Look after your shoes and they’ll look after you”

And

“Spend good money on shoes and mattresses,
Because if you’re not in one you’re in the other”

Shoes, I bloody hate them. I have very wide size 12 feet and no off the shelf shoe is truly comfortable… except crocs, which I loathe the look of.
I either wear ropey looking plastic tat and be comfy or smart uncomfortable shoes.

My 1st rule when buying shoes...

They must be comfortable.

Not as in, "They'll wear in". No. They have to fit immediately. Hence I prefer to buy from a shop, not via the web.





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Originally Posted by wileeeeeey

Most of the guys I know buy cheap shoes and bin them when they’re dead. One mate gets through three pairs of formal-ish work shoes per year.

No point polishing something you have no pride in owning, don’t look after, and will be in the bin in 4 months anyway.

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Explains this then - https://economictimes.indiatimes.com...w/96685425.cms

I work in quite a casual work environment so I never go any better than Clarkes and tbh they are probably some of the most formal shoes in the office.
New generation just come in black trainers etc.

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Probably a generational thing and doesn't surprise me when you consider Kiwi polish has vanished from the shop shelves in recent times.

On a similar theme, I always used to iron my shirts with spray starch. That has also totally disappeared from supermarkets...I guess what little demand there was has been killed by WFH.

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Originally Posted by Faiz

I work in quite a casual work environment so I never go any better than Clarkes and tbh they are probably some of the most formal shoes in the office.
New generation just come in black trainers etc.

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Even I wear jeans and trainers when I go into the office these days, and I’m no spring chicken. The only time I would dress smartly would be if I had, say, a meeting with board members.

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Originally Posted by Sinnlover

For me it’s the lack of polish used
It seems nobody knows how to bull a shoe or boot anymore.
I can’t stand having scuffed shoes.
Even expensive shoes look sh1te when scuffed up

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Much the same here ,my old Dad was a cobbler who learnt his trade way back in the 1930's . If any of us even thought about leaving the house without polished shoes we would be in for a dose of ear ache from him .
To this day i still insist on my own children and grand kids have polished shoes .
I still think that if a man can be bothered to clean his shoes it goes a long way in peoples estimation of him, i have lost count of the times over the years i have seen a man looking good in a decent suit and his appearance is ruined by scruffy shoes .

I have always favoured Joseph Cheaney on a bang for buck basis, but since Covid, I hardly ever wear anything formal

Definitely agree on Cheaney shoes, have a few pairs. They have good variety for smart casual fashion, at great price points.

Made in England, goodyear welted. But not precious and too expensive like Crockett and Jones.

Since Covid I have also barely worn formal shoes.

I've since found out, from wearing more comfortable New Balance runners, that I should have been wearing a wide fit, possibly for my whole life.

Somewhere out there is a WTB from me seeking a pair of half-decent black shoes to wear with my funeral suit.

This followed an embarrassing episode when I was on chauffeuring duty for a BFGW bride in my Morris Minor (another story).

The cheap black shoes that I had bought a few years previous as it was "not worth spending big money on seldom-worn shoes" developed a bizarre affliction in that they had dissolved in water (it was a very wet day) and were leaving indelible black footprints on anything I stood on, including our hall carpet when I returned home.

TZ on this occasion not coming to my rescue, I made a panic purchase (due to a friend's sudden forthcoming funeral) of a pair of Doc Martin black brogues, which so far have been fine.

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Originally Posted by Norbert

From a loyal Kiwi Polish diehard .

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Got to be Saphir polish surely

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Originally Posted by craig1912

Got to be Saphir polish surely

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No; his father is from Auckland, and his mother from Kracov.

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Originally Posted by craig1912

Got to be Saphir polish surely

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I still have about 6 of the cremes across a range of browns / yellows to play with colours, some clear and then a load of wax tins.

Brilliant stuff.

I started work in the city in 2003. Decent leather soled shoes were the norm. By the time I left in 2019- I don't think 9/10ths of the office knew what they were .(the younger generation). Now I work from home most of them time and even if I do have meetings its very casual. I think I must wear shoes less than 10 times a year. My normal attire is trainers.

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Originally Posted by eagletower

I started work in the city in 2003. Decent leather soled shoes were the norm. By the time I left in 2019- I don't think 9/10ths of the office knew what they were .(the younger generation). Now I work from home most of them time and even if I do have meetings its very casual. I think I must wear shoes less than 10 times a year. My normal attire is trainers.

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Was in the office 11 times this year, usually trainers or some sort; sometimes RM Wills.

I have I believe 2 pairs of unworn Barkers, plus a couple of Sweeney boots worn twice foe some birthdays.

Had a funeral last week, wore my most comfortable of the formal shoe and wow the COVID years have made my feet used to being pampered in slippers and shoes that stretch.

Was only in them for a short period of time before reverting to some loafers, but they were sore.