Perhaps you might consider stocking the revived 'Paul Sargent' brand? I believe their shoes are made by the same Alfred Sargent staff and machines on the same premises and are of the same excellent quality. I bought a pair of Paul Sargent boots made for another Doncaster retailer and can attest that they are superb.
Sorry for the late reply.... You must have visited Richard and Michelle at the shoe room. They used to work for us up until they left several years ago and set up their business just up the road! We had Alfred Sargent shoes up until they went bust, and then eventually, the name Paul Sargent reappeared, and we were unable to get in contact with him? Little bit suspect. Well now they are making such small numbers I hear they are mainly focusing on their own website and not retailers. This seems to be the way most of the shoe manufacturers are going.....why sell your shoes at trade price when now with the advent of the Internet you can get full retail, with no rent, rates or extra staff to pay.. But well done for getting a lovely pair of shoes. Antony
Great video as always, Anthony. Owning of quality boots and shoes is a strange addiction. We all like bargain,and always looking for an excuse to buy another pair. My late Father always said you can a judge man by the state of his footwear. At end of day people will vote with there feet.
The few customers we have these days seem to understand why it costs £100 to do a full rebuild on their shoes. Unfortunately, we are down to one repairer, and I'm helping out. That's down from four full-time repairers and me ! Sales are down 60% from pre covid. Down from four to two on the sales side of the shop......our other shop in South Elmsall is now totally franchised out too. But the strange thing is I've personally not been happier in many years. The pressure of it all was painful. We had created a monster of a business that got within 20k to a million pounds turnover. I like the slower pace and having a 4 day week. The landlord reduced the rent from 25k to 15k, and the payable rates dropped to 3k from 15k. Without this help, we wouldn't still be trading.
Loake, how do they get away with saying made in England when they no longer are. Judging by the amount of seconds they have in the factory shop makes me think they have a quality problem now. I got my money back on a pair of Loxley cracking after 5 wears. The leather upper were as hard as hell, extremely uncomfortable, won't be buying Loake again
I remember chatting about this with Tony last time I was in the shop a few years ago. I have 4 pairs of Church's....First pair I bought in 2006 and have been re soled 4 times by the shoe healer. They are still going strong after 18 years! For the last 8 years they have been worn at least ones or twice a week!
They used to be very decent. Knurled wheel finishing touches at the £199 price point back in 2016. Essentially went to mass volume when they opened factories in India, likely needed to as moving upmarket wasn't viable or feasible. The general population has next to no interest or inclination to wear propor shoes nowadays. Pleather is almost the go to for formal wear.
Hi anth, question please, Is it common for Northampton shoes to use micro rubber midsole? I've seen an Alfred Sargent for J Crew pair that said it has micro rubber midsole, Do you think it is a good or practical material or not?
Hi anth, please give me understanding, you as a Cobbler and leather worker, you are in the position to educate us We always read online that a certain brand leather upper is better than the other. (I'm focusing only to the leather uppers) For example,C&J, alden and other top tier brands, been praised for having "more beautiful leather uppers" But I have seen loose grain, leather uppers from these brands (alden, AS exclusive collection, perhaps C&J idk) The question now: In your experience, in what ways C&J (bench grade) leather uppers are better? (When they are not like bespoke pairs which only uses the Best portions of a hide) And, in general, do leather uppers from ALL well known NorthHampton brands are all basically the same quality? (given no loose grain) Always thanks
Taking price out of the equation, English made Church's shoes are a fantastic product, very high quality leather and construction. However, 2 things, doubling the price overnight is primarily the issue - are they worth it? Well value is subjective, if they fit well, you like them and are willing to pay the price, then arguably they are value............. but, and it's a big but, they are not in the same league as EG, and I would argue not as good as CJ Handgrade.... yes I possess all these brands..... One thing I cannot accept with Church's, outside or price gouging, is their poor quality leather soles at the price point.....Most other manufacturers at this level use oak bark tanned leather soles, Church's still use "standard" leather soles that wear out much quicker...... In fact from my experience, even when Church's were lower priced, their leather soles wore out quicker than all other brands.......... Summary, very good shoes, crap soles, way overpriced...... I own Church's, EG, CJ Handgrade, GC, AS, PS, Trickers, Loake, Carmina, Meermin, EB, RMW, Grenson, Cheaney, and others...........
Fabulous response....you know your shoes. I don't think we've ever had anyone complaining about the leather soles on church's shoes...well, not that i can remember, but that's not to say that the others are using better leather. Thank you so much for your input. Antony
I was a Church’s buyer since de 80’s, the last I bought was a pair of Ashley. No way I pay a 1000 while Tricker”s are better and C&J are of the same quality.
I've a near 10 year old pair of Barker Grant and they are anything but poor quality. Cheaney they are not of course but for what they are they're fabulous imo.
Oh, we do still think that Barker's are good shoes, but the prices are going up all the time ! It's so tough 😫 trying to retail any footwear at the moment. Antony
@@shoehealer8853 yes I can imagine, I've 3 pairs of Barkers, none were bought for full RRP. My oldest are a pair of Barker Grant, bought perhaps 8 year ago in a Department Store in Ireland at slight discount, perhaps €250.... these are now €390. To be fair in 2018 a Kia Sorento was €40k here new, they are now over €60k so it's not just shoes. Almost €400 for a pair of Barker seems absurd though. I visited the Barker factory 2 years ago and there is great value in their factory shop. Trying to retail quality, investment gents shoes must be indeed difficult.
Totally disagree, as a long time Trickers owner including two new pairs purchased in December they as as good as it gets in that price range, only comparison is Crockett and Jones
Perhaps you might consider stocking the revived 'Paul Sargent' brand? I believe their shoes are made by the same Alfred Sargent staff and machines on the same premises and are of the same excellent quality. I bought a pair of Paul Sargent boots made for another Doncaster retailer and can attest that they are superb.
Sorry for the late reply....
You must have visited Richard and Michelle at the shoe room. They used to work for us up until they left several years ago and set up their business just up the road!
We had Alfred Sargent shoes up until they went bust, and then eventually, the name Paul Sargent reappeared, and we were unable to get in contact with him?
Little bit suspect.
Well now they are making such small numbers I hear they are mainly focusing on their own website and not retailers.
This seems to be the way most of the shoe manufacturers are going.....why sell your shoes at trade price when now with the advent of the Internet you can get full retail, with no rent, rates or extra staff to pay..
But well done for getting a lovely pair of shoes.
Antony
My Cheaney Coniston field boots, £595 today, bought in 2001, are wonderful and well worth the money.
I've got the rough out suede Coniston the more I wear them the better they get
Great boots
Great video as always, Anthony.
Owning of quality boots and shoes is a strange addiction.
We all like bargain,and always looking for an excuse to buy another pair.
My late Father always said you can a judge man by the state of his footwear.
At end of day people will vote with there feet.
I've had a cull on eBay, sold 26 pairs in last two months, had 51 pairs of boots, now down to 25
Indeed, a well-heeled man is always the sole of a party.
Great video, Anthony - I like the idea of reacting to comments and look forward to a few more in the future 👍
Great vid - thanks for the shout out! 😊
Are these high prices any help to the repair side of the trade or does the cost of repair deter customers?
The few customers we have these days seem to understand why it costs £100 to do a full rebuild on their shoes.
Unfortunately, we are down to one repairer, and I'm helping out. That's down from four full-time repairers and me !
Sales are down 60% from pre covid.
Down from four to two on the sales side of the shop......our other shop in South Elmsall is now totally franchised out too. But the strange thing is I've personally not been happier in many years.
The pressure of it all was painful. We had created a monster of a business that got within 20k to a million pounds turnover.
I like the slower pace and having a 4 day week.
The landlord reduced the rent from 25k to 15k, and the payable rates dropped to 3k from 15k. Without this help, we wouldn't still be trading.
Loake, how do they get away with saying made in England when they no longer are. Judging by the amount of seconds they have in the factory shop makes me think they have a quality problem now. I got my money back on a pair of Loxley cracking after 5 wears. The leather upper were as hard as hell, extremely uncomfortable, won't be buying Loake again
I had an similar experience with the uppers , very uncomfortable.
I will never get a cheaper brand again .
Say it as it is and face the Devil and don’t forget Tony The Devil wears Prada 🤗🤗🤗👍👍👍👍 Keep this channel going it’s great
💕🕊️🤗🤗🤗
Cheers holy moly...👍
I remember chatting about this with Tony last time I was in the shop a few years ago. I have 4 pairs of Church's....First pair I bought in 2006 and have been re soled 4 times by the shoe healer. They are still going strong after 18 years! For the last 8 years they have been worn at least ones or twice a week!
Sorry for the late reply. we've been on our jollies over to sunny Spain.
4 pairs will keep you going forever!
No need for any more.
Antony
I’m a little disappointed to hear that Loake1880 aren’t entirely made in England. And with a fibreboard heal stack. Such a shame.
They used to be very decent. Knurled wheel finishing touches at the £199 price point back in 2016.
Essentially went to mass volume when they opened factories in India, likely needed to as moving upmarket wasn't viable or feasible.
The general population has next to no interest or inclination to wear propor shoes nowadays. Pleather is almost the go to for formal wear.
Hi anth, question please,
Is it common for Northampton shoes to use micro rubber midsole?
I've seen an Alfred Sargent for J Crew pair that said it has micro rubber midsole,
Do you think it is a good or practical material or not?
Sorry for the late reply...another video on its way....
Great video reviewing viewers comments
The original owner of Church’s bought Joseph Cheaney so if you want that quality and value Cheaney is where it’s at!
If loake 1880 uses compressed cardboard, this means Barker creative/country collection is Better quality, as it uses real Leather heel stacks.
You're absolutely spot on 👍
Hi anth, please give me understanding, you as a Cobbler and leather worker, you are in the position to educate us
We always read online that a certain brand leather upper is better than the other. (I'm focusing only to the leather uppers)
For example,C&J, alden and other top tier brands, been praised for having "more beautiful leather uppers"
But I have seen loose grain, leather uppers from these brands (alden, AS exclusive collection, perhaps C&J idk)
The question now:
In your experience, in what ways C&J (bench grade) leather uppers are better? (When they are not like bespoke pairs which only uses the Best portions of a hide)
And, in general, do leather uppers from ALL well known NorthHampton brands are all basically the same quality? (given no loose grain)
Always thanks
What a lovely message. Thank you.
I've just done a video regarding your question. It will be on soon.
Sorry for the delay but I've been on holiday 👍
Appreciate your always taking time! More success to your store.
NO rush, enjoy your family time.
Taking price out of the equation, English made Church's shoes are a fantastic product, very high quality leather and construction. However, 2 things, doubling the price overnight is primarily the issue - are they worth it? Well value is subjective, if they fit well, you like them and are willing to pay the price, then arguably they are value............. but, and it's a big but, they are not in the same league as EG, and I would argue not as good as CJ Handgrade.... yes I possess all these brands..... One thing I cannot accept with Church's, outside or price gouging, is their poor quality leather soles at the price point.....Most other manufacturers at this level use oak bark tanned leather soles, Church's still use "standard" leather soles that wear out much quicker...... In fact from my experience, even when Church's were lower priced, their leather soles wore out quicker than all other brands..........
Summary, very good shoes, crap soles, way overpriced...... I own Church's, EG, CJ Handgrade, GC, AS, PS, Trickers, Loake, Carmina, Meermin, EB, RMW, Grenson, Cheaney, and others...........
Fabulous response....you know your shoes. I don't think we've ever had anyone complaining about the leather soles on church's shoes...well, not that i can remember, but that's not to say that the others are using better leather.
Thank you so much for your input.
Antony
I was a Church’s buyer since de 80’s, the last I bought was a pair of Ashley.
No way I pay a 1000 while Tricker”s are better and C&J are of the same quality.
Well said Rob. There will be lots that agree.
Church’s shoes definitely not worth the price
Certainly big buck's....it would be a hard sell for me. Thanks for your input 👍
You’d be better off spending your money on Edward Green, Cheaney, C & J , Viberg ..
And Trickers
@@richyclubsport5155
Most definitely
It will be interesting to see if Prada can pull this off ! 😕
Loake, Barker and Alfred Sargent and staggeringly poor quality. Barker was a fabulous brand fifty years ago.
I've a near 10 year old pair of Barker Grant and they are anything but poor quality. Cheaney they are not of course but for what they are they're fabulous imo.
Oh, we do still think that Barker's are good shoes, but the prices are going up all the time ! It's so tough 😫 trying to retail any footwear at the moment.
Antony
@@shoehealer8853 folk aren't in the mindset of seeing good shoes as investment pieces these days unfortunately
@@shoehealer8853 yes I can imagine, I've 3 pairs of Barkers, none were bought for full RRP. My oldest are a pair of Barker Grant, bought perhaps 8 year ago in a Department Store in Ireland at slight discount, perhaps €250.... these are now €390. To be fair in 2018 a Kia Sorento was €40k here new, they are now over €60k so it's not just shoes. Almost €400 for a pair of Barker seems absurd though. I visited the Barker factory 2 years ago and there is great value in their factory shop. Trying to retail quality, investment gents shoes must be indeed difficult.
Tricker has gone down hill horribly….the external leather is a very poor grade.
Not Trickers surely?
@@sursorn5575 hard leather, ergo cheap.
Totally disagree, as a long time Trickers owner including two new pairs purchased in December they as as good as it gets in that price range, only comparison is Crockett and Jones
@@richyclubsport5155 Good for you. I bought mine in 1973, ergo, my experience; my witness.
@@mikewinston8709
I don’t agree I have a pair of Stows and the leather is superb