Business Shoes

[BeardedPelican]

Been working on my way up in the world and a good suit has already been taken care of. Any suggestions on a nice pair of professional looking shoes?

I want to hear what you guys wear all day everyday for business wear with a suit. I love leather and prefer American made, price isn't much of an option but as long as it doesn't exceed 14k I'll be good.

Any suggestions are welcome

[BESEPUL]

I like Bostonians and Mezlans.

[John Chambers]

Hand made black Tony Lama shark skin is my preference.

[50BMG]

. I love leather and prefer American made, price isn't much of an option but as long as it doesn't exceed 14k I'll be good.

Any suggestions are welcome

Allen Edmonds without a doubt. If you have access to any of their AE outlets, you can factory blems and factory firsts for a great price. Then they have a redrafting service that runs about $100 but will return basically new shoes.

[AlwaysVigilant]

John Lobb, UK...not American made, but if money were no object and you don't mind a flight to get measured...I would have them make my shoes.

Here is a letter they sent out to previous guests and their friends this year. Typifies the experience from what I hear.

http://www.johnlobbltd.co.uk/main/2013.pdf

[ChuteTheMall]

Down in the $100 range, I've had great luck for years with Rockports when I was on my feet hour after hour; they always seem to be lighter in weight and need less break-in than anything else.

Of course, that also means they won't last forever, and with synthetic soles they might not be dressy enough for some.

[Saladin]

Bally of Switzerland offers comfort that you will never believe. Almost as if they are broken in before you purchase.

The style is great, and they speak of subtle elegance and taste.

[Vigilant]

I recently purchased a couple pair of ECCO dress shoes at VonMaur. Reasonably priced at $140 in black and brown or cordovan, they actually have decent "fighting" soles, not the slick wood or leather typical of dress shoes, but good vibram type that are comfortable, yet you can run if need be, and get traction if needed.

[coastalcop]

Rockport or easy spirit wing tips. I could run a mile or stand for hours in the easy spirits. The rock ports are shaping up to be just as comfortable

[Lucky Jackson]

Back when I was on the road selling I wore "Johnson Murphy" shoes. They were good looking and held up very well.

Nothing is worse than a guy that tries to dress well and he ignores the shoes.

Having a nice pair of shined shoes will make the right impression.

[Satch]

Business dress - Allen Edmond for office environment. If there is a need for any significant time on the feet Rockport makes a great shoe for business dress. These should work with blazer / slacks or suit. You could run in the Rockport shoes if necessary I get a lot of business attire from Brooks Brothers (outlets as well) and lands end. Personal taste and mileage may vary.


For business casual it is LL bead chinos and such.

[michael]

Allen Edmonds are without a doubt the most bon vivant, classy, and durable dress shoes. A good pair will last decades with resoling.

I have some Rockports I like for comfort, but they are not as durable and I have yet to find a pair that is as dressy as I need for daily work. They are fine for casual Friday, but not during the week where I work.

[duey1267]

Florsheim Imperials. Made in the USA all leather, take a great shine, less than 200.00 a pair.

[JPS]

Allen Edmonds or Aldens

[LawDog]

I wear Rockports. I wear suits a lot, and looking good is more important than it should be in my job. I also could justify spending a lot more money on shoes. But I just don't feel the need to. If I were being judged by fashionistas in New York, I would probably have to upgrade. But for a country lawyer in Alaska, it's a good choice. I'll drop some change for a good pair of boots, because I can appreciate what that extra money buys me. But with dress shoes, I see no advantage to the custom Italian shoes. None of the options among dress shoes are really ideal for fighting. The Rockports are better than others for running. And they are cheap enough that I don't have to worry about caring for them in a way that will make them last forever. I can just buy new shoes every year or two.

[ERN]

Allen Edmonds with the suit.

Ecco for daily business casual.

[TFA303]

I wear a suit and tie 6 days a week, so I've spent a lot of time in dress shoes.
Johnston & Murphy have worked well for me. Allen Edmonds are also excellent.

I've found Bostonian to fail pretty quickly for their price point.

I really like dress boots these days; they give you a lot more support and confidence that they'll stay in place if you had to do something unexpectedly strenuous.
31962

[TrojanSkyCop1]

Not sure if they're considered true "business shoes" per se, but snce disvoering them in the UAE, I've become quite fond of MBT ("The Anti-Shoe") brand:

http://www.official-mbt-shoes.com/mbt-shuguli-gtx-black-mens-shoes-p-1277.html

http://www.official-mbt-shoes.com/mbt-karani-black-mens-shoes-p-1255.html

[Tom S]

Mephisto's are definitely worth a look. Hands down the most comfortable I've ever worn, although I've never had custom shoes made. Most of them run in the $300-600 range. While not inexpensive you can certainly spend more for less quality. The pair I have are probably 12 years old and still very functional.

[Riz58]

Florsheims worn daily here.

[BarnStorm]

Tried lots of different ones over the years and the most comfortable I've ever found that are affordable are a model called "Blast" by Born. I can stand in them for hour upon hour without issue. However they don't exactly look the part when mated with a suit. They are a tad casual for that.

To go with a suit I would probably choose Bostonian for the money. If you want to go all out (but not wait for a custom shoe) maybe Ralph Lauren's "Purple Label" line?

[reforger2002]

Buffalo Jackson

http://buffalojackson.com/plain-toe-oxford-for-men-bison.html

http://buffalojackson.com/media/catalog/product/cache/4/image/441x664/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/p/l/plain-toe-oxford-shoe-for-men.jpg

[Kyosogi]

I'll join the Rockport crowd. Of all the brands I used to wear, they never gave me a single problem.

[BeardedPelican]

Buffalo Jackson

I have to agree with Columbianito, that is a fine looking shoe indeed! Got to see if I can try a pair of those

[Huntindoc]

I switched from Rockports to Ariat boots several years ago. Patients complement my boots on nearly a daily basis.

[Yooper75]

My every day footwear of choice is a pair of Justin boots but my all time favorite boots are Tony Lama boots. A good well made boot is hard to beat for comfort and mine get worn for 10-14 hours a day with a good mixture of walking and standing on different surfaces from carpet, gravel, and concrete.

Here is what I'm ordering for a dressier boot.

http://www.tonylama.com/en/guys_Handcrafted_USA.html?424fccf8=7900

[reforger2002]

I have to agree with Columbianito, that is a fine looking shoe indeed! Got to see if I can try a pair of those


I have to finally replace my HS Trask Gallatin - the HS Trask have been resoled maybe 7 times and re-stitched in places - my shoe repair guy says it's time - he showed me a pair of Buffalo Jackson shoes - he say's they're tanks - the bison leather should last 15 years or more and they are soled and stitched so they can be repaired and resoled

[fish78]

American made? Look no further than ALDEN.

[Doug Little]

Love my Cole Haan shoes. Very comfortable. Be prepared to pay $150-$200 a pair. For luxury, Ferragamos are fabulous. Made in Italy and will set you back $650-$800 a pair. Don't skimp on shoes or watches for business attire. How ridiculous would it look to have plain jane wheels on a Porsche or a Ferrari. Since men don't wear much jewelry it is all about your watch. I am partial to Panerai, but many here go for Rolex or Omega. There are a few good watch threads here already.

[michael]

I have two pair of Cole Hann's and like them, but they are still not "the ones" for me. I am still searching.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

[Doug Little]

Hand made black Tony Lama shark skin is my preference.

Great for Texas and Arizona. Don't know where BP is located though.