Are AE shoes worth the premium ?

The AEs accessibility (online and there are plenty of B&M locations), the variety of their selection, the availabilty of their shoes (I waited almost two years for a particular pair of Aldens to become available), the price point of their shoes (though not inexpensive, they are certainly not in the stratosphere as far as shoes go) and most importantly, their refurbishment program all equate to a resounding "yes", imo, regarding whether the "premium" is worth it.

If you like AE shoes and can afford them, then they are an excellent investment. Also, invest in a nice horse hair brush, and some chamois clothes and cedar shoe trees. When it comes to the shoe trees, do not look at shoe trees as something they are trying to sell you in addition to the shoes, rather, they are an essential part of the purchase.

Wear them in good health.

I own two pair of AEs which I purchased some 10+ years ago. The discontinued Orleans, which was the AE version of the suede buck and the Cole, which are chocolate suede penny loafers. I have been quite happy with both of them.

Alden's look nice o.n line, but living in small town south, I have never seen a dealer carry them. I wear a 12 a or b and it seems that Allen Edmonds has more styles in my sizes and they list the lasts so I can switch styles and know how they are going to fit if I order direct. Their customer service has also been first rate.

About 25 years ago I purchased two pair of Allen Edmonds, same style different color. One pair I still have, the other must have had the leather lining from a different batch and I disentigrated totally after 6-7 years.



Years back a local store, before it burned and never reopened, carried Florsheim Imperials which were very good, I cannot comment now as it has been over 30 years since buying andy Florsheim shoes.

Spoiler alert: Allen Edmonds has a sale happening right now.

How true to size do AE shoes run? I have very wide feet and 3E is a concern. Do they run narrower than listed or more true to the listed size? Do they stretch any?

They run true to size.

jasonb8736 said:

Jim...You touch on an interesting point, IMO. We've evolved into a more "disposable" society. I think we were eventually conditioned to accept lower overall quality products and manufacturing (and please...no offense is intended here regarding those of us proudly working in the manufacturing industry). Think about it. Cars, clothing, electronics...heck, even many firearms have a tendency to suffer from a quicker deterioration. Of course, there are other impact factors such as finer sophistication, etc.

In any event, from my simple view, stuff just ain't what it used to be.

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It's a nice story, but anyone who deals with cars professionally knows they (and their components) last probably 3 to 4 times longer now. Engines have gone from 100k lifespan to 250k+, tires from 15k to 40-50k, body work from 20 years to basically infinity, etc..

Neognosis said:

the question was not whether AE shoes are as good now as they were before the company changed hands.

The question was whether or not they are worth their price over other brands. Since "other brands" that cost less are certainly not hand made, probably not recraftable, and certainly not made in the US, and are certainly made with lesser quality materials, the answer to the OP is "YES."



Whether or not they are as good as they once were is irrelevant to the OP's original question. They are still superior to cheaper shoes and will typically outlast them easily.

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Good deal. I got my first pair of AE in 2011 so I have no experience with the pre 2006 variety. I got them because they're recraftable. It takes me a long time to find shoes that fit. I also noticed with the AE's, that I don't have to spend an additional $60 on insoles.

I just got the first pair of AE's resoled after 3.5 years, so I figure about 7 years for original soles and one recraft job. Add in shoe cream and polish, and all the other "stuff" to take care of the shoe, I figure $85 a year (rough estimate here and I'm also assuming one already has shoe trees, a polishing cloth, and a horsehair brush and / or dauber). When I see the dress shoes at department stores, I just shake my head. The ones at department stores are good for what they are (no way I'm going to polish those things), I do notice the difference the weight.

Bonus is they're made on the USA.

gegarrenton said:

It's a nice story, but anyone who deals with cars professionally knows they (and their components) last probably 3 to 4 times longer now. Engines have gone from 100k lifespan to 250k+, tires from 15k to 40-50k, body work from 20 years to basically infinity, etc..

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I assume you know more about cars than I do. Most guys do. But...I have two very close friends who are design engineers for big car companies and they tell me quite the opposite. I stand by my opinion; however, you deliver a valid point as well. Thanks for offering your view.

***An early morning conversation with one of my automotive design engineer friends compels me to retract my overall comment regarding the quality of modern vehicles versus older cars. The spectrum of examination was rather large (as can happen when discussing engineering with an engineer). He mentioned that certain quality aspects have surrendered to cheaper parts and labour; however, modern vehicles are likely to outlast older vehicles if properly cared for and doted on. Not to mention the higher safety ratings of modern cars. The downside is more expensive parts, and more parts. I stand corrected.

jasonb8736 said:

I assume you know more about cars than I do. Most guys do. But...I have two very close friends who are design engineers for big car companies and they tell me quite the opposite. I stand by my opinion; however, you deliver a valid point as well. Thanks for offering your view.

***An early morning conversation with one of my automotive design engineer friends compels me to retract my overall comment regarding the quality of modern vehicles versus older cars. The spectrum of examination was rather large (as can happen when discussing engineering with an engineer). He mentioned that certain quality aspects have surrendered to cheaper parts and labour; however, modern vehicles are likely to outlast older vehicles if properly cared for and doted on. Not to mention the higher safety ratings of modern cars. The downside is more expensive parts, and more parts. I stand corrected.

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Yeah, that's the gist of it. And the last part is certainly correct, there are eye wateringly expensive car parts these days to fix anything. And lots of 'em. Even things like dump trucks come with power windows and doors and bluetooth in the radio. It's insane.

Corey said:

How true to size do AE shoes run? I have very wide feet and 3E is a concern. Do they run narrower than listed or more true to the listed size? Do they stretch any?

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Learn your last. The #5 last used on the Park and fifth Ave shoes are narrow and long even in 3E. I wear a wide and while they fit in width they are a bit longer than other lasts. The #3 last and #7 last fit me the best.

Having a shoe made on the correct last is the difference form liking a pair of shoes and loving a pair of shoes.

http://www.allenedmonds.com/aeonline/AllAboutLastsView?catalogId=40000000001&langId=-1&storeId=1

got my first pair in 1964 and still wearing them. oh, I kidddd but loved them back then. now I live in rural Oregon and rarely wear leather dress shoes

OK so I was in Allen Edmonds store on michigan ave in chicago the other day and I had zero interest in purchasing anything they had. I look on line, I see a lot of things I really love.....

Preface, I have more than a dozen pairs (probably two). My grandfather wore AE exclusively the last 50 years of his life (mowing grass and shoveling snow in them), I'm biased but not unrealistic. They are the equivalent of saying that a 911 is the minimum entry for a sports car. It is the entry level for snob in the shoe world, but you can go infinitely higher than that but it will cost you. If you want to play, you should have at least one pair at that level. Like a lot of things you pay a certain amount for the name and heritage, AE isn't bad on that scale.

I don't know what it was, I've only been in one of their non-factory stores a few times, but I didn't see anything that looked really high quality.... yet if I'm at the shoe vault, I feel like a kid in a candy store (last three pairs are strawfut (brown/navy), elgin (tan) and weybridge (chili)). I like what they are doing with the dress boots and the bourbon series. Don't buy it for the name, buy it for the pair that speaks to you, and have a bit of confidence that you are getting something that has a genuine craftsmanship that you flat out don't find in department stores. It helps if you can at least get sized in a pair of AE (I can blindly order a pair of 9.5E).

If you see a pair of AE that you like, buy it. But never buy anything just because it has a name on it.

NoKetchupAllowed said:

OK so I was in Allen Edmonds store on michigan ave in chicago the other day and I had zero interest in purchasing anything they had. I look on line, I see a lot of things I really love.....

Preface, I have more than a dozen pairs (probably two). My grandfather wore AE exclusively the last 50 years of his life (mowing grass and shoveling snow in them), I'm biased but not unrealistic. They are the equivalent of saying that a 911 is the minimum entry for a sports car. It is the entry level for snob in the shoe world, but you can go infinitely higher than that but it will cost you. If you want to play, you should have at least one pair at that level. Like a lot of things you pay a certain amount for the name and heritage, AE isn't bad on that scale.

I don't know what it was, I've only been in one of their non-factory stores a few times, but I didn't see anything that looked really high quality.... yet if I'm at the shoe vault, I feel like a kid in a candy store (last three pairs are strawfut (brown/navy), elgin (tan) and weybridge (chili)). I like what they are doing with the dress boots and the bourbon series. Don't buy it for the name, buy it for the pair that speaks to you, and have a bit of confidence that you are getting something that has a genuine craftsmanship that you flat out don't find in department stores. It helps if you can at least get sized in a pair of AE (I can blindly order a pair of 9.5E).

If you see a pair of AE that you like, buy it. But never buy anything just because it has a name on it.

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Being a car nut that over-uses car analogies myself, while I understand the point you're trying to make, i'm not sure it's a fair one. An AE in calf leather is really more like a corvette and the more expensive Alden would be closer to the 911. C&J, Edward Green, Crispin - those would be your Aston Martins, Ferrari's, etc.

hmmmm, if we are talking car comparisons, I have to politely disagree. GM is not exactly known for having good interior design. If we are talking performance stats, nike is more your market. We are talking finely constructed vs bespoke levels. There is a high percentage of the population that would roll their eyes at the base Porsche price (while turn around and purchase the Shelby Mustang... different strokes... I like my high end sneakers too).

NoKetchupAllowed said:

hmmmm, if we are talking car comparisons, I have to politely disagree. GM is not exactly known for having good interior design. If we are talking performance stats, nike is more your market. We are talking finely constructed vs bespoke levels. There is a high percentage of the population that would roll their eyes at the base Porsche price (while turn around and purchase the Shelby Mustang... different strokes... I like my high end sneakers too).

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While I would generally agree on GM interiors, I don't think you have sat in the C7 - the interior is on another level, but this is an entirely different subject.

What is it with car analogies, hah. It's like, a universal trend in all conversations. They also never really go anywhere (like a GM).

If we are really going to use car analogies, you guys are all way off. Equating AE to a 911 is borderline hilarious. AE's are around a 5.0 Mustang level. C&J, EG etc are your midranges and top end Astons and such you are looking at bespoke Cleverlely and Fosters.

Note that none of this is terribly important. For starters it's a silly car analogy, second, most people drive Fords and Toyotas, unless they are a shoe nut why would their shoes have to be super high end? AE's and Alden are both very solid choices.

I'm late to this discussion, but I'll chime in. I have the AE LaSalle, which is one of their versions of the Norwegian Split Toe in black calfskin. They were very comfortable out of the box, and I wear them weekly. I also have the Alden version, also in calfskin. Those were not the most comfortable out of the box. In the two years or so that I've had both pairs, the Aldens have settled into a very comfortable shoe with thick soles that are molded to my foot. The AE feels comparable to when I first bought them. The leather on the Aldens is thicker, and the appearance is much more handcrafted. When I put the two side by side, it is easy to see why there is a $250 premium on the Aldens from a quality and workmanship point of view. Nevertheless, the AE's are a great, comfortable shoe, and as a step up from the $100 shoe is a good value at the $200-250 they can run.

... and then car companies go and start making shoes:

Don't forget the Aston Martin Lobb's.