Opinions on Allen Edmonds?

My closet is full of Johnston & Murphy's for dress and casual yet somehow all my dress shoes are black. I can never find brown or tan dress shoes in my size (14D) that I really like. I've never gone more upmarket than my $125-$250 J&Ms but would go a little more expensive. I've seen some of your other threads on shoes and see that some of you guys are into more high-end Italian shoes than my feet need...I mean, I'm a 360 Spider guy, haven't reached Enzo status yet.

That said, I've found the Allen Edmonds Soho in "Cognac Calf", $350, and I really like the looks of them. More expensive than I've had but not ridiculous.

How might one expect the AE to compare to J&M in terms of comfort and wear?

Thanks in advance

 

They're nice shoes. You can find them at Nordstrom's. I like them better than J&M's for sure.

 

Way better than J&M's, go for it.

 

Great shoes -- wearing a pair now. Very well made (right here in the USA, btw) - and for $100 or something relatively reasonable, you can ship them back to the factory where they'll take the whole shoe apart, recondition/repair everything and send it back - essentially a new pair of shoes for $100 every couple years. My father has pairs that are 20yrs old that he's had reconditioned regularly throughout the years and you'd never know how old they are. I have very wide feet and have always been able to find a well-fitting pair in my size.

Fun fact -- Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush were all inaugurated wearing a pair of AE Park Avenues.

There's an outlet in North Carolina somewhere that you can order from -- don't believe they have a website, but if you go find a pair you like and figure out exactly what fits you best, you can call them up and see what their pricing is - significantly cheaper.

Edit - here's a link to the phone # - http://www.allenedmonds.com/mens/allen-edmonds-in-burlington.shtml. It's in Burlington.

 

A big +1.

They're about all I wear anymore when I wear dress or casual shoes. Excellent quality, decent prices and the refurbishment program is top notch and quite affordable.

 

Thanks!

Just called the outlet and they happened to have exactly what I was looking for with miniscule blemish for $235 to my door versus $350 everywhere else.

Can't wait to see them. Thanks again.

 

Wow! Nice deal I need to ring them......

 

FYI, THE BEST Edmonds outlet (IMO) is next to the factory in Port Washington, Wisconsin. Port Washington is about forty fun filled miles from Road America.

 

Great! I've never really been able to spot the "blemish" (or at least it's never been anything that I wouldnt have done to the shoes in one week of wearing anyway...)

One note -- make sure that when you try them on for size you're standing on carpet -- if the bottoms are scuffed at all, they won't take them back. Good luck!

And fyi, if you're pleased with that purchase, they do an (bi?)annual sale where the prices fall another $50/100. You'll probably get the notifications in the mail now that you've ordered.

 

Never tried them --- a good place to look when the NC outlet doesnt have the shoe you want in stock. Thanks!

 

Ferragamo's should be going for around $270 during the Nordstrom Half-Yearly Sale for Men starting on December 26. Ferragamo's are by far the most comfortable dress shoes I have worn that aren't ugly or too expensive (John Lobb).

Bally is also have a 70% off sale as well. Their dress shoes on sale can be had for around $200 at their retail stores.

Allen Edmonds are good but I only get them on a deeeep discount. For instance, www.shoes.com does a 30% - 50% off of sale prices sometime after Christmas and Allen Edmonds can be had for around $130.

 

For sure.

 

I have a few pairs of Edmonds. I like any of their shoes which have a tasseled loafer effect. The tassels look hand-tied and sort of not perfect, in a stylish way, if you know what I mean.

They can tend to run narrow, IMHO.

However, they hold their varnish quite well, and wear forever. If you have a Nordstrom's Rack near you, hit it up. Just got a pair of AE's there for 70.00 -- dark, cordovan-colored dress shoes.

 

I have several pair I wear for business when I have meetings... great shoes... its a good investment.. you can keep them for ever!

I still wear my first pair wing tip oxford lace ups... had them re done 2 x ... they look fantastic. Highly reccomed well worth the money.

Gucci and Ferragamo for leisure, they just dont wear as well.

 

I must one of the few that had a bad experience with Allen Edmonds - My pair fell apart (sole came off the shoe) and I've never bought another pair. I had a few pairs of Johnston & Murphys then moved up to Cole Haan and ended up with Ferragamo (I bought the pair of AE to save $$$). Since that experience I've stayed with Ferragamo and Cole Haan.

 

Just gotta thank you again!

I called the outlet at 3:45p yesterday and ordered the shoes I mentioned above.

When I got to my office at 9:30 this morning they were sitting on my desk. Awesome!

The little "imperfection" is something I'd probably do the first time wearing them anyway so I'll gladly take the $150+ savings.

I'll be going through Burlington next weekend and may have to stop at the outlet in person to see what else I can steal

Thanks man!

 

Allen Edmonds are awesome. I have two pairs and they wear soooo well. The best thing about them is that they get better the more that you wear them. The footbed starts to break in and mold to your foot a bit. They also have a factory refurbishing program where they pull the shoe down to its individual components, restretch the leather, redye the leather, new sole and restich. All that for something like a hundred bucks.

 

Glad it worked out! Good luck at the outlet -- I tend to do poorly in places like that since I'm of the type that buys things when the deal is too good to pass up rather than buying things I actually need!

 

AE are good shoes for sure....the 360 of shoes i'd say
Alden Cordovan are the Enzo of shoes !

 

By that do you mean that even the non-enthusiast would notice the difference??

 

who cares about who notices......wear them and feel good about them....

 

I've worn AE dress shoes exclusively for years and used their recrafting program many times. It is a truly great service. One pair I sent back did not survive the rebuilding process so they sent me a brand new pair for no additional charge. The problem was the old pair had stretched out to fit my foot as it became slightly larger with age. The new pair was the original size and didn't fit at all. I took them to the AE store at Northpark in Dallas and they swapped them for the correct size no questions asked. Great shoes, great company.

 

You are going to love the Cognac color; I have the Berkeley's in Cognac (one of five pairs of AE's), and get complimented on them all the time. I also like the fact that I am supporting a Wisconsin-based company with my purchase.

 

Yes indeed, I'm liking them so far...worn them 2-3 times.

I got a funny compliment the other day from the local "boss" of the wrong side of town who I run into now and then...he said "damn boy, dem's some soul brotha shoes!" So I have at least 1 fan in a town that otherwise has very little AE activity Great compliment coming from the most respected man in the hood, haha

 

Quick update...

Was in Burlington last weekend and stopped by the outlet.

Ended up walking out with the 2 more pair...the Easton in Saddle Brown and the Bel Air in Walnut, $210/each. I'm in business now!