Best Affordable Style of 2019 – The Shoes

The end of the year means it’s time to hand out some awards. No, there aren’t any little statues to pass along, but over the next few days we’ll still highlight some of the best in affordable men’s style from this past year. Feel free to send in additional nominations to joe@dappered.com.

Allen Edmonds 1st quality shoes when $250 or under

I think more than a few of us were concerned when former CEO Paul Grangaard stepped down in the wake of Caeleres (owners of Famous Footwear) buying Allen Edmonds. But a few years on, Caeleres seems to be more or less doing right by Paul G.’s legacy. Allen Edmonds keeps plugging along. And their sales and promotions are doing the same.

Big Sales = wheelhouse classics for $250? Boots for around $300? That shoe’s for you, Lou.

I don’t know if it’s sustainable, this making of dress shoes, rugged boots, and more in the USA the old fashioned way (Goodyear welted, leather lined, nice calfskin uppers), then selling them at $250 per pair. But that’s where AE’s big sales (key word: big) seem to peg many of their popular models. Right around $250. Boots? Those are understandably a different proposition. Anytime boots drop close to $300, many of our ears (and toes) prick up.

Again, with costs forever on the rise, who knows if that’s sustainable. Those prices are usually limited to the Rediscover America and Anniversary Sales. And where Caeleres has experimented, it seems to be with manufacturing some newer models overseas. Let’s hope they keep making the classics here, stateside? Please?

Bottom line: For now, when on sale, it’s extraordinarily tough to beat a pair of Allen Edmonds.

Also receiving votes: Spier & Mackay’s continued expansion of Goodyear welted shoes & boots. Nordstrom’s house brands (Nordy Men’s Shop, 1901, etc) lines of shoes. The now sold out J. Crew Oar Stripe Oxfords (remember when they were like, $110?). Meermins, even though for some of us they just aren’t comfortable. The adidas Stan Smith. Huckberry’s Rhodes line. DROP’s Carmina Oxfords (when available).