The Craft — No. 04

Bespoke Is One of the Most
Misused Words in Footwear.

It appears on the websites of brands that use standard lasts. It is applied to shoes that are simply made in a choice of colours. It has come to mean, in much of the industry, little more than "customisable."

In our workshop, it means something specific. Here is what.

What bespoke actually means

A bespoke shoe is made on a last constructed from measurements and tracings of one individual's feet. The last, the pattern, the upper, the construction — every element is made specifically for that person and no one else.

It is distinct from made-to-order, where a standard last is used and the shoe is built to a customer's specification of style, leather, and construction. Made-to-order allows considerable personalisation. Bespoke solves a different problem — the problem of fit that no standard last can achieve.

If you have ever felt that shoes simply do not fit your feet — regardless of size, regardless of brand — bespoke is likely the answer.

Who it is for

Our bespoke clients include people with genuinely difficult feet — significant width variation, high arches, asymmetrical sizing, conditions that have made shoe-buying a lifelong frustration. For these customers, bespoke is not a luxury. It is the only solution.

But bespoke is also chosen by people whose feet are entirely unremarkable, who simply want a shoe that is entirely theirs — designed around their taste, their wardrobe, their working life. A shoe that no one else in the world owns. Both are valid reasons to commission one.

The process

Every bespoke commission at Andrew McDonald begins the same way — with an hour in the workshop.

The investment

Bespoke commissions at Andrew McDonald begin at $3,000 AUD. This reflects the time — typically forty or more hours of skilled handwork — and the materials involved.

It also reflects something harder to quantify: a shoe built on your last, maintained and resoled over time, will last the rest of your life. The cost per year of use, calculated honestly, is modest. The alternative — buying shoes that do not fit correctly, replacing them every few years, managing the discomfort in between — is both more expensive and less satisfying.

After the first pair

The lasting benefit of a bespoke commission is the last. Once it exists, subsequent pairs are made from it — the consultation and fitting process does not need to be repeated. Many of our bespoke clients commission a new pair every year or two, building over time a wardrobe of shoes that fits them perfectly in every style.

This is, we think, the most sensible approach to buying shoes that exists.