If you want good bbq, go to Texas. Funky soul music, hop on a flight to New Orleans. The best nachos, head north to Newport, RI (yes, you read that correctly). 

But if you want to find the soul of handcrafted shoes, you head to Italy.

I’ve been looking for a way to make shoes in Italy for a long time. As with shoe manufacturing in general, finding a partner that provides the right balance of quality with order sizes that make sense for us at this point has long been the sticking point. 

However, I am excited to announce the upcoming launch of our Chukka Sneaker, a limited edition run of designs handmade in Italy.

For this collection of shoes we have partnered with a third-generation family owned shoe factory on the eastern coast of Italy. Shoemaking is such a way of life for this area that the craft is known locally as “homemade shoes.” Because everyone has grown up in home full of shoemakers, the love of shoemaking (and apparently the artisanal gene) continues to be passed down.

The Chukkas will be available in both Charcoal Gray and Desert Tan. Each pair in this exclusive run comes handmade with an Italian suede upper and a handmade French sole (we are not exaggerating when we say that this is the world’s most comfortable sole).

This Chukka Sneaker design is the concrete representation of our minimalist ethos: remove what is unnecessary and focus on the quality and use of what remains. 

On their own, the Italian suede and French sole are the best elements you can use when making a shoe. However, I believe it is the infusion of soul by these craftsmen that breathes life into the design. 

Once you put these on, you will not want to take them off. At least I haven’t.

Beautiful, handcrafted shoes. Wide, clean beaches. Delicious, heaping plates of pasta. This is a relationship we look forward to having for a long, long time.

Best,

Rory