I wear a size 17/18 shoe. Am I screwed out of buying good dress shoes?

[bishop]

I have a pair of cordovan Ecco lace-ups that do the job but don't have the gloss I'd like. I have insoles from a running shoe company that keeps my restless legs at bay. One of these days I want to have a good pair of dress shoes made to my feet and specs, not buying whatever clown shoes are left for us poor big fellows and have to rig some sort of "custom" insole. But when I look around at websites such as Allen Edmonds, they apparently think feet only grow to size 16.

I know I'm not the only B&B member with gigantic feet. Can you point me in a good direction for future reference?

 

[commanderkeen]

Rochester Big and Tall in New York City is the place to go shopping if you have big feet. My brother has size 17 feet and he gets his shoes there when he is in town. I noticed you live in SC, hopefully you have a trip to NYC lined up in the near future.

 

[Dripp]

You can certainly have a pair made for you, but it will be expensive - especially if you have it made with something as extraordinary as shell cordovan. You might check out leathersoul.com or leffot.com as I see that they post photos of custom shoes from companies like George Cleverly on a fairly regular basis.

 

[global_dev]

i think if i was in your position ( i have 3E width, which while not hard to come by, does limit my choices) I would get one or 2 pair of classic dress shoes that are gonna last for a long time and can be re-finished... and spend the money.

Maybe call up one of these companies and see if they will help out. they probably don't do them on the regular but have some form or last just in case.

good luck

 

[bishop]

This is encouraging. I noticed some of these custom shoe retailers do trunk shows in major metro areas. I am reasonably close to Atlanta, and a drive to Charlotte or Asheville is always a welcome vacation. I assume I would need to visit a B&M -- or at least a sales rep at a trunk show -- so my foot could be measured. How much are we talking for such a product?

 

[Doc4]

I have a pair of cordovan Ecco lace-ups that do the job but don't have the gloss I'd like. I have insoles from a running shoe company that keeps my restless legs at bay. One of these days I want to have a good pair of dress shoes made to my feet and specs, not buying whatever clown shoes are left for us poor big fellows and have to rig some sort of "custom" insole. But when I look around at websites such as Allen Edmonds, they apparently think feet only grow to size 16.

I know I'm not the only B&B member with gigantic feet. Can you point me in a good direction for future reference?

If you are talking about having a pair of bespoke shoes made to your personal foot ... a 'last' created to fit your specific foot and a shoe made 'one off' to fit it ... then there is absolutely no reason why that can't be done, and there are plenty of bespoke shoemakers ready, willing and able to do that for you.

... but the cost ... oh the cost.

(I'd expect things to start at a grand and move up quickly depending on which maker you pick, materials, options, and all that.)





... oh, and remind me never to get in a $h!t-kicking contest with you!

 

[bishop]

Hmm...any "middle of the road" makers, e.g. Allen Edmonds type? If I spent thousands on one pair of shoes, I wouldn't wear them out of the house. Yikes. Maybe if this life insurance career move works out, I'd be more open to that.

I have a pair of hiking shoes I refer to as $hit-stompers. Should we get into such a contest, I'll bring them.

 

[Dripp]

In thinking further, I seem to recall that Alden will do extra long shoes on a one off basis. Might want to send them an email.

 

[Mojo88]

Try bigshoes.com .. I think they have some shoes at a decent price until you can get the custom made ones that you are looking for.

 

[Zarba]

I have a pair of cordovan Ecco lace-ups that do the job but don't have the gloss I'd like. I have insoles from a running shoe company that keeps my restless legs at bay. One of these days I want to have a good pair of dress shoes made to my feet and specs, not buying whatever clown shoes are left for us poor big fellows and have to rig some sort of "custom" insole. But when I look around at websites such as Allen Edmonds, they apparently think feet only grow to size 16.

I know I'm not the only B&B member with gigantic feet. Can you point me in a good direction for future reference?

If you can get to Bennie's Shoes in Atlanta,they're the best for enhanced feet.

http://www.benniesshoes.com/

 

[BZiel]

Give me a day or two to contact my buddy Brian in Charlotte. He is a 7'2" 370lb giant of a man who has the same troubles you do. I'm almost positive I've heard him mention a speciqlity shop in Charlotte that specializes in these sizes. I'll pass the info along when I get in touch with him.

 

[Doc4]

Hmm...any "middle of the road" makers, e.g. Allen Edmonds type? If I spent thousands on one pair of shoes, I wouldn't wear them out of the house. Yikes.

Bespoke ain't cheap. (If it were, I'd have some already.) And it's hard to do long-distance. You kind of have to sit down with the guy, take your shoes off, and let him get a 3-D of your feet.

... but check with a good shoemaker ... Alden, Allen Edmonds seem to be the default choice among our American members, but the good British makers are a touch better ... and see if they can do a "regular" shoe in a 17 or 18 ... maybe somewhere out there someone already makes the shoe for you.

 

[bishop]

Give me a day or two to contact my buddy Brian in Charlotte. He is a 7'2" 370lb giant of a man who has the same troubles you do. I'm almost positive I've heard him mention a speciqlity shop in Charlotte that specializes in these sizes. I'll pass the info along when I get in touch with him.

Thank you for going to the trouble!

This is encouraging. Allen Edmonds returned my message today to say they do offer extended sizes and would gladly take my order.

 

[BZiel]

Got in touch with Brian and he said that custom shop he used is no longer in business. However, he said he has used the Macy's concierge/speciality order services with good success. He said he can pick out styles, and in a few days they arrive at the store for test fitting/purchase.

Hope this helps, and best of luck.

 

[bishop]

Got in touch with Brian and he said that custom shop he used is no longer in business. However, he said he has used the Macy's concierge/speciality order services with good success. He said he can pick out styles, and in a few days they arrive at the store for test fitting/purchase.

Hope this helps, and best of luck.

Didn't know Macy's did that! We have one nearby in Greenville. I'll stop in one day after work. Are these services limited to the brands in-store? I assume the best of those lines is Cole-Haan.

 

[BZiel]

Didn't know Macy's did that! We have one nearby in Greenville. I'll stop in one day after work. Are these services limited to the brands in-store? I assume the best of those lines is Cole-Haan.

I didn't know that either, and, unfortunately, I have no idea if that service is only available in certain stores, for certain stock items, or, anything else about it. Maybe they have more info online...(?)

 

[Bertilak]

Take a look at http://largefeet.com/

Way back in the '60s there were a few shoe stores in town and one of them had very large shoes on display. I asked if they were just for show and the salesman said that they really did have customers for them. Well, anyway, I can't remember which shoe store that was but I do remember the name of one of them: Friedman's. So I googled that and found the above link. Not the same place at all, but by coincidence they specialize in large sizes!

P.S. Friedman's also had some very (very!) tiny shoes on display right next to the large ones. They were in the exact same style. Both the large and small shoes were from a fairly well known brand which I cannot now remember.

 

[tootalljones]

Rochester Big and Tall in New York City is the place to go shopping if you have big feet. My brother has size 17 feet and he gets his shoes there when he is in town. I noticed you live in SC, hopefully you have a trip to NYC lined up in the near future.

I used to be in the same Boat. I found a gem of a place and i looked like a little munchkin compared to some of the guys shopping at this store (i'm 6'4" too). I know it'd be a bit of drive if you're coming from NY, but they told me most of their customers buy online anyway. XLfeet.com is F_____g awesome! They not only had dress shoes in size 17, but I kid you not, they had a section of them. I was talking with some of the guys in there and discovered all 4 of our shoe size matched our age until we were either 16, 17, 18. The owner was working too, which was not expected. He wears a 16, and he created company because he shares in our struggle. He even showed me their warehouse, and they literally had thousands of pairs of shoes, and most of them were size 15+ and or wide to EEEEE - 6E I will try to post a pic next time go. I got the Florshiem Salerno Wingtip Oxford in 17, but they had many other large size mens dress shoes too. He told me the styles today that go to size 18 are Salerno (4 variations), Welles, and another one which I forget the name coming out this summer. If you wear a 16 you'll have tons more options, and they do way more than just dress shoes for men too.

If this comes off as rambling, I apologize, but for guys like me, the last time we were able to shop for shoes like ordinary people is when we were 12 and our mom bought our shoes. That equates to decades for most of us. Finding this place has been transformative for me, and based on above posts will be for you guys too.

All the best!

 

[JeremySeattle]

Nordstrom is famous for selling shoes.

Also try Nordstrom Rack.

-j

 

[tootalljones]

I live by Mall of America, and I can tell you first hand Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack has the ugly grandpa New Balance, and maybe 2 other random shoes. It's been hit or miss most times for me. Then they tell me, "we can order something in for you..." which guys like us have heard way too many times.

With all due respect, and not shoot the Nordstrom Rack suggestion down, but that's where I was just "taking what I could get" with my footwear until I found XLfeet.com. They sell footwear to all people, XLfeet specializes in sizes 14 and larger, and it shows with their expertise and selection!