Beckett Simonon, a leading online retailer of men’s footwear, announces the launch of their new Goodyear Welted collection, which is available for under $139 thanks to the company’s unique direct-to-consumer business model. Styled for a “new breed of gentleman,” Beckett Simonon is ideal for American men who want to look dapper but are also price conscious.
As the American gold-standard in quality shoe construction, Goodyear Welt construction is most commonly found in expensive shoe brands that typically cost more than $300, however, since Beckett Simonon bypasses all “middleman” retailer costs and ships all their products directly to consumers free of charge, they are able to offer their Goodyear Welted collection at an affordable price without sacrificing quality.
"We see a huge gap in the men's footwear market. It's outrageous that well-made leather shoes retail above $300. We operate without the complex layers of big businesses (no middlemen, no distributors, no expensive physical stores, etc.) so we can offer the same quality products for a much more affordable price," says Andres Niño, CEO and co-founder of Beckett Simonon. “By selling directly to consumers we bypass the traditional retail markup, around 2.5X, so we are technically selling to consumers at wholesale prices.”
Background on Goodyear Welt Construction:
Created by American Charles Goodyear Jr. in 1869, the Goodyear welt process is the traditional method for the manufacture of men's dress shoes, taking its name from the inventor who devised the original machine to replace the earlier completely hand sewn method. The benefit of a dress shoe which is made using the Goodyear welt construction is that the shoe can be resoled repeatedly, giving the shoe a lifespan of years, sometimes even decades. Some claims towards added ventilation have been made as well but there are no proven studies comparing the breathability of different shoe construction methods.
Essentially, the upper part of the dress shoe is shaped over the last and fastened on by sewing a leather, linen or synthetic strip (also known as the "welt") to the inner and upper sole. As well as using a welt, a thread is used to hold the material firmly together.
The welt forms a cavity which is then filled with a cork material. The final part of the shoe is the sole which is attached to the welt of the shoe by some combination of stitching along the edge of the welt and sole, and a high strength adhesive like contact cement or hide glue. The Goodyear welt is highly regarded for a number of reasons including being relatively waterproof by not allowing water to get into the insole due to the welt-sole construction, the relative ease in which the sole can be replaced, and the fact that the shoe can last up to 20 years or longer depending on the treatment and condition of the upper.
Content and pictures courtesy of Paramount Public Relations and Beckett Simonon
(Wikipedia "Goodyear Welt Construction")
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