FOOTWEAR FOCUS ROAD TEST
I
t's as large as a medieval cathedral, but it's built more like a barn or that's what it looks like from the outside - no windows, especially not
stain glass. Unlike a cathedral, there are incessant, whirs or the occasional, hurried footfall on the metal stairs or steel galleries that fill this modern nave. Instead of candlelight, there is the constant flicker of LEDs or automatic lights turning on by sensor to lead the rare visitor and retreating as they progress.
It's protected like Fort Knox - even though I am an employee I have to go
through five locked gates and undergo a number of security checks each time I come to work. The security protects not the "barbarous relic" of gold, but something ephemeral and totally insubstantial but infinitely more valuable - information, the very lifeblood of the modern world.
You see I am a systems engineer in a data maintaining
computer servers that store companies remote data.. If I'm seeking to impress, I tell people I work in "The Cloud" - that way they seem to think of me as an angelic figure flitting between sun-drenched cotton wool balls in a blue sky. The reality is a total contrast, I work in coal-mine gloom using a head torch, as miners do.
The data servers are on racks on several floors and if there is a problem I
have to climb up and down stairs, walk back and forth along the metal walkways until I find the broken server and fix it. If I have a bad shift, I can end the day (or night) having walked miles. If I encounter an unusual problem I have to walk back to the office to collect a cable or a part. I've tried lots of shoes, but my feet have always been dog tired and sore by the end of the shift. One of the problems is that working nights is that one’s feet seem to swell more than usual, making them even more tired.
Recently, I was given a pair of Softinos’ pale blue leather lace-up sneakers,
style name Tom, to road test for Footwear Today Magazine - the editor was looking for a tester who spent a large part of his working life on his feet and
I fitted the bill nicely. What a difference! The change from all the other shoes I've tried is that the Softinos are, as the name suggests, are soft. Really soft. I really feel I do work in "The Cloud"! My Softinos are a bit like walking on air.
Now, I know that these days a lot of shoe manufacturers are aiming for the older market - making the most of the post-war baby boomers who are reaching advanced years and have a lifetime of wear and tear in their feet. And, while the shoes these companies produce are built for comfort, it is often with scant regard for style. Not to mention, the current fashion!
Softinos is the younger sister brand of Fly London and produced in the
same factory in Portugal. Apparently, the intention was to create a comfort brand for younger people, which was missing from the market. So, everything about the Softinos shoe collection must be ‘soft’ – no hard components such as buckles or heavy soles – and ‘fashionable’. Mission successful, I’d say! My “Toms” are as trendy as anything I would wear out to a pub or club: they are soft blue leather lace-ups. They are just cool sneaker-type shoes that are amazingly soft and comfortable.
When I have told my work colleagues how much less tired my feet are,
they have said they have had the same problem of tired feel and want some "Toms". The funny thing is that when we met in a pub the other night a couple of them were wearing Toms, and not the ones they have for work!
Details:
Trade Price: £34.20 RRP: £79.99
Contact: 07957 232790
www.softinos.com
8 • MODA SUPPLEMENT
• FEBRUARY 2016
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100