FOOTWEAR FOCUS ROAD TEST
Henry Harington road tests a pair ofMephisto Tyron brogues that ‘cut the mustard’ on at least three counts!
I
don't mean to sound patronising, but I have always felt a bit sorry for vegetarians and vegans. They not only deny themselves the health and
gastronomic benefits of eating meat, they are also obliged to shun most of the best shoes and boots on the planet. They, of course, will argue there are other compensations for not harming animals. I hope I have not raised the hackles of readers who are vegetarians, but it
must be quite difficult to work in the shoe trade and object to the use of leather. Don't get me wrong, carnivores and leather-shoe wearers like me don’t use animal products without conscience. Where we can we mitigate the impact we have on animal life, animal welfare and indeed the welfare of the plant. So, besides limiting my meat eating, I also take what may be a small step,
but one that is in the right direction: I walk as many places as I can, leaving the car at home. Wearing a pair of sneakers made with fossil-fuel fibres in a sweatshop in Asia doesn’t help the environment at all and certainly doesn't help one look the part if one is going to a series of meetings in the City where one has to impress. A pair of Mephisto Tyron brogues I was recently asked to road test by
Footwear Today certainly cut the mustard on at least three counts. Environmental issues are not necessarily my first concern in recommending a shoe. However, the standards to which Mephisto adhere will definitely have a bearing on my decision about what shoes to wear. One would expect a high-end shoemaker such as Mephisto boast about
using only full-grained calf leathers sourced from within Europe. Sourcing leather outside Europe may mean that it is not of superior quality because of insect bites on the hides and other problems associated with warmer climates. But, equally important, European animal welfare standards are probably the highest in the world. Mephisto also highlight that the tanneries they use are amongst the most
eco-friendly in Europe which means that their waste is controlled and recycled, a lot of water is used in producing finished leather and a loss of less than 5% is now the norm. In addition to the high quality of the leather, the Mephisto Tyron is
constructed to a demanding standard. The Tyron is Goodyear welted but with additional features: it has a leather mid-sole which is stitched to the upper with a welt, the classic welted construction and then a rubber sole is cemented to the bottom of that. The benefits of this attention to the detail in construction are evident in the
presentation and the wear. I wore the shoes to traipse around the City of London for a series of meetings and it worked like a dream.
14 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • MARCH/APRIL 2017
Mephisto claim that the construction of the Tyron means that they are, “Super flexible, ensuring that the wearer doesn’t have to ‘wear the shoes in’”. I can definitely testify to that, having walked many miles around the City on the first day I had the Tyrons. The downfall (literally) of many good, traditional “City” shoes is that they
have leather soles. Leather soles let in the water and are slippery in the wet. Leather soles mean that when walking on wet surfaces there may be an ingress of water through the sole. Rubber-soled shoes also grip – they are not slippery like a leather-soled style. The Tyron’s soles are made from “India rubber” that is traditional in its own way being latex rubber tapped from rubber trees, but which provides the grip needed, not only in the wet, but on the shiny, marble floors of City offices. And, that’s not all, the Tyron is all leather lined with hand-made uppers. Apart from specialist machinery such as the Goodyear welting, the vast
majority of Mephisto’s shoemaking is by hand in its own factories in France and Portugal, hence the “handmade” label.
It is in the wearing of Mephisto shoes
that one really appreciates their benefits Human technological progress has been breath taking but technology and
progress are not everything: it is going to be very difficult to find a vegetarian- friendly substitute for a fine leather brogue that fits like the proverbial glove. But, I won’t dismiss that it may be possible and I don’t dismiss the possibility of giving it a favourable review. However, I don’t expect it to surpass the Tyron in terms of flexibility, grip, looks and sheer comfort for a while yet.
Details: TYRON SUPREME CHESTNUT 7378 - Trade Price: £100.50 / RRP: £260.00
Mephisto celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2017. Founded by Martin Michaeli in Sarrebourg, France, the principals were to make the most comfortable shoes in the world, a revolutionary concept 50 years ago. He designed shoes that had padding in all the right places, underfoot, across the top of instep and around the collar of the shoe, all designed to add extra comfort without detracting from the styling. A second factory was built in Portugal and now produces 20,000 pairs of shoes a day. The brand has 18,000 stockists globally, with 800 Mephisto shops, and can be bought from China in the East to California in the west. It is stocked in 120 independents nationwide.
Contact: Peter Ashton
peter.mephisto@
aol.co.uk |
www.mephisto.com
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