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pugh-the-special-one said:Ken T M said:I don't know enough about shoe manufacture, or have enough comparable experience to express a valid opinion on whether the durability and quality of finish is better in England/India/Italy/Kathmandu, and so I am not predisposed to believe that shoes finished in India are of a lower standard.
Nevertheless, I do know that for a fraction of the cost of most English "name" shoes (Loake, Church, etc.), you can pick up shoes of a much finer grade of leather in Spain, in an excellent finish. This is largely because Spain still has over 100 tanneries, some employing hundreds of people, meaning that leather as a raw material in Spain is a lot cheaper than in England, where there are probably fewer than a dozen tanneries, judging by online presence (although short of contacting the UK Leather Foundation, I can't support this). By it's very nature, however, the finer grade means that these shoes require considerably more care to last as long, so perhaps the trade-off is not that great.
And yes, I am a regular tubthumper for most things Spanish. Except Catalunya, which can snap off and sink into the Med for all I care.
Sorry Ken I must correct you there, but English tanned leather as no challengers, it needs no introduction, just as we know the Swiss make the finest watches and Saville row make the finest suits, English leather as no equal, Spanish leather wouldn't even make it into the top 20.
Jamie.
I had no idea that English leather held such a reputation (or that Spanish leather was so poorly considered). I defer to your emphatic argument, and stand corrected.