MEN’S FASHION & STYLE GUIDE
The Importance of Wearing Good Shoes
Theme: HOW I MADE SALES ON SUNDAY BY WEARING A NICE PAIR OF SHOES
Tom Ford once said “Shoes are always the most important thing for me because they are who you are. They change the way you walk, the way you move“
Also, according to Hardy Amies – It is totally impossible to be well-dressed in cheap shoes.
Mr. Amies and Mr. Ford have said it all, believe me, Good shoes take you good places…and I begin my story to prove this…
I arrived my church parking lot at about 6:45 AM this Sunday morning, I was already fifteen (15) minutes late for the first service. It was drizzling, and the ground was a bit muddy.
As I came down from my car, it started pouring and with no umbrella available, I started brisk walking towards the church building, trying to avoid being drenched.
I was also hoping to get in before the churchwardens put the rope barrier across the front door entrance signifying the official start of Sunday service. If you are Anglican or any branch of Protestantism like me, then you will understand that once the rope barrier is placed at the entrance of the church building, you can’t make your way inside until it’s lifted (or removed).
Finally, as I arrived the narthex of the building, I saw a few ‘latecomers’ standing outside, the rope barrier was already hanging across the door entrance, I could hear the congregation chanting the Nicene Creed from inside.
Oh, wow, not again!
This means I can’t get in until 7:00am when the door will be re-opened just before the start of Sermon. My shoes were soiled in mud and left dirty patches on the sole, this was the case for everyone coming in by that time.
I put my hands in my pocket and brought out one of my handkerchiefs (I always carry two) to wipe out the mud and rain droplets from my Magnanni “Miro” Brown Leather Double Monk Strap Shoe as I prepared to step in fully into the holy ground.
As I finished cleaning my shoes and made a move to stand up, a man standing next to me, politely begged to borrow my hanky to do same. I gave it to him, though I just couldn’t resist looking at the young man’s shoes. You wouldn’t resist as well if you were in my SHOES.
This young man was wearing a square-toed shoe with lazily tied lace, to worsen the situation, he was wearing a kaftan native with trouser that was way above his ankle such that I could see his ankle length white athletic socks
Ankle Length Athletic Sock
I could feel my Handkerchief screaming “NO!! NO!! NO!!”, but the deed has been done already, I had already passed the hanky to the man.
I wanted to talk to him about the shoe but I held myself. For the next 10-15 minutes, while waiting for the church door to open for us to get in, I just stood there, not able to resist looking at the shoes worn by various men standing with me in the narthex.
I guess I wanted to know if they were wearing the right style of shoe for the occasion and if they were wearing it correctly.
Lo and behold, not many wore their shoes right. Most of them wore obviously very expensive shoes, but not with the appropriate clothing and I’m sure in the mind of some of my Nigerian Ibo brothers among them, they will be like “Ha amakwa nu ego ole ngoro akpu ukwu akpukpa agwo a” – Translation “If only they knew how much I bought this snakeskin shoe?”
Snake Skin Shoe
RELATED ARTICLE : 3 SHOES YOU NEED TO STOP BUYING AND 3 SHOES EVERY GENTLEMAN SHOULD OWN
Not too long afterwards the sermon was over, we were allowed to go inside.
Fast forward to the end of the church service, as I stood to leave, I shook hands and exchanged pleasantries with a few people that were sitting next to me on the pew (It was the customary thing to do at the end of the church service). I got a few compliments on my outfit and footwear.
A particular middle aged white bearded and dapper-looking gentleman that should be in his late 40s or early 50’s extended his hand to greet me. He said “Hello, I love your shoes, I noticed them when you walked passed me on your way back from the altar after taking the holy communion….and your cologne, it smells really nice“.
I said “Thank You very much” while shaking his hands.
“My name is Henry” – he said.
“I’m Kobi” – I didn’t hesitate to tell him I’m a Menswear Stylist and a Fashion Entrepreneur, he then asked me for my business card.
I gave it to him, but I still went on further to ask him what his favorite cologne was, when he told me Creed Green Irish Tweed was his signature scent and that he’s been using it for about 5 years.
I told him he should try the one I was wearing – Aventus Cologne by Creed and he said he knows the scent but haven’t used it.
Then my marketing and sales pitch kicked in…
I went on for about a minute to talk about the fragrance, Creed Aventus celebrates strength, vision, and success, inspired by the dramatic life of war, peace and romance lived by Emperor Napoleon.
He said he would love to try that out, I told him he could order it directly from our Kobi Koachman EShop, but that I had a few new bottles available in my car parked at the lot.
When we got to my car, he bought two bottles of the Creed Aventus cologne from me and made payment at the spot.
He also said he would love to order a Double Monk Strap Shoe for his native attires, so we set up an appointment. I agreed to deliver it to him by mid-week at his office and also use the opportunity to discuss other styling services which he said he was interested in.
FINAL WORDS
There you have it, invest in good shoes, good shoes will really take you good places.
This experience influenced my decision to write this article today while using the opportunity to tell my story, sharing the importance of wearing good shoes and also to help many men out there when it comes choosing the right shoe.
Also Read : 5 TIPS ON HOW TO WEAR AND TAKE BETTER CARE OF YOUR SHOES
SHOES TYPES FOR DIFFERENT OCCASIONS
Please note that there are over hundred types and styles of shoes, but let’s look at only the most common types. The style guide chart below from MenFash summarizes the most common types of shoes and what it should be worn on.
For shoe types for native wear attires such as Kaftan, Dashiki, and the likes, see The KOBI KOACHMAN Guide to Men’s Native Wears-What to Wear & What Not to Wear
Shoe Style Guide
Thank you so much for stopping by. Till you hear from me again, Continue to Do Well. Live Well and Dress Really Well. Be Stylish.
Yours in Style,
Kobi O. Mbagwu [Mr. Kobi]
Founder, MrKoachman.com
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