I have a few Banana Republic tailored wool pants (such as these ), and I would like to buy the same shoes that the BR model wears. I searched the BR website and found these oxfords. First of all, are they the same shoes that the model is wearing with the pants? Second, is $100 a good price for the shoes (on discount), or should I get similar shoes elsewhere? Thanks!
Posted Feb 14, 2012, 3:24 PM UTC
Those aren't the same shoes, and I can't personally vouch for the quality of BR shoes. I'd assume they're on par with Aldo, etc. Which is to say they might fall apart pretty quickly.
Those 2 shoes aren't even remotely the same, they have 2 completely different constructions. The black oxfords are Goodyear welted (hence the huge difference in the width of the sole and the upper) and the brown ones the model is wearing are either cheap and the upper is glued to the sole or they are over 300$ likely over 500$ as they would likely be Bologna or Blake constructed in Spain or Italy, notice the sole of the shoe is not wider than the leather upper.
I bought these today, for reference, they are of a similar construction.
Similar overall style, but definitely not the same pair. The shoes the pants model is wearing are plain-toes with a rounded, sleek toe box, while the shoes you posted are moc-toes with a much flatter, squared toe box.
I've only handled them at the store, but BR shoes have always felt kind of flimsy and light to me, and the leather seems pretty cheap. Admittedly, I haven't looked recently, so that impression is based on whatever shoes they were selling a year or two ago. That may or may not be helpful, but there it is.
helpful, thanks!