August Special Studio, Gladwyne, Pennsylvania
Joseph Pollard: I had been looking the last few years for shoes for myself that were a little outside of what I was finding on the market. I wanted to wear a slipper or loafer that was timeless and elegant but not too dainty.
I moved to Pennsylvania a few years ago and little bows on your slippers don't feel as at home as they did on my Belgians on the Upper East Side - so I wanted an elegant loafer I could wear with a vintage jean, beat up chinos, but still have a little bit of ruggedness in the material. Versatile. Also as I've got older the comfort factor has become much more important, so I built a loafer that looks and feels traditional and elegant, but has modern cushioning materials in the midsole and footbed, and it's made a huge difference to me in daily comfort.
At the same time I also wanted to wear a goodyear welted shoe that had an elegant form like an Alden but using more rugged materials, so I made a chukka boot and a field boot, both based on vintage US military shoes, but with a subtly elegant last shape, not too clunky. And incorporating the same underfoot cushioning and support as the loafer.
You told me you are obsessed with the Alden Modified Last. What is it about that obscure style that intrigues you?
Yeah, I love this last. I had heard about it from my Japanese roommate when I was still in London working at Brown's and he told me I had to go to Paris and buy the US Navy officer shoe from Anatomica. So I went there on a work trip in maybe 2000 and they had a pair in my size - 9E. Color 8 Cordovan, six eyelet Derby. I don't recall the model number.
I went through their whole Brannock fitting ritual and it was an amazing experience...the last itself has this eccentric, organic form that is unlike most modern lasts. I still have those shoes, they've been re-soled twice back at Alden, and they're now semi-retired.
The story goes that it was developed in the 1930's as an orthopedic last and adopted by the USN as the officer's low-quarter service shoe. It has a curve along its length almost like a banana shape, a carved waist that gives a little extra arch support, and a great toe profile. The counter is also very cupped and holds the foot securely on the footbed, as well as an unusual asymmetric heel.
To me the shape actually looks older, you see boots from the teens and the 20's that have a similar streamlined shape. Ultimately the shape and volume of the last is just very sculptural, nuanced and organic. Three dimensional. That form has been a big influence on my own Harry Last, which I build all of my current line on.
The collection pairs American styling with Italian craftsmanship — why did you create the brand in this way?
So, I grew up in England, my grandmother spent her whole working life as a sample maker in the Clark's shoe factory in Plymouth. I always wore English shoes and when I started designing and making shoes straight out of school it was with Trickers, Sanders, and later with Cheaney and C&J. English shoes were my frame of reference. I equated that weight and solidity with quality and durability, whilst thinking of Italian shoes as being kind of... flimsy.
When I started buying Alden and vintage Allen Edmonds I was drawn to the less-clunky lasts but the weight and heft was still familiar. In more recent years I began to value support and comfort a lot more than I had done when I was younger, and I wanted to experiment with making shoes with a slightly different construction - more cushioning, but invisible, unadvertised. That's not really a thing with the English factories so I looked to Italy and found their approach to be really interesting. Totally committed to traditional forms, methods, machinery etc, but very open to newness and material innovation at the same time.
I hate those combination dress shoe sneakers, but - awkwardly, I wanted some of that comfort. I was able to achieve that in Italy and it has been a truly great experience working with the multi-generational workshops and suppliers in Tuscany. There's an eco-system of makers, tanneries, box makers, lace makers in the Santa Croce Sull Arno area that is extremely impressive. World Class.
The entire experience is different working in Italy - when I first met with the factories a few years ago I realized they were interviewing me, not me them. It's been humbling working with these craftsmen and women as they are just so skilled and knowledgeable, whilst remaining unjaded about new ideas and approaches.
Where do you draw inspiration from these days?
Mainly vintage shoes actually. I collect a couple shoe brands from the 50's and 60's, as well as their advertising. Some of the old Abercrombie shoes made in England are amazing. I love this old brand Floaters by Bates, kind of mid-market originally but the earlier shoes had some really cool construction and shapes.
I like Hutton, comfortable and casual but without looking like giant spuds on your feet. I love Russell Moccasin.
I'm also very much into the military issued shoes and boots from the 40's and 50's. There's an uncommon - maybe rare? - US Navy aviator's chukka boot that I've always loved that I have reinterpreted in the August Special collection, it's imaginatively named 'The Aviator'. The shape is beautiful, unlined upper but with a double layered firm counter, Goodyear construction, Vibram sole, memory foam footbed beneath a veg tanned leather sock liner. It's timeless and versatile, yet with enough structure to let you be on your feet all day in comfort."
