This is literally the highest praise available and I thank you so legitimately for it-that and all of Bourdain's shows are a massive inspiration over here and getting somewhere even remotely CLOSE to what they were would be a dream as we keep pushing forward. So, thank you!!
This was executed beautifully! I truly appreciate the time, effort, and in-depth conversations with all these boot makers. The artistry, creativity, and unique character of each location shone through. I’m excited to see where this series continues to go!
Thank you so much for checking it out and digging it! It was my honor to get to be over there, have these chats with incredible people, and turn it into this series. New one coming this week!
Of course, my pleasure, thank you for checking it out! More to come! And yes the 2 Monkeys stuff is really cool-so different and wonderfully put together.
Haha, I'm an American living in Taipei, Taiwan for 15 years. I can fly to Japan cheap and easily, so I go often. Every time I go, I come back with amazing glasses you can't find anywhere else. 😂
@ definitely love the last shape of Lot444 and it ages so very well. Japan houses some of the best engineer boot makers to narrow down to just 1 pair has been a tough journey, your videos definitely has helped. Thank you for the great coverage.
@@stitchdown They just dropped a massive amount around a bunch of stockists. I managed to score a size 12 pair from Snake Oil Provisions. Some even had 13's!! Those RW monkey boots with the 8" upper are insane. They need those, the skytroopers or the 214's to come back asap.
Those Red Wing “Policeman” boots are very cool. Been wearing my monkey boots around Tokyo for the past ten years and I either need to resole and make a couple of repairs or take the dive and invest in a new boot for this winter. This video has been great to watch. Arigato.
Oh at Hopesmore? Incredible boots, that lining is so damn cool. I would strongly recommend getting them resoled/repaired, even if you get another pair...they're meant to last with some tender care here and there!
@@springbay1 Haha thank you for stumbling! The hole is deep and beautiful my friend. Great Red Wings, with the lug soles, love it. Don’t push it too hard in terms of wearing them every day while breaking them in!
This series is unbelievable. I am planning to go to Japan in April so this is great research for me! May I ask, what boots are you wearing as you walk around Japan?
man it was so unfortunate that this has to come out not long after I came back from Japan. We spent a lot of time in Asakusa too and didn't know there is so many high quality boot store there!
@@kato2395 Asakusa is an interesting part of Tokyo-lots of historic tourist stuff that kind of distracts from the amazing boot scene, which is definitely the densest in the city imo. I waited 8 years from my first trip to get back for this one...next one will be much sooner!
Thank you for watching and digging it! More to come! April is a wonderful time to visit Japan, sakura season is no joke. Hope you enjoy your trip thoroughly! (Basically impossible not to.) On this trip I wore Alden Indys with a leather sole (seen in this video) and Russell Moccasin fishing oxfords most of the rest of the time. Great choices all, my feet thanked me. Oh and I also picked up a pair of Japan-made Danner lace-to-toe shoes at Stumptown Shibuya (which will be in the next video) that I wore after we finished shooting. Zero complaints!
Everyone I spoke with in this series is so wonderfully thoughtful about what they do and hugely insightful. I just loved soaking it up. Thank you for checking it out!!
Another great video from Tokyo. Excellent production and contact , cool people and boots, thanks! There’s a lot of good second hand shops too. What’s your take on buying second hand boots? Or you love the break in period too much? 😊
Hopesmore was the only one we got to film given our timeline and scope, but one of my laments on misses for this series is the incredible vintage/secondhand scene in Koenji. You could spend multiple days there at Whistler/Chart and the rest. I personally have and wear plenty of second-hand boots! To me there's a certain threshold of pre-worn with leather footwear where you end up dealing with too many "ghosts" where an insole is overly formed to the previous owner's feet, but approached right you can find great deals (great way to try out new lasts and brands!) and some things that you'll literally never see again elsewhere. And haha I honestly do love a break-in period where you and your boots really get to figure each other out.
It’s truly tough to beat Japanese craftsmanship and quality. Europe and the US are right under that. Despite this however, it comes down to how good the quality control is conducted. Even stuff made in China can be top notch.
@@pastense Exactly. One of my biggest beliefs is amazing things can be made anywhere by the right skilled people-and something terrible can also be made anywhere, even in otherwise revered places.
i am soo excited to enter the world of boots and aging leather, but really wanna start with those 2monkeys boots. its so sad that the only way to try them on beforehand is to visit tokyo :(
Thank you! Pioneer was the biggest Attractions fit for me-not terribly snug even though I have a high instep. I'm pretty sure true to Brannock size worked for me?? Maybe .5 down from Brannock? I definitely needed to take better notes but let's just say these days were, um, busy. Sorry I can't be more exact!
If you’re only going to have one pair of Redwing Boots it has to be the 9060 Beckman Flatbox in Klondike Leather. I’ve had Iron Rangers and moc toes in Oro Legacy, they’re all gone now that I finally got my hands on a pair of the 9060 BFK. No other Redwing necessary . Also I have more boots than necessary anyway.😎😎🇨🇦
Totally agree-but also that's a whole different series and very tough to nail for a wide audience with different feet and fit preferences. One day though!
I enjoyed the interviews and a closer look at what makes the Japanese tick regarding boots and the influence of American heritage style. One suggestion is to reduce the volume of your background music, especially during any interviews, as I found it hard to listen to the people being interviewed. Merci beaucoup!
Nice to see the Japanese takes! Just one constructive criticism, the loudness of the background music detracted from the detailed discussion of boot qualities
What’s the deal with Red Wing not making Engineer boots anymore. I still have my beloved 2268 from the 90s and it would like to get another pair at some point. Say it isn’t so.
As Yuki mentioned in the video Red Wing Heritage went from hundreds of styles to under a dozen in 2020-so it's all still getting built back up and I feel like the last year especially has seen some really nice progress in that direction. We'll see them soon I'm sure!
Really nice vid.. I always have a hard time finding the right affordable shoes(as a man). On tip though, please get rid of the horrible loud back ground music
Yeah that's a tricky one. The only boots I bought on the trip are the low Danners you'll see in the third episode coming out this week...i JUST fit into their largest size at 11.
Yeah that's a tricky one. The only boots I bought on the trip are the low Danners you'll see in the third episode coming out this week...i JUST fit into their largest size at 11.
Why would you keep folding your arms while he is speaking that is a bad bad posture to talk with.you as a youtuber should be actually very open with open hands open discussion ready to learn....when iam and someone fold their arms like they don't agree I stop talking and just walk away lol your not worth my time
All the people you interviewed are so well dressed! Such good style in Japan
Oh man you are not kidding-everyone in Tokyo is DECKED. I love it.
Slowly becoming the 'parts unknown' of boots. Cant wait for the next ep!
This is literally the highest praise available and I thank you so legitimately for it-that and all of Bourdain's shows are a massive inspiration over here and getting somewhere even remotely CLOSE to what they were would be a dream as we keep pushing forward. So, thank you!!
Holy moly this series is amazing. Cant wait for the next upload.
Haha just trying to tell some of the amazing stories that exist in this incredible boot world! Thanks so much for checking it out, more to come soon!!
This was executed beautifully! I truly appreciate the time, effort, and in-depth conversations with all these boot makers. The artistry, creativity, and unique character of each location shone through. I’m excited to see where this series continues to go!
Thank you so much for checking it out and digging it! It was my honor to get to be over there, have these chats with incredible people, and turn it into this series. New one coming this week!
Thank you for making this series! I enjoyed them very very much! The 2 monkeys boots are really something else! Can’t wait get my hands on them!
Of course, my pleasure, thank you for checking it out! More to come! And yes the 2 Monkeys stuff is really cool-so different and wonderfully put together.
Japan has become the the sole source for vintage Americana now.
They certainly do it remarkably well and arguably better than the US itself, but the vintage scene in NY, LA, and elsewhere isn't slacking either!
They came in and bought al lot of it
Just bought a pair of Flatboxes as my first heritage boot. Thanks for this!
Oh man great place to start...congrats! Wear and care!!
My man spent like 3 days in Japan and already got himself tortoise shell glasses. The influence is real hahah
Hahah Japanese-only (not really) Warby Parkers I couldn't resist when I picked up my wife's prescription, don't tell her.
Haha, I'm an American living in Taipei, Taiwan for 15 years. I can fly to Japan cheap and easily, so I go often. Every time I go, I come back with amazing glasses you can't find anywhere else. 😂
Persol in Italy for killer tortoise shell glasses. Can't be beat.
I can't believe how amazing that shop is. Glad I have a nice pair of new old stock Red Wing Engineers.
Walking into Hopesmore for the first time, I almost fainted. On camera. Unreal place.
Another home run video!!!
Oh man so glad you feel that way, thank you for watching!
JFC, I will totally go broke if I visit. What amazing stuff they have.
It's a danger.
Great video. Tomo is amazing. Have to stop by to get a pair of Lot 444. His passion reflects in the final product. Love it.
@@speedshark93 thanks for watching!! And great call, they really are special
@ definitely love the last shape of Lot444 and it ages so very well. Japan houses some of the best engineer boot makers to narrow down to just 1 pair has been a tough journey, your videos definitely has helped. Thank you for the great coverage.
Love the series Ben, feel like heading over to Japan and getting some monkey boots and some old vintage Redwings.
I'm in...can't wait to go back. Thanks for watching!
Those flatboxes are killer. I wish they sold them here in the states.
They have in the past in very limited numbers and I think we'd all love to see more!
@@stitchdown They just dropped a massive amount around a bunch of stockists. I managed to score a size 12 pair from Snake Oil Provisions. Some even had 13's!! Those RW monkey boots with the 8" upper are insane. They need those, the skytroopers or the 214's to come back asap.
@ Ah ha, fantastic! Digging them so far? The LTTs in the case are just insane…one day 🤞
The quality and content of these videos are giving early Hodinkee vibes. Awesome production!
Oh man thank you! Despite owning exactly zero watches Hodinkee has always been a huge inspiration for me in terms of niche publishing.
I love this series. Can’t wait to have a pair of boots in next years Patina Thunderdome. Thanks for this cool content. ❤
Of course my pleasure! Get in that Dome, it's a damned riot of a time!
Those Red Wing “Policeman” boots are very cool. Been wearing my monkey boots around Tokyo for the past ten years and I either need to resole and make a couple of repairs or take the dive and invest in a new boot for this winter. This video has been great to watch. Arigato.
Oh at Hopesmore? Incredible boots, that lining is so damn cool. I would strongly recommend getting them resoled/repaired, even if you get another pair...they're meant to last with some tender care here and there!
I stumbled upon this video and it led me down a rabbit hole I did not know existed. So, I ended up buying a pair of Red Wing 8209 yesterday 😅
@@springbay1 Haha thank you for stumbling! The hole is deep and beautiful my friend. Great Red Wings, with the lug soles, love it. Don’t push it too hard in terms of wearing them every day while breaking them in!
This series is unbelievable. I am planning to go to Japan in April so this is great research for me! May I ask, what boots are you wearing as you walk around Japan?
man it was so unfortunate that this has to come out not long after I came back from Japan. We spent a lot of time in Asakusa too and didn't know there is so many high quality boot store there!
@@kato2395 Asakusa is an interesting part of Tokyo-lots of historic tourist stuff that kind of distracts from the amazing boot scene, which is definitely the densest in the city imo. I waited 8 years from my first trip to get back for this one...next one will be much sooner!
Thank you for watching and digging it! More to come! April is a wonderful time to visit Japan, sakura season is no joke. Hope you enjoy your trip thoroughly! (Basically impossible not to.) On this trip I wore Alden Indys with a leather sole (seen in this video) and Russell Moccasin fishing oxfords most of the rest of the time. Great choices all, my feet thanked me. Oh and I also picked up a pair of Japan-made Danner lace-to-toe shoes at Stumptown Shibuya (which will be in the next video) that I wore after we finished shooting. Zero complaints!
So many wonderful insights shared here!
Everyone I spoke with in this series is so wonderfully thoughtful about what they do and hugely insightful. I just loved soaking it up. Thank you for checking it out!!
2 monkeys is just dope!
🐒🐒
Another great video from Tokyo. Excellent production and contact , cool people and boots, thanks! There’s a lot of good second hand shops too. What’s your take on buying second hand boots? Or you love the break in period too much? 😊
Hopesmore was the only one we got to film given our timeline and scope, but one of my laments on misses for this series is the incredible vintage/secondhand scene in Koenji. You could spend multiple days there at Whistler/Chart and the rest.
I personally have and wear plenty of second-hand boots! To me there's a certain threshold of pre-worn with leather footwear where you end up dealing with too many "ghosts" where an insole is overly formed to the previous owner's feet, but approached right you can find great deals (great way to try out new lasts and brands!) and some things that you'll literally never see again elsewhere. And haha I honestly do love a break-in period where you and your boots really get to figure each other out.
I only show up here on occasion, but damn, I'm glad I did.
Hahah thank you for showing!
cant wait for day 3!
We're shooting for next week!! Thanks for watching!!
Great video man ❤
@@elbertshanid8115 thank you!! More to come!
great series
Thank you!!!
It’s truly tough to beat Japanese craftsmanship and quality. Europe and the US are right under that. Despite this however, it comes down to how good the quality control is conducted. Even stuff made in China can be top notch.
@@pastense Exactly. One of my biggest beliefs is amazing things can be made anywhere by the right skilled people-and something terrible can also be made anywhere, even in otherwise revered places.
10/10 video
Tryin’ over here!! Big thanks bud.
i am soo excited to enter the world of boots and aging leather, but really wanna start with those 2monkeys boots. its so sad that the only way to try them on beforehand is to visit tokyo :(
Those 2 Monkeys boots are cool as.
They are really pretty fantastic, and very unique. Michiya is a wonder.
The side gore "elastos" boots looked nice when you tried them
They're really quite incredible-nothing like them out there!
perhaps you can share your experience walking with boot around tokyo.
how comfortable, total steps and etc
Oh god, I walked over 8 miles a day in both the Alden Indys and Russell Moccasin Fishing Oxfords and they both felt great!
Another great video Ben! Learned a lot from your visit to Attractions. How did you find the sizing of the Pioneer?
Thank you! Pioneer was the biggest Attractions fit for me-not terribly snug even though I have a high instep. I'm pretty sure true to Brannock size worked for me?? Maybe .5 down from Brannock? I definitely needed to take better notes but let's just say these days were, um, busy. Sorry I can't be more exact!
If you’re only going to have one pair of Redwing Boots it has to be the 9060 Beckman Flatbox in Klondike Leather. I’ve had Iron Rangers and moc toes in Oro Legacy, they’re all gone now that I finally got my hands on a pair of the 9060 BFK. No other Redwing necessary . Also I have more boots than necessary anyway.😎😎🇨🇦
love the content however it would be nice to here from the brands about how the boots should fit in detail
Totally agree-but also that's a whole different series and very tough to nail for a wide audience with different feet and fit preferences. One day though!
I enjoyed the interviews and a closer look at what makes the Japanese tick regarding boots and the influence of American heritage style.
One suggestion is to reduce the volume of your background music, especially during any interviews, as I found it hard to listen to the people being interviewed. Merci beaucoup!
Nice to see the Japanese takes! Just one constructive criticism, the loudness of the background music detracted from the detailed discussion of boot qualities
What’s the deal with Red Wing not making Engineer boots anymore. I still have my beloved 2268 from the 90s and it would like to get another pair at some point. Say it isn’t so.
As Yuki mentioned in the video Red Wing Heritage went from hundreds of styles to under a dozen in 2020-so it's all still getting built back up and I feel like the last year especially has seen some really nice progress in that direction. We'll see them soon I'm sure!
@@stitchdown Thank you for the info!
@ of course my pleasure!
How affordable are these boots?
Theme of Attractions is not disclosed...what factory is this made in ?
What are the brown boots you’re wearing in this episode?
@@mgebremedhin Alden Madison x Stitchdown Otis Indy boots!
Did hopesmore have much in your size?
Definitely than I expected in 10.5/11! Although unfortunately not exactly what I was looking for.
Jelado dude hat looks like A Jed Clampett reject, beautiful store though.
Really nice vid.. I always have a hard time finding the right affordable shoes(as a man). On tip though, please get rid of the horrible loud back ground music
It took me 5 minutes to figure out this is just a commercial😅😂😮
Turn the music down
Working on that for future eps!
I lived in Japan for 15 years and could never find my size there. I am size US 12
Yeah that's a tricky one. The only boots I bought on the trip are the low Danners you'll see in the third episode coming out this week...i JUST fit into their largest size at 11.
9:49 IDK about "It's amazing"
Were there any engineer boots at the RedWing store? Hoping to find some bang for your buck engineer boots during my trip in Japan
@@snuffspoon Yes absolutely!
The image quality looks exactly like a C70
Too bad size 12 US doesn’t exist in Japan 😭
Yeah that's a tricky one. The only boots I bought on the trip are the low Danners you'll see in the third episode coming out this week...i JUST fit into their largest size at 11.
Why don’t try to me for item ( shoes )
We don’t want to this guys face !
So close 🔝 to shoes 👞 BABY ~ !
No ! Way
Gawd that music. Annnnoyyying. Just give us the story dude.
….sorry?? But noted!
Music is fine - maybe just a lil loud
Thats what you are wearing right now - and the owner looks down at his own feet, but the camera man is asleep - wtf?
Long shoot days what can i say
Why would you keep folding your arms while he is speaking that is a bad bad posture to talk with.you as a youtuber should be actually very open with open hands open discussion ready to learn....when iam and someone fold their arms like they don't agree I stop talking and just walk away lol your not worth my time
Noted!
I wish you would have left out the music
No way, the music is killer
I really dig the music, it helps keep the pace up...but we're going to be lowering the mix in future episodes!
@@thejap83 Thank you!