Tag Archives: Artola

footwear, Shoes

From New York With Love: ARTOLA

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I saw their boot with a protrusion that kept your pant legs from fraying, then I saw some of their prototypes that were made in Brooklyn, NY:

ArtolaMadeInBrooklyn2

I was therefore stoked to have a chance to talk with Mr. J Artola himself, creator and designer of the brand. I learned a lot, not only about his vision for Artola, but about shoemaking itself- manufacturing, and factory knowledge he gained while personally visiting manufacturing plants in China, India, and Mexico while working for Frye, Guess and other biggies.

A Shoe Artola had custom made for rapper Flo Rida
A Shoe Artola had custom made for rapper Flo Rida

He was of course wearing a one-of-a-kind pair of Artola casual boots, carrying a sturdy new leather Artola bag filled with exclusive and prototypical Artola shoes- a pair manufactured in Arkansas and a couple made right here in Brooklyn, New York. While the multinational brands we know and love rain a seemingly infinite amount of styles and colors on us, Artola takes more of an indie route, creating smaller batches of thoughtfully designed shoes with unique features that pick up where the pant-leg protectors left off: Inside-out blossomy lace eyelets, reinforced heel-sole corners. flavorful buckles and such…

ArtolaMensI snapped a few pics of these unreleased made in Brooklyn Artolas. With respect to the Italian shoemaking tradition, Artola believes a product of equal quality can one day be manufactured in New York City in substantive quantities. Reshoring, and the rise of maker-culture are turning up the heat on this concept, along with a more discerning consumer, who may look at shoes as an investment more than a disposable commodity.

ArtolaMens3
A shoe company grows in Brooklyn

It took a couple old-world artisans two months to craft just twelve pairs of the Brooklyns. You’re not going to see ’em on the clearance rack at Marshalls any time soon. Artola’s current retail line is manufactured in León Mexico- a post NAFTA shoemaking capital of sorts, where the company can deal with packages on trucks rather than containers on boats. Artola can keep a ma and pa type operation going while achieving their designs in a high quality fashion without having to fly across the globe every month. 

Artola DREXEL
Artola DREXEL

Nordstrom has Artolas in stock and you can check out this roster of where else to find them. Special thanks to Jury and Olga! 

Check out Artola in real time (booth 5019) at Project Sole this July 20th – 22nd at the Javits Convention Center in NYC

 

 

 

 

footwear, manufacturing, sneakers

Popdiatribe: Mad Marchness

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No sooner did I press “publish” on my post about fraying-pant-leg-condition a few weeks ago, then I discovered these Atlas boots from shoe company Artola:

Frayed pant legs no more
Frayed pant legs no more

Their design incorporates a molded leather heel piece that keeps sagging pant legs from scraping the ground. Thumbtack guy take note.

Not long after Tony Wroten’s Nike Jordan sneaker fell apart during an NBA game last week, rumours hit the net that the Jordan brand itself may discontinue in 2015. “There is absolutely no truth to this rumor…” according to Michael Jordan’s Business Manager Estee Portnoy (via smokingsection.net). What’s unclear is if MJ personally called Wroten’s agent to apologize for the sneaker blowout. NBC Sports says that didn’t happen.

Pharrell Williams hooked up with Adidas, New Balance dropped some Golf shneakers, Terra Nova was awarded a contract from the Canadian government to manufacture boots for Canadian armed forces at the company’s factory in Harbour Grace. Here in the US, American footwear manufacturing is lobbying congress over the Berry amendment, which roughly states that the Department Of Defense is required to give preference to domestically produced, manufactured or homegrown products, especially foods, clothing, fabrics and certain metals. An exemption to that amendment includes athletic shoes, which aren’t considered military-issued uniform pieces. Soldiers are wearing their own Nikes, Adidas, and other kicks not made in the U.S.A. while training. Wolverine, New Balance, Danner and Lacrosse have all come forth with compliant products that are 100% made in the U.S.A. and are relying on a growing expectation that U.S. service members should be equipped in U.S.-made gear. Read details in the International Business Times.