The Anatomy of an Indochino Suit & Mantorii Custom Footwear Sale

Indochino has released a nicely done overview on their suits today, including some interesting details.  With all the complaints about price increases, we tend to forget that Indochino has come a long way and improved a ton of important details on their suits. We all know their construction method is proper half canvas by now, which greatly improves the drape of the suit. Bemberg lining is another important factor, especially as temperatures start rising and summer is not far off - don't forget about the half-lining options (available on their blazers and I think on request on suits too) either. 

Also check out the ongoing Indochino Sale, there are still some were good bargains to be made. 

In other news, Mantorii is running an interesting promo, you can get 20% off with the coupon code specialsale. As you may know, Mantorii has recently been acquired by Australian suit makers InStitchu and they have been improving their shoes significantly over the past few months. I'm about to get another pair soon and will follow up with a review. 

Company Spotlight: Mantorii Custom Footwear Review and Giveaway

Mantorii Custom Footwear is not an entirely new company. Originally launched in late 2012, Mantorii had some initial success and was quite popular, being the only (well known) company doing online custom shoes. I did the first review and many more followed, the company eventually got mentioned by Coolmaterial, Gearpatrol, Dappered any many more important publications. Mantorii then unfortunately went out of business due to troubles with their manufacturing, before being bought up by Australian suit makers InStitchu. 

I'm certainly glad they are back. There is definitely a market for affordable shoes that are customisable - with Mantorii you can choose from a ton of shoe styles, bragging details, upper and lining leathers, sole types, etc. InStitchu has been carefully restarting Mantorii over the past few months and is working on integrating it with their striving suit brand. I've had the chance to test one of their new products - an updated version of their Oxford Wingtip design in Topaz Tan. I had asked them to apply some darker shoe cream and polish it up a bit - they result is fantastic. 

It's an absolutely great shoe - I just love the design and the workmanship is excellent. Mantorii apparently moved to another supplier in the last months and I'd say the move was definitely worth it. Mantorii shoes are made using the Blake Stitching method (used for most high quality Italian shoes)  meaning you get a sleek and modern looking shoe that can be resoled at any time. Definitely a sign of quality - much like for suits, you don't want to go for something glued. Blake Stitching also makes the shoes less rigid and easier to break in, compared to Goodyear Welting (which of course is still a great construction method as well).

The tan colour and the wingtip broguing definitely make the shoe more casual - it will work extremely well with a pair of dark jeans and a blazer, but it also looks great with a blue suit (the lighter the blue, the better in this case). The only slightly negative drawback is the black welt - it clashes a bit with the tan colour. However, as my shoe was basically the final prototype for their new design, I can't expect everything to be 100% perfect and I was assured the welts would be in line with the colour of the upper leather on all customer orders. 

The Mantorii last is great too. It's not overly fancy of fashionable, it's based on the classic English last shape with a rounded toe, but features a slightly elongated toe. The result is a stylish last and a design that is contemporary and in no danger of being outdated anytime soon.

I've had the chance to talk to Robin and James, co-founders of InStitchu, about their businesses (a review of one of their suits is coming soon) and these guys certainly know their share about shoes. They control every part of production and leave nothing to chance, implementing their learnings from producing suits in China. Their full grain upper leathers are imported from the US and Australia, they source their own grade A quality sole leather and all components are rigurously tested to make sure they are up to their high standards.

What is next for Mantorii? According to Robin & James, Mantorii is now working closely with an experienced shoe designer to carefully update all designs (most changes are already implemented) and then to offer more styles and customisation options. Different medallion designs is one option that should be online in the near future, more colourful linings is another short-term goal. 

They are also working on reducing production times of currently 8 weeks (but well worth the wait). A few new accessories are on the horizon as well, I got one of their new wallets and it's excellent. Great leather (the one I have is actually dyed by hand) and simplistic design with all the functionality needed.

Coupon & Giveaway

Mantorii shoes are usually priced at $299, but they are running quite a few promos at the moment. Some of their products are reduced up to 20% already on their website and I got a special coupon for readers that will further decrease the price. Use indochinoreview at checkout to get a further $30 off all purchases over $200. Normal shipping is already included and you can upgrade to express shipping for $15.

I am also able to raffle off a couple of their Essential Wallets worth $18. For your chance to win, simply post a comment below this post until January 24th.

What has your opinion with Mantorii been like? Gave them a try already? Curious to hear what you think about the concept and also, possible alternatives worth checking out.

Mantorii Custom Footwear Review - The Verdict

Update: Mantorii now has official product photos online here.

I promised to publish a review of Mantorii, so here we go. For the introduction, please go here. I was a kind of beta-tester for Mantorii. They had their prototypes ready and wanted to have at least one review up for their launch, so they made me an Oxford toe cap (I specified it using a PDF, the website now is much nicer). It arrived within 3 weeks for me, luckily also without any extra tax to pay.

The Looks:

The shoes look great, I like the design, just what I wanted. Classic yet elegant shape with nicely rounded toes. Not too pointy, definitely not square. I like them like that. Heel size is just right as well, soles are nicely and carefully made. It's always a sign of quality if the edges of the sole have been smoothened to the shape of the shoe. All the stitchings seem flawless, there is nothing on the shoe that was done in a sloppy way.

The leather inside is black, something that will be switched to tan leather by default for production shoes. I think brown leather and black lining doesn't go that well together, but then it's true I had a prototype version of the shoe. 

The Feel:

I have very sensitive heels, I don't get blisters anywhere else, but usually I get them on the heels with virtually every shoe I buy. My Mantorii shoes did need some breaking in as well, but I did it carefully, wearing them only in my flat for a couple of hours every day. The fit was rather tight, but spot on right from the start. I have a pair of proper shoe trees that I put in after wearing. After a few days, I felt comfortable enough to wear them for my daily job.

I've been wearing it frequently for the last 2 weeks or so and the sole has held up very well - even though the weather was wet and cold. There is actually no real damage on it, I just didn't bother to clean the sole, so you get a real picture. Some of my RTW shoes looked worse after a few weeks. By the way, I only have the single leather sole, but on my model the thread is not visible, I heard they decided to leave it visible for the production models.

The leather held up equally well, no scratches so far. There are a few wrinkles that I like, it adds personality to the shoe.

Sole holds up well, even in wet and cold climates

The Shoemaker gives his opinion:

The real test for me was to bring the shoes to a local shoemaker. That's also the reason why I'm a bit late with this review. The guy has his workshop just around the corner from where I live and a nice showroom in the city. His workshop doesn't look like anything special, but the guy sure knows his trade. Apart from doing his own custom and RTW shoes, he is also working as a cobbler. I brought my Mantorii shoes over to have him examine the leather and the construction method. 

At the beginning, I wasn't sure if that's a good idea. From experience I know that for example local tailors love to bash online competitors and obviously a reason for that is also  because they perceive them as a threat. The shoemaker was different. He said the shoe was constructed solidly (Goodyear welts) with great attention to the details. He also confirmed it would be no problem to resole the shoe, if necessary. When I told him the price he couldn't believe it and said he was happy not more people knew about it.

A well proportioned shoe

The Verdict:
Overall, a very convincing product for a great price. If you want custom shoes without spending +$1000, you should consider giving Mantorii a try. They have to streamline and improve some parts of their shopping experience (show more photos of real shoes, for example) but the product is good and they seem to be a very dedicated team.

What I think helps them a lot, is that their company may be very new, but their shoemaker has been in the business for decades. I am sure that sped up product development and they have the advantage of selling a product that has already proven itself over many years.

I hope they will also expand their collection to boots and other essential footwear such as loafers soon. Would love to get some half-brogue boots for winter, for example.

Great attention to detail

Mantorii Custom Footwear Oxford Cap Toe

10 out of 10
By Lorenz Loidl

Introducing Mantorii Custom Footwear - Affordable Custom Shoes

My Mantorii Shoe - an Oxford Cap Toe (also featured on Mantorii's website!)

Sometimes there are new companies that really excite me. Needless to say Indochino is one of those, so are ProperSuit, Black Lapel and a few others. I was recently introduced to a newcomer that immediately caught my attention.

Let me introduce Mantorii Custom Footwear. Mantorii is the brainchild of Aron, a sartorially inclined Hungarian Stanford graduate, who spent years working for a big multinational before founding his own company in Asia, doing sourcing, consulting and factory audits. Aron has always had a deep love for shoes and had been sending around shoes from his favourite shoemaker in Vietnam to friends around the world for quite a while. Not long ago he decided to use his previous work experience and take the business online: Mantorii Custom Footwear is the result.