Feet of inportance
Feet of inportance collage by Floris Leeuwenberg
William Hunter Lobb,chairman of a family-owned and run business.
William Hunter Lobb, current chairman of what is still a family-owned and run business.
William Lobb in the shop’s basement ‘last’ library.
William Lobb in the shop’s basement ‘last’ library.
Highest quality ladies’ shoes from the Victorian era
The highest quality ladies’ shoes from the Victorian era would have as many as 30 stiches per inch.
The original London shop of John Lobb
The original London shop of John Lobb, his hard-earned Royal Warrant proudly prominent.
Maker trims off excess leather before attaching the sole.
Maker Marcus trims off excess leather before attaching the sole.
The six month journey to a bespoke pair of shoes begins
The six month journey to a bespoke pair of shoes begins with the foot measuring.
Light as a feather and needing a maid’s assistance to put on
Light as a feather and needing a maid’s assistance to put on, hand made boots were the epitomy of Victorian ladies’ style.
Part retail outlet, part workshop;
Part retail outlet, part workshop; Lobb’s remains one of the loveliest shopping experiences on the planet.
Cutting the thick sole and heel leather.
Razor sharp tools are needed for cutting the thick sole and heel leather.
William Lobb, latest member of the 150-year tradition
William Lobb, latest member of the 150-year tradition of gentlemen’s boot and shoe-makers in the St James’ Street shop.
The maker joins the shoe’s upper to its sole with hand-made hemp cord.
The maker joins the shoe’s upper to its sole with hand-made hemp cord.
Nick, apprentice to Jonathan Lobb
Nick, apprentice to Jonathan Lobb for less than year, works on a customer’s last.
Lobb’s third St James Street premises
Lobb’s third St James Street premises, the previous addresses having made way for a modern office block in the ’60s, and the one before detroyed by WW2 bombing.
A reminder of the dying art of shoe polishing
A reminder of the dying art of shoe polishing, once the starting point of all of male elegance.
William Lobb inspects a hide of leather
William Lobb inspects a hide of leather in the front-of-store workshop, while apprentice Nick works on a last in the background.
The last forms a 3D template on which the leather uppers will be sewn.
The last forms a 3D template on which the leather uppers will be sewn.
20,000 models of customers’ feet.
Lobb’s massive library of lasts; 20,000 models of customers’ feet.
A perfect shine – can take several hours of polishing.
The finishing touch – a perfect shine – can take several hours of polishing.
John Lobb, fulfilled his ambition to become the world’s best bootmaker.
The original John Lobb, a lame farmer’s son from the wild South West of England, fulfilled his ambition to become the world’s best bootmaker.
Work of one of the craftsmen .
The work of just one of the craftsmen who will collaborate to create a Lobb shoe is now done.
The ‘rough stuff cutter’
The ‘rough stuff cutter’ selects layers of tough leather that will make up the shoe’s heel.
Inside of the shop a small museum of shoemaking has been created.
On the other side of the shop to the workshop, a small museum of shoemaking has been created.
The tools and techniques have not changed for a hundred years and more.
The tools and techniques used at Lobb’s have not changed for a hundred years and more.
The foot trace of Lady Diana
The foot trace of Lady Diana, address for delivery: Buckingham Palace.
Jonathan Lobb leans more towards the last making .
Jonathan Lobb leans more towards the last making side of the business.
9 John Lobb27
Boot maker of kings and Queens
The protection of Man’s tender feet is older even than civilisation, and yet the ‘gentle craft’ of shoe making is all but dead. The machines, glues and artificial fibres of industrialisation may have affordably shod the world’s poor, but for the well-off man with aspirations to true stylishness there is one address that can be safely said to make the finest shoes in the world. We visited John Lobb Ltd, the last of the hundreds of boot and shoe makers that once graced London’s West End.
Tect Jules Marshall