Fabulista Heralds: The Arrival of Berluti

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For the uninitiated, Berluti is a French-based, men’s luxury shoemaker founded by Italian Alessandro Berluti in 1895. Unlike Gucci or Prada, they are professional shoemakers (the aforementioned are design houses). Therefore, anyone who tries to compare Berluti with any of those design houses immediately sets oneself up as a plebian.

On a recent visit to one’s many in-laws, the Fabulista sighted the label’s hoarding around one of the shop spaces in a mall famous for its high-end Japanese department store (those in the know should know which mall I am alluding to).

A shoe is a shoe is a shoe. So what’s the big deal about a Berluti? Once referred to as the Manolo of Men, the reason for Berluti is the same reason for Bally, or Ferragamo or Tod’s (well, almost). The comfort that a Berluti shoe renders is the stuff of legends (of the patrons too, like Andy Warhol, Gerard Depardieu, Robert de Niro, etc). but most importantly, the unique identity of Berluti is its craftsmanship and its patina finish.

Made with a jealously guarded tanning technique, the leather acquires a colour that shows off a depth and wealth of colours from a single hue and a luxurious sheen that is at once transparent and glossy (think high quality Japanese lacquer ware).

Most of Berluti’s classic designs have virtually invisible stitching. But the one that embodies this design philosophy is the classic lace-up court shoe – an oxford-like design but crafted entirely of one-piece leather and finished in the trademark Berluti patina. The shoe is both a sight to behold as well as a pleasure to wear.

In London, a basic pair cost from £420 onwards. But the true beauty of Berluti is revealed in its bespoke service shoes, which begins somewhere in the stratospheric £2200 – a rarified air not meant for mortal consumption.

In any case, there is a reason why the new store is next to my in-law, Louis Vuitton. Here’s a word from the wise and well informed – don’t bother to wait for a sale at Berluti’s, there isn’t one (yet). Since all of their designs are unique and classics, nothing ever has been heard of as going at marked down prices. In other words, the ubiquitous four-letter word ‘sale’ is pleasantly, if not surreally absent from their boutiques.

They are after all, professional shoemakers.