I just got back today from a six day visit to the Midwest. First to visit my old college town of Milwaukee and then to Red Wing, MN to visit our customer, Red Wing Shoe, and one of our main leather suppliers, SB Foot Tanning. I made myself two pairs of boat shoes before I left to celebrate the summer, and I very much enjoyed wearing them on my trip. They were the only two pairs of shoes I brought. Even considering all the walking and standing I did, I had no problem - the beauty of a handsewn - no "breaking in" period.

#1 - Navy Boat shoe, Horween leather, white eyelets, white laces. Very nautical

#2 - Sage/Grey boat shoe, Sage Mohave leather (suede) from SB foot, gunmetal eyelets, grey laces. It's actually more grey than it looks in this picture, with a slight hint of green. Very versatile color.

Our boat shoes as seen here are $215. If you don't like my color choices, feel free to choose your leather color, laces, eyelets, threads, etc. Email me at krancourt@rancourtshoes.com to place an order.

As some of you may know we are now in our third season with the Rancourt & Co. brand being featured at Brooks Brothers. We started off very slowly - two unique patterns, one in two colorways, for a total of three unique styles. You can see them here http://www.brooksbrothers.com/IWCatSectionView.process?IWAction=Load&Merchant_Id=1&Section_Id=525 (hint: "American Blucher" and "Vintage Venetian). I especially love the story behind the vintage venetian - we found a hand-sewn venetian moccasin from the 60's in my grandfather's collection - it was most likely made in one of the many home/garage workshops that dotted our state at the time. It was beautiful because it was so simple, they even hand-stamped the size on the outside of the plug. So as an homage to these craftspeople making moccasins at home, we replicated the shoe. They are made in unlined Horween Brown Chromexcel and have a single leather sole. They are as comfortable as slippers but the hard leather sole allows them to be worn outdoors. Great for sockless summer wear. These shoes will mold to your feet.
For Fall 2011 we will be expanding with two more styles in three colors each, for a total of six new styles - you'll have to wait to see what we came up with, I don't think they would appreciate me unveiling their Fall collection before they do.
We are honored to be working with a classic and iconic brand like Brooks Brothers and we hope to continue for many years.
As a side note, I will be [...]

We recently created this beautiful tradtional Beefroll Penny Loafer as a sample for Beams Japan. They are using it to feature in their 35th anniversary press book. Unlined Horween shell cordovan, natural leather soles,  The color shown is Saddle - also available in black, Color 8, unglazed dark cognac, and natural. Price is $500, contact me to order a pair - krancourt@rancourtshoes.com