On the 11-16th of September the well-known division retailer Isetan Males’s in Tokyo are internet hosting the primary Shoe Expo, with plenty of shoe happenings throughout a number of days. I’m happy to have labored along with them on three components, the premiere of the Shoe Shining Champions of Champions contest, the place the three world champions and one Japanese champion, Swedish champion and Russian champion will battle it out in an enormous competitors, a seminar with the highest trio within the World Championships in Shoemaking, and an exhibition with their sneakers plus the world champs patina winner.
Isetan Males’s in Tokyo. Often known as “shoe heaven”.
The shoe shining contests which I began with on the Stockholm version of the tremendous trunk present six yr’s in the past, organising the primary Swedish Championships in Shoe Shining, has been spreading and turning into immensely common. Other than the Swedish and World Championships in Shoe Shining we even have a Russian championship (Shoesing Awards) and Japanese championships, all based mostly on the identical basis as the primary one in Sweden. Now I’ve been working with the division retailer Isetan Males’s for a particular shoe shining occasion, referred to as Shoe Shining Champion of Champions. It would for certain be spectacular!
A part of a giant shoe occasion at Isetan, referred to as Isetan Shoe Expo 2019, the place shoe manufacturers will exhibit, shoe shiners and patina artists will provide their providers, seminars and stage happenings will happen, there may also be this new glacage contest. Taking part are all of the world champions, Yuya Hasegawa (2017), John Chung (2018) and Yuta Sugimura (2019), plus one invited Japanese champion, Go Ishimi, Swedish champion, Michael Håkansson (2018), and Russian champion Anton Tsypin (2018).
Three world champions and three nationwide champions in a giant shoe shining contest, will probably be one thing particular for certain.
The competition will happen on Saturday September 14 at a venue house in Isetan’s major constructing in Shinjuku, Tokyo. There the six contestants will probably be totally challenged. They may polish a minimum of three pairs of sneakers, one black clean leather-based oxford, one embossed grain leather-based pair, and one pair in shell cordovan leather-based. They may have solely 15 minutes per pair, a brief break, after which onto the subsequent pair. They get to decide on merchandise from the big selection provided at Isetan Males’s, extra particulars about this will probably be introduced nearer so far.
The sneakers will then be reviewed by a jury, which I’m one of many members of, who will choose the approach and total fantastic thing about the shine jobs, and the expression and steadiness of the work, the jury rating will stand for 50% of the factors. Then the viewers will get to vote as nicely on their favorite shiners, and 50% of the factors will probably be given right here. I’m not going into element on how this can work, there will probably be data for many who attend. Assume will probably be fairly a spectacular occurring! Our hope is to proceed with this each third yr or so, and collect the shining champions all over the world for a champion of champions battle.
One other session I’m a part of is a type of seminar/discuss concerning the World Championships in Shoemaking, with me and the highest trio from this yr’s competitors: Daniel Wegan, Christophe Corthay and Eiji Murata. We are going to discuss what such a contests means for the bespoke enterprise, what it means for the makers personally, about their contest sneakers, and so forth. This takes place on the opening day of the Shoe Expo within the night of September 11th.
The highest three sneakers within the 2019 world champs in shoemaking, from left: Daniel Wegan’s, Christophe Corthay’s, and Eiji Murata’s.
The highest three sneakers within the shoemaking champs will then even be exhibited through the occasion from 11-16th, along with the successful pair within the World Championships in Shoe Patina, which was painted by Stephane Villette.
Any shoe particular person being in or round Tokyo at the moment ought to undoubtedly make their strategy to the primary Isetan Shoe Expo, will probably be plenty of treats.
Stephan Villette’s successful pair within the patina world championships may also be exhibited.
