Shoe Passion Review

You know what they say about men with small feet?

They have trouble finding high quality, handmade leather dress shoes that fit. (What did you think I was going to say?)

I'm always looking for shoemakers who make men's shoes in smaller sizes. I wear a size 7, and many brands simply ignore guys who wear anything below size 8. Some brands even charge an extra fee for smaller sizes. Not cool, I know.

German shoe manufacturer ShoePassion.com is not one of those companies. They make high quality men's dress shoes and boots that range in price from about $260 to $415 – which is pretty darn good for handcrafted, Goodyear-welted shoes.

Quick note: Not sure what “Goodyear-welted” means? It's a type of shoe construction, and you can learn all about it right here. If you don't really care, just remember that it's a sign of quality construction, and Goodyear-welted shoes typically last much longer than other, lower quality shoes.

Shoe Passion asked me if I'd like to review a pair of their shoes. I usually have to turn down these types of offers from shoe companies because they don't make small sizes, and I can't endorse any company who ignores men who need smaller sizes.

But Shoe Passion makes shoes down to size 6 (US), which is awesome. They use the UK size scale, called GB, so you may have to use their conversion chart to find your US or EU size.

Since sizes vary slightly from one shoemaker to the next, Shoe Passion recommends printing out their foot measure PDF. I used this method and ended up sizing down one half size, so it's definitely worth the extra effort.

I chose a pair of No. 561 – dark brown full-brogue Oxfords – in size 6.5 (US). They are beautiful shoes. The color and the details are eye-catching and classic. They pair nicely with all sorts of outfits, especially dark blue trousers like the ones I wore in the Gagliardi review post.

These light grey socks are from Viccel. You can read all about them in my post about socks for small feet.

Like many good shoes, these Oxfords needed some breaking in. After the first full day of wear, my feet were pretty sore. But the shoes softened up quickly and started conforming to my feet.

What's that? You want to see some more photos? I don't blame you. Feel free to turn the lights down low and cue up some sexy music, 'cause it's time for some good old fashioned shoe porn:

Notice that these Shoe Passion No. 561's in size 6.5 (US) are pretty much the same length as my size 7 Allen Edmonds Park Avenues, but they're a little wider. They also seem a bit softer and are already showing some creasing beneath the laces, but this will probably go away with more use and proper care.

My only problem with Shoe Passion is the fact that shipping took a while. In my case, a mistake was made with the mailing address, so the shoes were actually sent back to Germany. Then they got stuck in customs for a few days after being resent. I'm sure this isn't typical, but it's worth mentioning.

My Recommendation

I recommend Shoe Passion for three reasons. First, the price is very reasonable for high quality dress shoes. Second, there are plenty of beautiful styles to choose from. Finally (and most importantly) they carry smaller sizes. If you're looking for new dress shoes, you should consider ShoePassion.com.

Do you have trouble finding shoes in your size? What do you think about these shoes? Leave a comment below.