The Austro-Hungarian tradition of shoemaking is a significant one – until fairly recently it was the most influential in Europe, after the English. It is also a type of shoe (rounder, larger, more comfortable) that is perhaps a little more fashionable today. 

I’ve tried a few such makers, including Vass, Saint Crispin’s and Petru & Claymoor, but I don’t know anything about the history or the various other small makers. So I asked our contributor Bernhard Roetzel to give us a breakdown. 

By Bernhard Roetzel

Until the late 1980s there were two major schools of last making in the world of welted shoes: English and Austro-Hungarian.

A good example of the English shape is Church’s 73 last (now called 173) which was used for the famous Chetwynd brogue and many other styles. Most other makers from Northampton used similar shapes for their dress shoes.

Italy played almost no role in this market until a few companies started producing shoes (both Goodyear-welted and Blake-stitched) using English-looking lasts in the 1990s.

The English last shape also influenced American makers of Goodyear-welted shoes, even though American dress shoes usually had rounder caps and were often wider in the front to make them more comfortable.

The Austro-Hungarian school and its shapes are perfectly represented today by the styles named ‘Alt Wien’ and ‘Budapest’ by shoemaker Vass in Budapest, Hungary.

The Budapest (above) shows the typical Austro-Hungarian profile, with a rather high toe cap resembling the bow of a ship. There is more room around the arch and the shoe is also wider in the front, which makes the Budapest very comfortable, particularly for men with strong feet.

The Alt Wien style has a less pronounced cap yet offers more room than the English toe. Seen from above the cap is rounded and little wider, which gives the toes a little more freedom and overall a bit more comfort.

The shoemaker Alexandru Maftei has similar looking samples in his collection. These very traditional styles are made less today but this is what Austro-Hungarian shoes were all about, and what always set them apart.

Ludwig Reiter looked more like these shoes back in the late 1980s. Their current styles are going more in the direction of Italian-trying-to-look-English.

Generally speaking both the Budapest and the Viennese styles are intended to be more masculine, in the sense of being not too narrow or pointed. As a result, they look best when worn with trousers that are not too narrow or too short.

If you compare these three styles with the Chetwynd from Church’s (below), or the Piccadilly from Tricker’s, you can immediately see the differences.

Since the early 2000s the difference between Anglo-American and Austro-Hungarian shoes has  slowly disappeared, with the latter becoming more English (or English in the sense of Italian-makers-trying-to-look-English!).

The old Austro-Hungarian shape has been kept alive by a few manufacturers, such as Vass and Handmacher, and by more conservative bespoke shoemakers like Materna in Vienna.

Below I run through these makers. There are some local brands I decided not to include because they are not made where the style originated. This applies to the wonderful brand Alt Wien, whose shoes are made in England. And also to Roberto & Sons, a collection that includes classic Viennese styles that are made in southern Europe.

Vass

László Vass (above) has been making shoes in Budapest since 1978. The small shoe workshop has grown into a pretty big operation with a wide range of shoes. The core of the collection is quintessentially Austro-Hungarian shoes both in style and make.

Vass shoes were featured in the very successful book about handmade shoes by the German publisher Könemann in the late 1990s, which brought the brand international attention. The story goes that the publisher Ludwig Könemann met László Vass by chance in Budapest and the idea for the book was born over a few glasses of red wine.

Vass shoes are sold online and the website gives lots of advice on choosing the right size and fit.

They come either hand welted or as ‘goyser’ which is a Bavarian name for the construction that the Italians call ‘norvegese’. In Austria this make is called ‘zwiegenäht’.

• RTW, MTO and MTM shoes and boots
• Starting at €550, €660 and €840 respectively
• www.vass-shoes.com

Materna

Considered as very Viennese by many of his customers, it is clear that Materna is strongly influenced by Hungarian style if you look at the samples on display.

Many of them were made by the famous cobbler Bela Nagy, whose business was taken over in 1973 by Georg Materna. Georg was the grandson of the founder who started the business in 1907. In 2008 he was succeeded by Martin Dellantonio, who was trained by Georg and worked for him until he took over.

The present owner has tried to inject some Italian elegance into the shoes but many customers stick to the old Materna style, which is very Austro-Hungarian in the sense that the shoe is less elongated with a higher and roomier toe box.

In the glass cabinet with the samples you will find all styles that are popular with Austrian gentlemen: the cap-toe derby, the plain front derby with four-eyelets (Spitzderby), the split-toe Derby (Norweger). Materna also offers the sturdy Norvegian welt called ‘zwiegenäht’.

A small range of handmade RTW shoes is also available, they are made in the workshop in the same way like they bespoke shoes. Materna shows these shoes only on request because he prefers to sell the bespoke.

• Bespoke and a small collection of RTW
• Bespoke is around €3000, with no trial shoe. RTW around €1800
• www.materna-schuhe.at

Scheer

Vienna’s most renowned and expensive bespoke shoemaker was founded in 1816. Presently it is under the direction of Markus Scheer, who is the seventh generation. He makes all lasts, designs every shoe and conducts the fittings. If need be he will help out in the workshop.

Scheer was once purveyor to the Imperial court and some lasts and shoes from those days are on display. In the 1950s Markus Scheer’s grandfather realised that the only way to win against the rising ready-to-wear industry was to offer supreme fit, individuality of style and the best handwork. This is still the house’s formula.

Markus Scheer insists on not offering styles with names because each customer will get a very personal pair of shoes. The samples shown on their website are meant as a first inspiration, a starting point.

Nevertheless their style with a middle seam is the most recognisable shape they offer. It is frequently copied by other shoemakers in Vienna but Scheer claims invention of the design.

Ludwig Reiter

Austria’s most renowned and successful manufacturer of Goodyear-welted shoes looks back on a history full of changes. It started when Ludwig Reiter I opened a shoemakers’ workshop with his wife Anna in 1885.

His son Ludwig Reiter II trained in his father’s workshop. In order to learn more modern methods of shoemaking he travelled to the US and stayed there from 1902 to 1908.The factory grew in the 1920-1930s to be one of the biggest in Vienna, selling shoes under the brand names Piccadilly and Fox.

In the 1970s many makers closed their factories but Ludwig Reiter kept producing Goodwear-welted shoes. When Til Reiter (above) took over in 1985 the company was able to profit from the new interest in Goodyear-welted shoes.

Ludwig Reiter has regularly updated their lasts and shoe designs, giving their shoes more appeal to buyers used to contemporary English and Italian looks. Nevertheless the classic derbys are still available.

I have personally worn their shoes since 1990. I personally like the Hungarian last best because it offers what I expect from an Austrian manufacturer. It is less elongated and it comes in two widths. Compared to English Goodyear welted shoes Ludwig Reiter makes a slightly lighter shoe.

Handmacher

This Austrian manufacturer of wood-pegged shoes is well known in Austria and Germany. The company was founded in 1995 by Franz Bammer and Bernhard Kovar in the small town of Viechtwang in Austria.

Woodpegging is a traditional method of shoemaking that was common all over Europe for work boots and military footwear. Manual woodpegging was frequently used by makers of handmade shoes in Austria, Hungary, Romania, the Czech Republic and Slovakia and some craftsmen still use it today.

The shoes are made in the company’s factory in the Czech Republic. There each pair is made-to-order on RTW lasts in three widths. Customers can choose from 60 different types of leather for the uppers and from eight options for the sole and the finish. It is possible to order the right and the left shoe in different lengths or widths, which allows for a very individual fit.

I have worn Handmacher shoes and expected them, being wood-pegged, to be heavier and stiffer than they turned out to be. It does take some time to break them in but no more than a Goodyear-welted shoe with a double leather sole.

What I like best about this brand is the options for customising the fit. I ordered a G fitting for the right foot and F for the left, which makes a huge difference on my feet.

• MTO only. Matching belts can be ordered with the shoes.
• Around €330. Small additional costs for pairs with different sizes for right and left feet
• www.handmacher.at

Saint Crispin’s

Maybe the most sophisticated version of Austro-Hungarian style is offered by Saint Crispin’s. The company is family owned and the shoes are made in Brasov, Romania. According to them some 28 craftsmen make around 1500 pairs of shoes per year.

The workshop has existed since the mid 1980s but the brand was founded in Austria in 1992. It went through a couple of ups and downs but the image of delivering very well made and outstandingly beautiful shoes was never harmed.

In 2003 Phillip Car joined the company as partner. Today he is the owner and the face of the brand, travelling extensively. Saint Crispin’s has created a style that offers the best of the Viennese, the English and the Italian worlds of shoemaking. This applies mainly to the look of the shoes which is very ‘bespoke’ in appearance with a very slim, more elegant silhouette than other RTW makers.

• RTW and MTO, existing last or personalised last. MTO shoes can be configured online
• RTW costs around €1700
• www.saintcrispins.com
• Trunk shows around the world (see website). Where no trunk shows are mentioned in this list, makers do not do them

Lawart

The Czech bespoke shoemaker Erik Martin Lawart is well known in Prague and also a little  outside his country.

His workshop is located in the first district in Prague in an Art Noveau house with windows facing the courtyard. He informed me that all customers are asked to make an appointment by telephone.

Erik Martin Lawart is self-taught because “real socialism killed bespoke production in Czechoslovakia”. He says that he makes his shoes entirely by hand. He makes a trial pair of shoes which the customers are supposed to wear for three days before proceeding to the final pair.

Judging by the shoes shown, his taste is inspired by Italian shoemakers, though on request he shows shoes that look very traditionally Austro-Hungarian. In his words he is “heavily influenced by shoemaking in the Czech Kingdom 1890-1918”.

• Only bespoke
• Starting at €3000
• www.lawart.cz

Michal Pavlas

Bespoke shoemakers often like to surround their craft with a mythical air. Not so Michal Pavlas from Prague. He is very down to earth. When I met him in his showroom I was offered cake made his wife and homemade slivovitz. The workshop lies in the back of a building in a residential area. Customers need to know the place but they only come by appointment.

Michal Pavlas was trained as an orthopaedic shoemaker, which is typical of continental Europe. In his workshop orthopaedic shoes are still being made as one part of his business, but his main passion is shoes made for men who prefer perfectly fitting handmade footwear over luxury brands.

When I say that Michal Pavlas is down to earth I mean to suggest that he is open to the suggestions and tastes of customers. If you want white alligator boots with high heels he will make them for you. If you want something classic he will be even happier to oblige.

• Only bespoke
• Starting at €2000
• www.michalpavlas.cz

Maftei

When you speak to wearers of bespoke shoes in Vienna and you drop the name Maftei (pronounced ‘mufftay’) chances are that at least one person will wear shoes made by someone of that name. I know four shoemakers from this family: Alexandru, his son Lucian, and his young nephews Raz and Stefan.

Maftei Vienna

Alexandru Maftei (above) came to Vienna from Romania in the late 1980s. He had worked as shoemaker there since his youth. I remember him telling me how he made MTM officer’s boots in Communist times. He makes handwelted, hand woodpegged and hand-made Norvegese (‘zwiegenäht’).

Alexandru Maftei found work at Scheer’s, the most prestigious company at the time. He ran their workshop until he left and opened his own business in 1996. I’ve heard that the owner of Scheer was desperate when he heard that his employee was leaving but there was no way to change his mind.

Alexandru Maftei owns a little shop at Kühnplatz in Vienna but is rarely there because he travels a lot. It is absolutely necessary to make an appointment by e-mail if you want to meet him. You can find the dates of his international trunk shows on his website. There is no workshop, the shoes are made in Romania.

His son Lucian is also a shoemaker, he lives in Romania near the workshop. Lucian travels too, he covers the northern half of Germany while his father travels to the southern parts. Father and son make all styles typical of Vienna and Budapest. Their personal taste seems to be less traditional – they tend to make an elongated last if you don’t ask for something else.

I have a pair of shoes from Lucian Maftei – he measured me in Hamburg and came with a trial pair about two months later. They fitted well, and the workmanship on the finished shoe is very good, especially in relation to the price.

• Bespoke and a few pairs of RTW now and then
• €1400 + €200 for the lasts at the first order. €400 extra for cordovan
• www.maftei.at
• Trunk shows in Germany (Hamburg, Berlin, Munich), Switzerland (Zürich) and Denmark (Copenhagen)

Raz Maftei

Stefan was very talented and he made a very good start after leaving Scheer. I remember customers praising him as offering the same quality as Scheer at a lower price. Unfortunately he has quit shoemaking and is now living in the country as a farmer, to the chagrin of many.

His brother Raz keeps up the excellent work in the tiny historic workshop in Dorotheergasse. His brother Stefan was taller than him and the workshop upstairs from the shop had a very low ceiling, which caused Stefan back problems.

Raz Maftei makes shoes in the traditional Viennese way by hand. He has a very good taste and as he is still pretty young he is the hope of many younger Viennese gentlemen. He will make all styles you expect in Vienna but lighter and more elegant than many of the old makers.

• Only bespoke
• €3600. For the first pair €1200 extra for lasts and trial shoes
• No website. Appointments by e-mail: [email protected]

László Budapest

Germany is the biggest market for shoes built on Austrian or Hungarian lasts. In the past there were a couple of German brands successfully selling shoes that were made in Budapest. Some of them don’t exist anymore or they have moved their production from Hungary to southern Europe.

László Budapest is a younger member of this family of brands. It was created by the Bavaria based company Schwangau Schuh. They own three brands, two of which offer traditional Bavarian shoes while the third is László Budapest.

László Budapest offers three last shapes representing three schools of shoemaking and three tastes: English, Italian, and Viennese/Hungarian. The latter is either Goodyear welted or Norvegese. The Austrian-inspired styles are named Johannes and Julian, the very traditional Hungarian model is Istvan.

Istvan offers all typical traits of a classic Budapest derby brogue: a wider, slightly roomier G fitting with a rounded toe, the boat-shaped toe box, the double-leather sole made in the Norvegese construction with the handmade braided welt.

Petru & Claymoor

This Bucharest-based brand and shop was founded in 2018 by Mircea Cioponea and Petru Coca, two shoe enthusiasts wanting to revive the old Romanian tradition of bespoke shoemaking.

Petru & Claymoor offer bespoke shoes (including the fitting of a trial pair) and also a small selection of RTW. The shoes look similar to those made by Saint Crispin’s, the style could be described as middle European with a dash of Italian influence.

Romania and the region Transylvania in particular is home to many exceptional cobblers. The Maftei family in Vienna is rooted there and Saint Crispin’s runs their workshop in this region.

Skilled craftsmen are not as easy to find there as 0 years ago but there still seem to be enough to operate a couple of workshops. The low cost of labour in Romania is of course an important factor.

• Bespoke only for the moment but RTW soon
• €1750 for pair of calfskin shoes + €600 Euro for the lasts and trial shoes on the first order
• www.petru-claymoor.com