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Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Mephisto Shoes-- should that name be a warning?

It is very hard to find any information on the internet that does not seem to come from either Mephisto shoes itself or people who have a vested interest in selling them. All Wikipedia says is

Mephisto, Inc. is a manufacturer of shoes and sportswear based in Sarrebourg, France. Founded by designer Martin Michaeli in 1965, the company's success was founded on its moccasin model. Today Mephisto is a major shoe producer, with more than 2800 employees and 100 million pairs of shoes sold per year. Sales are concentrated in Germany, Austria, Belgium, and Switzerland, but Mephisto has made inroads in the American walking shoe market as well.

Company history

The beginning[when?]
Martin Michaeli, stylist and shoe designer, leaves at 21 for the United States. After having succeeded for 6 years overseas, he returns to Europe…
1965 Mephisto is established in Sarrebourg, France. The son of a German retailer, Martin Michaeli creates the first line of Mephisto shoes with the intention of marketing the best footwear money and technology can produce. The company's manufacturing facility is located in this small, central area, well known for its skilled, bilingual workforce. Here the first Mephisto Moccasin is born.
1973 Martin Michaeli applies for his first patent with respect to a unique shoe manufacturing method.[clarification needed]
1975 Mephisto Becomes an international brand. The original Mephisto Line is born.
1984 Opening of the first Mephisto Concept Store. The first retail store to sell only Mephisto products in Aachen Germany.
1985 Mephisto is awarded the Oscar for Export by the French government.[citation needed] Mephisto comes to Japan: the company's first subsidiary in a foreign country has its headquarters in Tokyo.
1987 Mephisto enters the U.S. Market with headquarters in Tennessee. New factory in Portugal
1989 Mephisto expands into Canada.

I looked on "ethical brand" websites etc. and found no mention of them...

Amazon reviews centered mostly on whether Mephisto shoes are worth the price or not (they are some of the most expensive shoes you can get). The Amazon reviews are overwhelmingly highly favorable.

Apparently made in France and Portugal, and not in Chinese factories that have been criticized for their working conditions,  Mephisto makes a big deal about the quality of the materials used in their shoes and all the steps taken in wearing them.

Shoe materials: things are a little cloudy here. It was suggested on one site by one person that Mephisto may use some materials that are not as "green" as they might be. Of course, if buying "green " shoes is your big concern, I would think that the place to start would be a site that verifies that...all of these seem to be concentrated in the United Kingdom from what I could tell.

Verdict: Lacking any real negative information other than high price, it would seem that if money is no object for you when it comes to buying shoes, you might want to try Mephistos.
Some people say they are overpriced as hell but there seems to be no objective way to judge that.

 

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