Foster & Son is one of the largest classic shoemakers that may fall due to Corona. After closing its factory earlier this summer, unconfirmed reports indicate they will also close their Jermyn Street store where their bespoke workshop has been located. Below we present our knowledge and any credible rumours.
Foster & Son was established as early as 1840, eventually expanding to include Henry Maxwell brand products and its store and workshop on London’s Jermyn Street since the 70’s. Terry Moore ran their bespoke department for many years while Emiko Matsuda kept things at an extremely high level. Richard Edgecliffe-Johnson purchased it in 2006 along with Japanese partners, two years ago they opened their Ready to Wear factory in Northampton producing premium shoes which received great praise with great value-for-price offerings, now their future seems less clear.
Fosters Shoes have experienced serious difficulties since the coronavirus outbreak hit sales of their shoes hard. Yet while this contributed to Fosters’ problems, other issues existed before corona. For example, many staff in their bespoke department had left, with Emiko Matsuda leaving to establish her own brand and Jon Spencer moving over to John Lobb, plus manager Matthew Allen who played an essential part in setting up their factory had also left early after opening it, without this strong base Fosters wasn’t equipped enough to withstand it when corona arrived and turned everything upside down, instead Fosters found themselves struggling against corona’s effects.
Rumors regarding the factory’s problematic situation began circulating several months before its sudden closure a mere two years after opening, leaving 15 staffers jobless two joined Gaziano & Girling but most found themselves unemployed. Shoegazing have learned through sources in England that the Jermyn Street shop will close before the end of this month (this information appears incorrect according to new details provided by Foster & Son). At present, they are offering everything in their inventory for sale, including old samples, uncollected pairs, and ready-to-wear (RTW) stock. Furthermore, retailers such as Skoaktiebolaget have just started running sales of all Fosters stock they hold. According to my knowledge, it remains uncertain as to the future of Foster & Son. However, according to information available, it seems uncertain as to whether its operations would continue without Jermyn Street shops and workshops or not. Although Richard Edgecliffe-Johnson could pay Japanese investors in order to use the Foster & Son name.
Time will reveal how Foster & Son will play out, or whether at least its bespoke part manages to stay alive through new owners or investors. Of course we hope all will be saved, since it was once one of London’s premier firms, its demise would be profoundly heartbreaking and frighteningly similar situations with other brands in the shoe industry could follow if this situation with Covid-19 doesn’t change quickly enough.
