Unpopular opinions
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Now that Red Wing prices are so close to certain higher quality boots I fail to see why they are still the number one boot of choice for the denim aficionado. To me they are a stock/ safe choice which is losing its relevance due to better and more individual boots being available for not much more money.
I have worn a variety of Red Wing boots (Gentleman Travellers, Moc Toe, suede work boot etc…) and really enjoyed them all, but when I compare them now to boots that can be bought for a little less than $100 more I just cannot see the appeal.
I think if I voiced this opinion on certain "social media" that I would lose a third of my friends list over night :o
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Someone is or they wouldn't be in business.
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Ok, I'll modify my statement to ….
Someone is or retailers wouldn't stock them and they wouldn't have so many Red Wing stores.
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Red Wings are a bad choice if you pay more than 100 $ for them… I genuinely think they're worth 50-75 $...
It's all about patience... If you're poor that is... Just peruse the second hand fora and be patient...
Remember: I got Vibergs for the price of a pair of (retail priced) Red Wings...
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…and that's what I would pay for Viberg too
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I get that a price/ cost argument could be made for just about everything we're into, and that most of the time it's all down to individual tastes and circumstance etc..,
Where Red Wing piss me off if that they are now wanting the high end mark up of other brands without upping their game. Basically, pay me more for producing the same thing, well errrrr….no.
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It's my opinion that Red Wing abuses it's position with their pricing. As the defacto #1 boot company I think their prices reflect what they can get away with charging, not quality, man hours, or number produced. The whole business model has been franchised and gimmicked to maximize that ability. Thorogood and Chippewa both achieve a similar boot, usually for less.
As far as cutting cost by searching for better deals, shouldn't everyone be doing so with everything? While there are certainly cases where one wants to support a company to the fullest extent. When one is purchasing a mass produced piece, 9 of 10 times a company like Red Wing has already made their money and the vendor slaps MSRP on them. It all eventually becomes about profit margin when the game is rigged top to bottom like this.
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Case in point:
Whites Bounty Hunters made with a choice of Chromexcel, dress or oiled leather with a huge variety of sole and hardware configurations - £220 plus £50 shipping.
Red Wing Beckmans - £285
Why?
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I don't see how these market economies are in any way "rigged." This is pure Adam Smith…
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Because they can…
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^^^Viberg also increased in price and I don't think they increased in quality (in all honesty, maybe it wasn't possible at all to increase in that point).
But when you also consider that they don't offer the custom option anymore, they decreased in the service (for some).Re: Red Wing…when did they increase they price by that much? I bought my first Engineers probably 4 years ago in the UK and the price after conversion was 170 €.
My second pair was from eBay which I scored for 160 €, retail price was 320 € as it was a Japanese special Ed.
So I think they should/could run in the 200-250 € range which I could justify...My pair of Grenson I got @50% (which was still 150 €) are still overpriced at that price point when you just take a look at the "leather" they use...
PS: sorry for using €-currency. It's easier to deal with it for me
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I don't own White's, Viberg or other highend boots (yet), but I must take a stand for Red Wing. I know that they got pretty Mainstream the last years, are available in a lot of stores and appeal to the typical vintage clothes afficionado that got so hip the last years. This seams to make them less appealing to some, but that should affect other clothing brands equally (also IH is no longer just for the well-informed Insider).
This said, I own 5 pairs of Red Wings, they all got hard wear over the last years in every season (some more, some less) and I had not a single issue with one of them. Totally worth 200-300€ IMO.
I couldn't justify White's so far: accounting the risk of tax and that they don't fit I didn't take the plunge yet. Vibergs prices are totally out of my league and I don't like them that much neither.
I like the idea of doing a custommade order at White's sometime, but until then, Red Wings serve me just fine.
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Honestly, still not seeing a reason why people pay more for Red Wings than they would for Whites (apart from the tax thing which can really sting).
B_F, most popular Red Wing models have seen a 50% price hike in the last 4 years. I paid £145 for my Gentleman Travellers from American Classics 4 years ago, the equivalent boot (with a worse sole) is now £289.
I'm not knocking how they wear at all, just their inflated price when you position them at the side of other (better?) boots. Maybe Whites should have a price rise?
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When Red Wing controls the product from top to bottom, when they eliminate any competitive market for their product, that's pretty rigged. By doing so they can and have set prices where they want and you'll either pay it, go without, or suffer the consequences for going outside their approved method for acquiring their product. This is a market, but it is rigged beyond a doubt to make sure they maximize profit above all else, even when service and the product suffers. They have a right to do so no doubt, but I have the ability to call it what it is.
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Just for info and only speaking about the prices in Germany, since they used and still do vary from country to country. I bought my first pair of 875s around 15-16 years ago and they were 479 DM (around 240 Euro), a pair of 875s cost today 279 Euro (official retail). So it really is not that much of a hike at least for Germany.
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^^^ I know what you mean. Still, White's that I can try on in Germany cost me approx. twice as much as RW (500-600€). White's that I have custom made in the US are a good deal, but there's always the risk of taxes and that they don't fit right. Maybe I should just take the plunge and risk it, but the likelihood that I end up with a price like the german retail price is pretty high.
And that makes White's 2x as expensive as RW, while I think they are not 2x as good (lifespan only).
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@Max:
And that makes White's 2x as expensive as RW, while I think they are not 2x as good (lifespan only).
(Lifespan only) buying Levis at thrift stores is many times better than Iron Hearts.. Iron Hearts are still very worth having though. So are really top-end boots like White’s, Wesco, etc.
