Big Shoes to Fill

December 30, 2004 6:44 PM

I have needed men's size 14 shoes since middle school, and finding good footwear has always been a problem. Does anyone have any pointers to stylish and comfortable big shoes?
posted by crunchburger to clothing, beauty, & fashion (11 comments total)

ba mason should have them, but you to have to search to find nicer/cooler/not oldman styles
posted by amberglow at 6:53 PM on December 30, 2004

I know some people will not agree with this, but a call to Nike will do wonders. I used to work there and they know every quality large shoe store around, and they get lots of calls for non-sneaker, good shoes. Fastest way would probably be to do an online chat with them through thier web site, pacific hours. Or email me and I will pass along thier number.
posted by efalk at 7:02 PM on December 30, 2004

Friedman's, baby. For something more casual, I recommend BigShoes (the Timberland oxfords on the front page are sweet and very durable for the price).

You can search Zappos by size, too.

For in-store brands, I recommend Timberland, Rockport, and Clarks.
posted by Sidhedevil at 7:12 PM on December 30, 2004

Um, depends on what you think of as stylish. For office wear, I go for Hush Puppies and Deer Stags. Not nearly as bad as they sound....

But Seriously, Folks: If you're wide, find someplace that carries GBX. I know DSW Shoe Warehouse stocks them a lot. Nike's are slightly better than most, but I haven't found anything that comes as wide as GBX. Rockport, Timberland, and Bass are all way too narrow at the right length, and when they're long enough to fit to width, they break in the wrong place. All the italian-styled stuff feels like putting my foot in a vise, no matter what size it is.
posted by lodurr at 7:56 PM on December 30, 2004

If you're looking for something less formal, you might try Skechers. I wear a wide size 13 and they've always done me well. (I just picked up a pair of Blue Ridges from Shoes.com and they're quite comfortable. I walk several miles a day, so they're definitely being given a good test drive.)
posted by Danelope at 9:40 PM on December 30, 2004

Try oddballshoe.com - local business (in portland) that ships globally.
posted by TomSophieIvy at 10:37 PM on December 30, 2004

Like I said in a previous post. I too, wear 14s and Nordstrom does me right...
posted by black8 at 10:37 PM on December 30, 2004

Check out these threads, too: one. two.
posted by ori at 12:00 AM on December 31, 2004

Zappos is awesome, and lets you search by size.
posted by rhruska at 12:46 PM on December 31, 2004

I'm not sure what you'll think of the brands they carry, but for larger-sized shoes, you can always check out KingSize Direct. Warning: buy one item from them, and you'll get catalogs for years thereafter. Frankly I'm okay with that.

I was size 14 for most of my 20s. Curiously, in the last few years I've noticed I can wear a number of brands' 13s. Especially New Balance.

HTH, and Happy New Year, crunchburger!
posted by kimota at 3:10 PM on December 31, 2004

Happy New Year to you too and cheers, kimota. Thank you everyone, especially you clodhopper wearing brothers, for your help.
posted by crunchburger at 7:28 PM on January 7, 2005