Guide to Baden Baden

LUXURY SOUVENIR FROM BADEN-BADEN

German-shoemakersGerman shoemakers

German shoemakers are redefining luxury

Nestled in the beautiful Black Forest town of Baden-Baden, German bespoke shoemakers Matthias Vickermann and Martin Stoya are catering to both high-achievers and health-conscious clients from across the world. If you’re visiting this stunning spa town in Europe, be sure to pop into their luxurious boutique and buy a special unique gift or simply add a touch of elegance into your personal shoe collection.

Matthias Vickermann and Martin Stoya
Matthias Vickermann and Martin Stoya

Forget Italian leather or Italian craftsmanship and let’s look at the quality of this German homegrown brand. Founded in 2004 by Matthias Vickermann and Martin Stoya, the company’s history is an impressive tale of skill and pinpoint precision. When entering their showroom and workshop, you’ll be in awe of the array of leather shoes on display and the striking, classic, and timeless designs. Each pair of bespoke shoes tells its very own elegant and beautiful narrative.

You’ll find shoemaker Matthias Vickermann takes pride in personally meeting each client. You’ll get measured and once you choose the fabrics and design the production will begin for your bespoke shoes. Good service is essential for the talented duo. And if you’re a fan of the brand they can even come to you! 

There’s a lot of thought and anatomic knowledge going into the creation of each bespoke pair. Vickermann takes pride in what he has to offer. To him, bespoke shoes are not merely trustworthy companions to carry oneself through life, but even more a statement regarding individuality, culture, health, and sustainability. Together with the University of Maastricht, Vickermann is currently developing a substitute leather fabric to further emphasis on sustainability by acknowledging the planet’s limited resources. 

Vickermann and Stoyas’ customers recognise the outstanding quality produced by them and their team. They’ve even won numerous awards, including being an exceptional brand in “German Standards: Brands of the Century,” from the Deutsche Standards EDITIONEN GmbH in association with Gabler publishing house which presents a fine selection of the best German brands in first-class quality. 

German Shoemakers

But it doesn’t stop there, excellent shoes require excellent service and they’ve recently launched an online shoe repair service called ShoeDoc. The premise is rather simple, yet genius. People can send in their shoes (or any leather product for the matter) to be serviced by the same people who have catered to the upper class exclusively until now. Rather than getting rid of your everyday boots or shoes, or opting for a new leather purse, customers simply let ShoeDoc operate on their beloved belongings. This way, favorites are being preserved while also making an enormous impact on saving the environment through sustainability. 

On a global scale, the shoe industry is the world’s largest user of leathers, manufacturing 14 billion pairs a year. From those, approximately 11.5 billion are produced in Asian factories, while Germany contributes around 25 million pairs of leather shoes per annum. And 240 pairs of those are coming directly from Vickermann and Stoya’s workshop. 

Traditional shoemakers in Germany have decreased in numbers from 16,000 workshops to only 50 still up and running. Vickermann and Stoya are keeping both tradition and profession alive for decades to come. The shoemakers have adapted seamlessly to the ever-changing modern world we live in by going digital. The inventive duo isn’t only famous for manufacturing some of the finest pairs of bespoke shoes in the world, but they’ve also branched out to the modern client’s needs.