Markham Village Boots & Shoes

If you’re looking for classic, high-​quality boots (specifically Mephisto and Blundstone), and don’t mind paying a bit of a premium for a higher-​quality shopping experience, come here. A far cry from the lots of flashy sales approach often seen in many of the shopping malls’ shoe stores, this place is serene, quiet, with a minimum of fuss and a maximum attention to detail.
The store’s owners live above the main store itself and they provide a very attentive service to all the questions we had. It’s a bit hard to get Mephisto boots and they were only too happy to assist and order it in for us. The overall experience made me feel like «oh, this must be the good old days that older people keep on referring to».
Garo, the gentleman who owns the shop, is an actual bona-​fide shoemaker and designer, and his designs have been picked up by bigger shoe brands, alongside his own line of shoes. That’s mightily impressive. I mean, who MAKES SHOES these days? Sell them, sure, but MAKE? And yes, this store obviously carries his own line, which I encourage people to check out.
The variety on hand is quite impressive, with a lot of brands that many mainstream shoe buyers won’t know, but purists would be intimately familiar with. Like I said, the price points here aren’t low, but you do trade that for a higher quality and a more sophisticated experience that is warm, welcoming, and not snooty at all.
Have a look if you’re in the area, you might be surprised what you can find.

As we’ve moved more and more into the mass produced, carbon copy echelons of fashion, it’s sometimes difficult to find something unique, hand crafted and personal in this day in age. In no other category is this seen more than with shoes. The skilled trade of shoe cobbler has been all but forgotten and if you know of one he/​she is likely very old and focuses more on repairs than actual design and production.
That’s why, when I discovered the family owned and run Markham Village Boots & Shoes this holiday season I was shocked and pleasantly amazed. Run by a husband and wife team (and their lovely adult daughters) they are a family of third generation shoe cobblers who fashion and produce their own line of mens and woman’s footwear.
The shop also offers a large variety of well known footwear, and accessories (hats, scarves, bags, belts, etc) but what sets these more traditional offerings apart from others is that having a cobbler on hand affords this place the ability to customize the shoe to your foot to ensure a perfect fit. They’re experts in this area and are able to modify any pair of shoes you buy far beyond merely sliding in an insole.
The customization goes far beyond mere shoe design and custom fitting. For a price, I learned, they are able to make a pair of shoes exactly to your specifications from scratch! Truly a lost art that I didn’t think possible these days. And if you’ve been approved for a pair of custom orthopedic inserts to help your arch or step, they are well trained to assist and create these as well.
There is something truly amazing about seeing older crafts such as this surviving in modern times and it’s my hope that more places get back to basics and continue time honored traditions like this in the future!