The Alden Shoe Company is an American

shoe A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. They are often worn with a sock. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration and fashion. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from cultur ...

company founded in 1884 by Charles H. Alden in

Middleborough, Massachusetts Middleborough (frequently written as Middleboro) is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,245 at the 2020 census. History The town was first settled by Europeans in 1661 as Nemasket, later changed to M ...

. Alden specializes in handcrafted men's leather

boot A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is c ...

s and

dress shoes A dress shoe (U.S. English) is a shoe to be worn at smart casual or more formal events. A dress shoe is typically contrasted to an athletic shoe. Dress shoes are worn by many as their standard daily shoes, and are widely used in dance, for part ...

, such as

Oxfords An Oxford shoe is characterized by shoelace eyelets tabs that are attached under the vamp, a feature termed "closed lacing". This contrasts with Derbys, or bluchers, which have shoelace eyelets attached to the top of the vamp. Originally, Oxfo ...

, Blüchers,

loafers Slip-ons are typically low, lace-less shoes. The style which is most commonly seen, known as a loafer or slippers in American culture, has a moccasin construction. One of the first designs was introduced in London by Wildsmith Shoes, called the W ...

, and

Chukka boots Chukka boots () are ankle-high leather boots with suede or leather uppers, leather or rubber soles, and open lacing, with two or three pairs of eyelets. The name ''chukka'' possibly comes from the game of polo, where a chukka is a period of play. ...

History

In the 19th century, there were once hundreds of

shoemakers Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as ''cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen an ...

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

, but now Alden is one of only a few factories. Alden is considered a heritage, family-owned brand. Many of the company's roughly 100 workers at its factory in Middleborough are second or third generation, and it sources its leathers mostly from small

tanneries Tanning may refer to: * Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather * Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin **Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun ** Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dy ...

in Europe and the U.S. – its shell cordovan comes from the last such tannery in America,

Horween Leather Company Horween Leather Company is an American company specializing in the manufacturing and refining of leather and related products. It is one of the oldest continuously running tanneries in the United States of America. Since its founding in the early ...

. Alden has used Horween as their leather supplier since 1930, and is their largest cordovan customer. In 2021, former CFO Richard Hajjar pled guilty to embezzlement of over 30 million dollars from the company of which some 17 million he had transferred to business run by his partner Bianca de la Garza.

Commercial resilience

Along with other brands of

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

, Alden has experienced something of a resurgence in 21st century men's fashion. Despite a recession in the late-2000s and the relatively high prices of their products, Alden has grown again because of a renewed interest in more traditional men's shoes and boots, which can last decades. It is this reliance on high-end shoes, especially by those interested in business attire, that has allowed the company to avoid going under despite the decline of American shoe manufacturing.

Popular culture

In popular culture, Alden model 405 boots (commonly referred to as the Alden "Indy" boot) were worn by

Harrison Ford Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. His films have grossed more than $5.4billion in North America and more than $9.3billion worldwide, making him the seventh-highest-grossing actor in North America. He is the recipient o ...

Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise based on the adventures of Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., a fictional professor of archaeology, that began in 1981 with the film '' Raiders of the Lost Ark''. In 1984, a prequel, '' Th ...

character in the film versions of the franchise.

References

Clothing companies established in 1884 Shoe companies of the United States Companies based in Plymouth County, Massachusetts Companies based in Massachusetts Shoe brands Luxury brands 1884 establishments in Massachusetts {{US-manufacturing-company-stub

History

Commercial resilience

Popular culture

See also

References