All the great English shoemakers have embraced the use of the durable Dainite stud rubber sole in their traditionally goodyear welted shoes: Church’s, Crockett and Jones, Alfred Sargent, Loakes, Sanders, Grenson and Cheaney. The Dainite rubber company is based in Northampton and can trace its history bach to before the 1st World War. The crucial element in a shoe in order for it to be sufficiently breathable is that the foot is surrounded by fully breathable materials and there is nothing else which beats leather in this capacity. Loakes and Sanders and the other good brands will only use a good thick leather insole which runs the full length of the shoe. It is the insole on which the foot sits and therefore the fact that the outer sole is rubber is immaterial when considering breathability. A leather insole also has the advantage over all other man-made materials in that it will mould to the shape of the foot.
The advantages of a good quality rubber sole are considerable: they wear better than leather and offer far better traction than leather. Also crucially when goodyear welted they can be repaired again and again just as you would a leather sole.
Loakes alone offer a considerable range of styles with traditionally goodyear welted Dainite rubber soles. Visit bradshawandlloyd.com to view the entire collection.
