Good shoes are produced by good shoe makers, naturally. When you try to keep using them, you need some cobblers. In order to let them stay fine shoes, you have to keep in touch with a wonderful cobbler.

Takai Takanobu is a manager of Old Hat Shoe Artisans in Osaka. He is one of great cobblers in Japan. Then, I interviewed there on a sunny day in 2014 spring.



■ I am so glad to meet you, sir. Well, can you explain why you opened your cobbling shop in Osaka?

Takai Takanobu: Old Hat basically dealt with vintage clothes in Tokyo, and I was familiar with the president. I studied shoe making in U.K. and my master had got acquainted with him. After I got back in Japan, the president said “I am willing to open a new shop which exclusively deals with shoes” and then, this shop came out in 2012 spring.

■ Then, He chose you at the time. Let me hear your impression on shoes of U.K.

T: The shoes were made firmly, but it did not go lightly just like sneakers. Light shoes sometimes call lack of durability. Therefore, I prefer England shoes because I am fond of shoes which work longer.


■ I see. Was your master, Jason Amesbry, a bespoke shoe maker?

T: Yes.


■ How do his lessons work on your recent job?

T: I don’t think we have to do all manually. But there are some points which we must mend manually, and so I would like to think a great deal of those. My customers bring us numberless kinds of shoes, made of various materials. I could not be without using my head and hands for cobbling them.