Introducing: Tangier Shoes

I have always had a love for shoes. Perhaps my parents are to blame for dressing me in loafers and boat shoes when I should have been wearing Velcro. But, in high school, I lived in Wallabees while most of my friends were in Jordan’s, and then in my 20s, I rarely took off a pair of Ropers. 

After starting Ledbury, the obsession went into overdrive. On mill and factory visits in Italy, I would often be introduced to shoemakers. They would ask if I ever thought about launching a brand. The answer was always, “I would love to, one day.”

I am a firm believer that to make great shoes, you need to be an expert.  Side projects of distracted brands rarely go well.  And if we were going to build a shoe brand, we needed to partner with folks who had generational expertise.

Happily, that expertise lived just down the street when Ron Rider of Rider Boot opened his shop in our neighborhood. I had been a fan of Ron’s work for a decade. He followed his father’s footsteps in the shoe business, and his boots combined the best of old-world construction with American style. I wore Rider boots on the streets of London and on our farm outside of Richmond. They have always felt like they were the perfect complement to Ledbury.

So, over pints of Guinness, Ron and I dreamed up what would become Tangier. A footwear brand that combined our love for unique European leathers, old-world craftsmanship, and contemporary design.

Each pair of Tangiers is designed in Richmond. Unique European and African leathers are selected and sent to our small Italian workshop northeast of Milan. There, artisans with a generational understanding of quality craft beautiful shoes using construction techniques shared by only a few of the world’s top brands. Each style is made in small batches, ensuring that each pair is unique to you and, for now, only available at Ledbury.

We started Tangier because we believe that great shoes should be with you for decades. In the good times and bad, in work and play, your shoes should take on the patina of life. 

We hope that you enjoy our work. Shop Tangier shoes exclusively at Ledbury.com.

Paul Trible