1955ish Sears Roebuck and Co Loafers
Long time browser first time poster. I came home from vacation with a package from Depop. The listing originally described these loafers as having wooden soles but from the 60s according to google lens. I was assuming they had mistaken stacked leather for wood and didn’t really trust google lens. Originally listed as a size 9 in men’s. I asked how they knew considering there’s 0 indication of size anywhere on the shoe. The seller had told me “I tried on i think they're closer to a 10. 5 actually. I'm a Women's 9 which is men's 10.5 and they fit me well with a little extra room not too tight”. A women’s 9 is close to a men’s 7.5 so I thought it was a no go. They ended up suggesting they would measure the shoe to get a better idea. The outside measured 11 inches and the interior measured 10.25 inches. $29.75 on a random pair of loafers. I have been burned on Depop before finding random niche things only to be disappointed. I did like the details so I was content if they were wearable. Anyway they fit when I got them lol. In my excitement I didn’t notice the heels were as weak as they were and split one of them.
I originally was going to come in here and ask what the hell these shoes were because I couldn’t find them after near 3 hours of searching online. I started taking photos after cleaning them up to post hoping anyone would have information and then in the last photo I took I noticed the word casuals on the insole. In very specific lighting angles I made out Gold Bond Casuals. After searching “vintage gold bond shoes”and scrolling about 100 images down I finally came across a random catalog advertisement for a Sears Days Shoe Sale. This is as at almost the very end of the search from a random ass scanning of a catalog on Pinterest. These bad boys were originally $5. I believe the fine print reads out the loafers being a storm welt construction specifically. Turns out google lens was right, not for any trustable reason though lol.
Anyway I had fun finding this out. I’ve decided it was worth the $29.75 to occupy my mind for 3 hours at least. The wear on them is super interesting to me though as the interior shoes so little sign of wear or discoloration but the outsole is fairly worn through. Pretty sure I’m going to try to get them repaired (heel splitting) to wear them if possible. The silhouette is perfect to me. Nice width, low profile beefrolls, toe box doesn’t go too high, sawtooth vamp, and the split toe. Chef’s kiss.
If anyone has more information on them or leads on another pair I’d much appreciate it.
Apologies if my writing is poor. English is my first language but the American school system is in shambles and the internet has rotted my brain.