BLKBRD SHOEMAKER is the associate retail brand of our existing manufacturing business by the name Blackbird Footwear Co. To retain the correspondence with our parent company and simultaneously create a distinction we concluded the name BLKBRD SHOEMAKER, and it is pronounced same ways, ‘black·bird’.

The name Blackbird is inspired by a Hypersonic spy plane SR71, developed by NASA in late 1950 and named "THE BLACKBIRD".  The SR-71 “The Blackbird” was designed to be Stealthy but the curves made it very beautiful and highly recognizable, similar to BLKBRD shoes which are designed to be subtle yet highly sophisticated and noticeable. Hence the name “BLKBRD”.

All of our shoes are completely handmade by some of the most skilled and passionate craftsmen in Agra. Shoes are not just a product we tend to sell and earn a living, but making beautiful shoes is a passion of ours. With each shoe that we make, every detail is considered, every design curves thoroughly thought of and every making process executed with utmost perfection.
With a focus on comfort, durability, and the highest quality materials, we deliver our shoes Direct-To-Consumer at the lowest profit margins.
The Blackbird design aesthetics revolve around the principle of being simple, classy, traditional yet elegant; that Is, being subtle yet very noticeable to the very core.

For more info about us, please check How we make our shoes?

Our design lines and choices revolve around everything classy and traditional men’s dress shoes, with perfect design lines, proportions and curvatures. Shoemaking is a great trade and enjoys a fine history with various great shoemakers, myriads of innovative design & styles, inventions of modern mechanized shoe making. Even after lots of innovations and modernizations in shoemaking, we have chosen to stay with and follow the traditional and classy design lines.

The details of BLKBRD Shoes are designed and highly taken care of to the very minute details, be it the stitching or the smallest of brogue punch to other major aesthetic aspects. Every component and design lines of BLKBRD shoes are highly curated, every curve is such that it enhances the features and curves of our Lasts. The BLKBRD design aesthetics revolve around the principle of being simple, classy, traditional yet elegant; that Is, being subtle yet very noticeable to the core.

Exquisite detailing, immaculate design lines, quality material all combined with splendid craftsmanship resulting in meticulously crafted shoes are the bona-fide features of every handcrafted BLKBRD Shoes. 

Hand-welted shoes require great skill and craftsmanship and an intensive process of shoe-making to craft a single pair of shoes. Hand-Welting being a traditional and legacy style of shoe-making, there are very few craftsmen in India with such extraordinary shoemaking skills.

Also, for such a taste for traditional and expensive price point for a well-crafted shoe has very few buyers, the ones with such exquisite and classy taste in high end premium shoes. Hence there may be only a few brands selling Hand-welted or true hand-crafted shoes in general.

A Hand-welted shoe is a shoe made using a specific technique of traditional shoe making called Hand-welting. In Hand-welting, the upper part of a shoe and the bottom part, i.e. the sole of a shoe, are stitched together using a strip of leather called “welt”. And the whole process is done manually by the Hands of our master craftsmen. Hence the name Hand-welting. Hand-welted shoe construction can be considered as one of the original and traditional ways of shoe-making and is still used by almost all of the best Bespoke shoemakers across the globe.

A Hand-welted shoe is very much different than regular commercial non-welted shoes, owing to the following reasons:
1. A Hand-welted shoe is completely handmade and requires more than 100 manual steps and more than 40 man hours to complete a single pair.
2. A Hand-welted shoe can be resoled and can last a wearer more than 10 years of usage if properly taken care of.
3. Hand-welted shoes are made only using natural materials which last way longer than cemented or other non-welted shoes, hence more sustainable and eco-friendly in every ways.
4. A Hand-welted shoe possesses a true sense of Craftsmanship and History of traditional shoemaking, hence is a proud possession of the owner.

Yes, along with our expertise in Hand-welted construction, we are also capable of executing Blake Stitched construction, Norwegian Stitch Construction, Opanka Construction and Veltschoen or Stitch-down construction.

A shoe LAST is a Foot Shaped Form made of recycled PVC or wood upon which a shoe is made. Since Last is what imparts a shoe its shape, crafting or selecting the perfect Last for any shoe shape or idea becomes one of the most important aspects in designing and making any great looking shoe. Hence in shoemaking it is rightly said that “The Last Comes First”.
We have more than 12 Lasts in our library which are fully refined, and size tested, and more than 3500+ shoes have been made using these lasts in the last 2 years.
Explore our variations of LASTs here!

The premium leathers that we have in stock currently are from some of the top renowned tanneries in the world.

Below is the list of leathers/ articles with the names of Tannery and Country along with the upcharges.

ZONTA, Italy
1. Goldanil - Black - ₹7200.
2. Museum Calf - Chestnut, Brown, Navy and Burgundy - ₹8000

BOAVENTURA, Portugal
1. Scotch Grain- Black, Burgundy, Cognac - ₹4800
2. Pull-up - Dark Tan and Black - ₹6200

HORWEEN, USA
1. Hatchgrain - Tan, Burgundy - ₹8000
2. Chromexcel - Natural, Brown - ₹7200

CF STEAD, UK
1. Kudu Reverse - Snuff - ₹9200
2. Waxed Mohawk Suede - Teak - ₹9800

For upper we use imported Full Grain Cow Crust Leather with a substance of 1.3-1.5mm for most of our classic line of Hand-welted shoes. We also have a range of High quality Suede leather in variety of colors, Finished and Grain leathers such as Patent, Smooth, Oil-Pullup and Waxy leathers, Nubuck, Milled, Pebble-Grain, Scotch-Grain, Hatch-Grain leathers, etc.
For lining, we use full leather lining, mostly cow based Drum Dyed leather with a substance of 0.9 - 1.0mm.
For Bottom making we use veg-tanned leather, where the insole is carved out of a 4-5mm thick veg-tanned Buff leather, specially treated to make it soft and flexible.
Whereas for leather based outsoles, we have a range of veg-tanned leather from Indian Buff leather with a broader grain pattern to Argentinian or Italian imported Bovine bends with smoother grain pattern. The thickness of the leather used in our outsoles is of 4 - 4.5mm.

Along with the range of veg-tanned leather options for out-sole, we have a range of Rubber and EVA based sole options.
The leather material option ranges from Veg-tanned Indian Buff leather, Imported Veg-tanned Argentinian and Italian Bovine Bends. And Rubber outsoles ranges from tread patterns similar to Dainite, Commando, Ridgeway, City, soles etc.
We also have a huge range of EVA based outsole options which can be arranged on customers demands.

Due to no ready availability of these leathers in India, we haven't yet worked with French Calf and Cordovan Leather, but certainly can import these leathers on-demand from customers.

In our past 2 years of shoemaking venture, we got opportunity to work with original Ostrich Skin, whereas due to restrictions on import of other exotic skins such as crocodile and other reptiles, we haven't yet tried our hands on such exotic animal skin and leather.

Most of the so-called eco-friendly green, and vegan leather materials are made out of PU-based material, and PU (Poly-Urethane) is a form of synthetic plastic-based material that is not at all sustainable.
Whereas 100 percent of the commercial leather that we source and use in crafting our shoes is a by-product of the meat industry, which if not used would definitely end up being wasted in landfill.
On the bright side our Hand-welted or Goodyear welted shoes can last a wearer more
than 20 years of usage.
Whereas the life of a vegan leather shoes ranges only from 6 months to more than a year
of regular usage.

Yes we do custom sizing, whereas we offer only semi-bespoke fittings currently. With semi-bespoke fitting one can select any of our existing Last shapes and we can incorporate your feet measurements on to the selected shape.

For assistance with custom fittings, contact us at +91 9819976912 over call or WhatsApp or via email at info@blkbrdshoemaker.com

Yes you can, that's the advantage we have with our inhouse manufacturing, we don't want shoes to be limited to certain designs but have infinite possibilities. We intend to craft a shoe, that our customers
have in mind!
For that you can get any style made in any choice of material via the By Request section. You can choose any leather and color combinations, depending on its availability. You can also opt for added customization options that we have in store for you.

You can customize anything and everything in shoes, ranging from Last, material, components to color of shoe and broguing patterns.
Customized shoes are manufactured individually and include a 20% customization fee.  Once the order of a custom-made shoe is formalized, we will need between 2-3 weeks to manufacture the pair. The time period can vary, based on the component’s availability.

For any sizing related info, refer to the sizing guide on each product page. For Formal lace-up shoes, we recommend ordering the same size you wear with other high end international shoe brands. If you are between sizes, order the smaller size. (We recommend sizing down because leather naturally stretches to form your feet over time.)

Still unsure? Send us a WhatsApp message or an email. We'd love to help you find the right size!

We use the highest-grade leather based raw material in our shoes, and most of the weight of the shoes is because of a lasting and well-made shoe bottom and sole. Our shoes have a 4-5 mm thick leather insole, a leather welt and high-grade rubber or leather-based outsole.
Also due to the fact that insoles and outsole are made out of thick leather, the shoes might feel stiff initially but over 4-5 wears, once the fibers of the leather components loosen up, the shoes will become extremely flexible and a snug fitting one ready to last you for years.

Keep in mind they should be snug, but not uncomfortable. Durable leathers can occasionally take more than a few wears to break in. The upshot is that once the leather flexes and your foot adapt, you've got something durable enough to last for years!

Yes, we do custom sizing, whereas we offer only semi-bespoke fittings currently. With semi-bespoke fitting one can select any of our existing Last shapes and we can incorporate your feet measurements on to the selected shape.
You can also read our Complete Guide on Measuring your feet at home.
For assistance with custom fittings, contact us at +91 9819976912 over call or WhatsApp or via email at info@blkbrdshoemaker.com

In case of size and fitting issues, we offer a free exchange for the same style and color at no extra cost. You can contact us directly over phone or WhatsApp or via email.

Please refer to our ‘Return and Exchange’ page for details.

Every BLKBRD Shoe comes with a full refurbishment and repair warranty against any manufacturing defect and the Goodyear Welted construction. This Warranty is valid for a period of One year from the date of delivery.
Post warranty period we offer a lifetime of sole replacement service, provided the shoes are in resole-able condition. The re-soling is chargeable depending upon the new welt and sole configuration you choose.