An iconic shoe style made by Barker at the Earls Barton factory is the Oxford shoe, a Goodyear welted classic that is regarded as the ideal men’s dress shoe no matter the occasion. Characterised by a closed lacing system with a low heel and exposed ankle, the Oxford style offers a sleek silhouette that accompanies most if not all formalwear and suiting.
Exploring the Barker collection there is several Goodyear welted shoe styles that make up each Barker range including the Handcrafted, Country, Creative and Professional collections. The most recurrent shoe styles by Barker are two timeless classics, the Oxford and Derby shoes. The Oxford shoe for men dates back centuries and originated from a half boot called the ‘Oxonian’ which was favoured by students of the famous English institution Oxford University.
A traditional shoe style for many of the Northampton shoemakers is the brogue, a hole punched icon that is an archetypal English shoe. The English Brogue has evolved from a functional outdoor shoe to a business staple but its origins trace back to Scotland and Ireland where the brogue was originally worn as an outdoor shoe for removing bog water when crossing wetlands.
The ultimate guide to Barker Oxford shoes sees the current collection explored for one of the most popular Goodyear welted shoe styles, the timeless Oxford. A shoe rack staple for every gentleman and shoe enthusiast, the Oxford shoe a formal shoe style dating back to the 1800s and has origins associated with students of a famous English institution, Oxford University.Â
 The loafer is a lace less shoe that can be traced back to 1926 when Raymond Lewis Wildsmith of London-based bespoke shoe company Wildsmith Shoes designed a slip-on shoe for King George VI as a casual house shoe.
