Very recently this year, I finally realized how silly I looked wearing sneakers with dress clothes. Yes, I’ve spent almost a decade going into professional environments wearing sneakers with my slacks. Now, they aren’t all beat up or anything, but I cared much more about comfort than I did about how my feet looked. To quote my favorite movie, the Shawshank Redemption, “I mean seriously, how often do you really look at a man’s shoes?” The answer to that question, is, a lot actually.

I was editing a video with myself in it, dressed as I usually dress in an office setting, and saw the clash. So I decided to buckle down and wear the nice dress shoes I’d had for many years, bought for a wedding some time ago. You should’ve heard the sighs of relief in the office when I came in the next day. I had no idea it was that much of a topic of conversation! But, its important to look good too, as what you wear says a lot about who you are. Truly, I’d subconsciously avoided it for so long because I find them so uncomfortable, and hate the idea that I can’t move as quickly in them when I need to. Do I plan to run marathons in them? Of course not, but sometimes you gotta sprint for that morning train! Now, I’ve found the solution that brings both comfort AND performance together in one shoe: Enter Wolf and Shepard.

W&S take a lot of seemingly separate ideas and combine them into the ultimate shoe. They take a professional looking style and, with a little help from 21st century technology, infuse it with performance abilities that would make the loafers buried in your closet cry with envy. You never have to have 4 different pairs of shoes for all occasions anymore, you can cover them all with one, and look good doing it! W&S has found a way to maintain the quality of a $300+ shoe with an unparalleled ability to not only be comfortable, but to perform as well. Something you can skateboard to work in? I’m in!

How do they accomplish all this? Aren’t shoes just some leather with a nice sole? That’s what sets these apart, they bring together some truly revolutionary technologies to change the way we look at shoe design. Let’s start with the heel. They replace the wood and nails in dress shoes with an HD EVA heel, keeping the look of a dress shoe but adding the comfort of something that makes you feel like you’re walking on clouds all day. Speaking of cloud-walking, they also add a memory foam foot-bed, so it truly feels custom to your foot and you don’t have that thin feeling like with other dress shoes. Next, they design the shoe with a carbon fiber shank and vaulted-arch, giving you that lightweight and high performance feel that a normal dress shoe could never accomplish.

Okay, but what about grip? How am I supposed to climb trees and run up and down ramps in a dress shoe? They solve this with some fantastic laser-cut rubber soles. The best part? These soles feature W&S’s patent-pending PhoenixTECH resoling tech, so when the traction starts to wear down, they can be replaced with ease. You never have to buy another pair of shoes again! Lastly, let’s talk about that style. Each shoe is hand-sewn by craftsmen in Porto, Portugal, incorporating an authentic and elegant European design into a high performance shoe. Made with fine Italian calf-skin, and finished with luxurious Parisian waxes, you’ll never guess that these shoes were built for running.

Speaking of style and design, I should mention that there aren’t just loafers there. These shoes come in many designs, from Captoes to Wingtips, from Blitzes to Closers. Not to mention that they come in multiple color schemes, to satisfy all your aesthetic needs. Need some help taking care of your shoe? They have multiple blog articles right on the site, discussing the best ways to keep your shoes tip top, and they even sell multiple waxes and other products to keep that shine on!

How you dress determines how well you perform. I know that when I’m digging into a task, I need the right tools for the job, and shoes are no exception. You don’t go hiking in snow with sandals, right? I spend a lot of time finding the right tools for everything that I do with my time. Now, with W&S, I finally feel like I’ve found the last part to complete my “dress for performance” needs. Head on over to http://www.wolfandshepherd.com/ so that you can add that final puzzle piece to your high performance life too!