The Alden Shoe Company is an American

shoe A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but ...

company founded in 1884 by Charles H. Alden in

Middleborough, Massachusetts Middleborough is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,405 as of 2023. The census-designated place of Middleborough Center, Massachusetts, Middleborough Center corresponds to the main village and commercia ...

. Alden specializes in handcrafted men's leather

boot A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearl ...

s and

dress shoes A dress shoe (U.S. English) is a shoe to be worn at smart casual or more formal events. A dress shoe is typically contrasted to an athletic shoe. Dress shoes are worn by many as their standard daily shoes, and are widely used in dance, for part ...

, such as

Oxfords An Oxford shoe is a type of shoe characterized by shoelace eyelet tabs that are attached under the vamp, a feature termed "closed lacing". This contrasts with Derbys, or bluchers, which have shoelace eyelets attached to the top of the vamp. ...

, Blüchers, loafers, and

Chukka boots Chukka boots () are ankle-high leather boots with suede or leather uppers, leather, wooden or rubber soles, and open lacing, with two or three pairs of eyelets. The name ''chukka'' possibly comes from the game of polo, where a chukka is a period ...

History

In the 19th century, there were once hundreds of

shoemakers Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or '' cordwainers'' (sometimes misidentified as cobblers, who repair shoes rather than make them). In the 18th cen ...

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

, but now Alden is one of only a few factories. Alden is considered a heritage, family-owned brand. Many of the company's roughly 100 workers at its factory in Middleborough are second or third generation, and it sources its leathers mostly from small

tanneries Tanning may refer to: *Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather *Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin **Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun **Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dye t ...

in Europe and the U.S. – its

shell cordovan Shell cordovan, cordovan, or cordwain is a type of tanned leather commonly used in high-end shoemaking. Cordovan is an equine material made from the superficial fascia (or ''shell'') of the lower layers of the hide on the rump of a horse. ...

comes from the last such tannery in America,

Horween Leather Company Horween Leather Company is an American company specializing in the manufacturing and refining of leather and related products. It is one of the oldest continuously running tanneries in the United States. Since its founding in the early 20th cent ...

. Alden has used Horween as their leather supplier since 1930, and is their largest cordovan customer. In 2021, former

CFO A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, re ...

Richard Hajjar pled guilty to

embezzlement Embezzlement (from Anglo-Norman, from Old French ''besillier'' ("to torment, etc."), of unknown origin) is a type of financial crime, usually involving theft of money from a business or employer. It often involves a trusted individual taking ...

of over $30 million from the company of which some $17 million he had transferred to business run by his partner

Bianca de la Garza Bianca de la Garza is an American journalist, television personality, and founder of BDG Beauty. She has worked for WCVB, ABC, and Fox, among other television outlets. She currently hosts ''Newsline'' on Newsmax. Education De la Garza is an ...

. He was ordered to serve nearly six years in prison.

Commercial resilience

Along with other brands of

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana music, a genre or style of American music * Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1981 film), an American drama film * ''Americana'' (20 ...

, Alden has experienced something of a resurgence in 21st century

men's fashion Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into outfits that depict distinctive ways of dressing ( styl ...

. Despite a recession in the late-2000s and the relatively high prices of their products, Alden has grown again because of a renewed interest in more traditional men's shoes and boots, which can last decades. It is this reliance on high-end shoes, especially by those interested in

business attire Informal wear or undress, also called business wear, corporate/office wear, tenue de ville or dress clothes, is a Western dress code for clothing defined by a business suit for men, and cocktail dress or pant suit for women. On the scale o ...

, that has allowed the company to avoid going under despite the decline of American shoe manufacturing.

In popular culture

Alden model 405 is commonly referred to as the "Indy boot" because they were worn by

Harrison Ford Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. Regarded as a cinematic cultural icon, he has starred in Harrison Ford filmography, many notable films over seven decades, and is one of List of highest-grossing actors, the highest-gr ...

Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise consisting of five films and a prequel television series, along with games, comics, and tie-in novels, that depicts the adventures of Indiana Jones (character), Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, ...

.Alden Indy boot
toddsnyder.com

References

Clothing companies established in 1884 Shoe companies of the United States Companies based in Plymouth County, Massachusetts Companies based in Massachusetts Shoe brands Luxury brands 1884 establishments in Massachusetts {{US-manufacturing-company-stub

History

Commercial resilience

In popular culture

See also

References