How to Become a Bootmaker, With Oldspeed MFG's Dave Corey and New River Boot's Dave Mills

I had an absolute gas with Dave Mills of New River Boot, and Dave Corey of Oldspeed Manufacturing on this one. After years of being two of my favorite people on the internet to talk about footwear with, I was lucky enough to spend time with both of them last October at our Stitchdown’s Boot Camp expo—and I guess I needed more. Both Daves have in some ways followed similar paths into the craft and business, and in other ways have diverged—which I found as fascinating, instructive, and inspiring as the overlaps. 

This episode is a lot of things, for sure, but the piece that excited me most is how it turned into something of a starter kit for aspiring handmade boot and shoemakers, covering everything from finding your first last and essential tools, to what the feeling is like when that first wonderful someone wants to buy a pair of boots that YOU MADE, to navigating the ever-tricky pricing question, to, of course, their most gruesome bookmaking injuries. It’s honestly amazing these guys still have hands. 

Here’s Dave Corey of Oldspeed MFG, and Dave Mills of New River Boot, on the Shoecast. 

https://oldspeedmfg.com/

https://www.instagram.com/newriverboot/

This episode was sponsored by Coblr—the business management system powering the repair industry. https://www.coblros.com/

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2025 dates and location for Stitchdown's Boot Camp 3—the world's fair of shoes and boots and leather and more—coming soon.

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