First Time Dads on the Yogi Team Celebrating Father's Day

To celebrate Father’s Day, we spoke to three new dads in our Yogi team.Whether you’re a dad, going to be a future dad one day, are a great uncle, friend or mentor to others, we’d like to celebrate father figures everywhere.

Meet Joe our Marketing Manager wearing Yogi Eric shoe, Rich from our Sales Team wearing Yogi Caden and Tim our Head of Design in Finn II.

See what the first time dads in the Yogi team had to say about early mornings and changes to their style and routine.

Joe Harvey – Marketing Manager

Joe is in Eric.

How does it feel to be a first-time dad?

It’s hectic, but amazing. It’s hard to take in because you’re now busier than you’ve ever been in your life. It’s one task after another for the majority of the time and that’s what you focus on, but then in the moments of calm, the magnitude of the situation hits home, and you’re just sat there, with this beautiful little dude, a piece of you that’s here forever. That’s a lovely feeling.  

What is your day-to-day personal style and has it changed since becoming a dad?

Smart, casual workwear would best describe it I think, I love a shacket or an overshirt. My wardrobe has a pretty muted colour palette too. A friend of mine once coined a phrase ‘Heat on the feet’ and I’ll stand by that. My style hasn’t really changed since becoming a dad, I guess I actually get changed a little more due to general baby maintenance.

How has your work morning routine changed since becoming a dad?

Luckily, we’ve got Otis into a bit of a routine and other than squeezing in a nappy change and bottle prep, my routine is very similar, if a little bit more lethargic. I walk our dog, Jeff, have a quick shower and change. Then I make a coffee, a bottle for Otis, and a tea for my wife, then a quick cuddle before leaving for work. 

What will be the first ‘proper’ item of clothing you’ll be buying your baby?

Probably a pair of jeans. I swear by Nudies and I think the baby ones are super cute. I’ll definitely size up and he can have huge turn-ups for a year or so to ensure he gets plenty of wear out of them and to help me justify the price to myself. 

How did you find the shoot day?

It was a little bit intimidating at first, but I honestly couldn’t have had a better partner (or prop, depending how you look at it). Having something or someone to focus on really helped me to be a little more natural and just enjoy trying to make him laugh for half an hour. I do now have a heightened respect for the models that do a full day on that side of the camera now though. I’d definitely turn into a major diva after an hour or two. 

Do you have any plans for your first Father’s Day?

We’re actually going on holiday the next day, so I would imagine I’ll be packing and loading up the car. I think we’re going to have a little family get together in the morning as a mini celebration for all the dads.  

Why is Father’s Day important to you?

I’d be lying if I said Father’s Day was really important to me. Let’s face-it for the most part, mums do the lion’s share of the work, especially in the early years and they deserve so much credit. Shout out to my baby-mama! But I do think it’s a lovely opportunity to recognise the roles that dads play. I’m lucky enough to have a great relationship with both my dad and step-dad, and In my experience, growing up as a boy and young man, the examples they have both set and opinions they hold, really have had an impact on the type of person I’ve become. 

Tell us about the Yogi’s you’re wearing and why did you pick those for the shoot?

I’m wearing the Yogi x Hikerdelic Eric Chukka boot. I’m a fan of both brands, so was excited by the collaboration. A suede loafer boot is a staple of a wardrobe really, and these are immensely comfy and you can really see craftsmanship of them in-hand and feel the quality when they’re on your feet. 

How do you style your Yogi shoes on the day-to-day?

A good quality pair of socks and jeans with these, I think. I might even give them a whirl with a pair of shorts this summer. I think they’re versatile enough. 

What does being a dad mean to you?

It’s a cliché, but absolute and unconditional love, on a whole new level. I want to be a role model to this little fella and have a positive influence on him. I feel a real responsibility to try my utmost to raise him to be a valuable member of society, a bloody good egg.

Joe is in Eric.

Richard Hale – Key accounts manager

Rich is in Caden.

How does it feel to be a first-time dad?

It feels great and I cannot imagine life without him now, it was initially quite daunting when he was first born but it quickly becomes the norm.

How has your work morning routine changed since becoming a dad?

Strangely it hasn’t to be honest, I’m up at 6am everyday for work and Stanley gets up between 7am-8.30am plus my other half is currently on maternity leave.

What will be the first ‘proper’ item of clothing you’ll be buying your baby?

I bought him a full Leeds United home kit the day he was born.

How did you find the shoot day?

The shoot was fun despite the lights making me sweat profusely, I expected more crying and tantrums, however Stanley and the other lad’s babies were all mega well behaved so the day went weirdly smoothly.

Do you have any plans for your first Father’s Day?

Not that I know of, maybe he has crawled to the shops and bought me a card if I’m lucky?

Why is Father’s Day important to you?

It didn’t have any relevance to me historically, but I guess it will be a special day going forward.

Tell us about the Yogi’s you’re wearing and why did you pick those for the shoot?

The Caden are my go-to Yogi silhouette as they look awesome with anything. I have numerous pairs in suede and now the latest pair in the dark brown Newbuck which are my new faves.

How do you style your Yogi shoes on the day-to-day?

This varies depending on the weather, I tend to just wear style “caden” which goes great with shorts in summer and jeans/trousers the rest of the year.

What does being a dad mean to you?

It means everything to me, it’s made me less selfish as a person and I fully understand he is totally reliant on me to provide for him.

Tim Peck – Design teams manager

Tim is in Finn II.

How does it feel to be a first-time dad?

Fantastic.

What is your day-to-day personal style and has it changed since becoming a dad?

My personal style is usually casual / comfortable and working on Yogi and the environment we have here allows me the liberty of not wearing a suit to work. As far as I am aware, there has been no change that I am acutely aware of, as yet that is. As a side note, dad jokes are something I’ve been practicing ahead of time for a while though. 

How has your work morning routine changed since becoming a dad?

Mornings are definitely earlier; Luna is generally a pretty good sleeper so we’re feeling pretty lucky. Although she tends to wake up about an hour before my alarm, so although sometimes a bit tiring, it is a lovely calm period of time to have a little snuggle together before the workday begins, which is lovely. Plus, then I have extra time to sterilise breast feeding equipment, and make a hand-crafted morning coffee, as Winston our little pup has some garden time.

What will be the first ‘proper’ item of clothing you’ll be buying your baby?

We have bought her a few cute little dresses, although we have been really lucky to have such generous friends and family who have sent us many lovely quality hand me downs, so happy to be reusing these rather than buying too much new.

How did you find the shoot day?

Really good fun! The photography team are great, and make the whole process feel very natural and relaxed. It was a very proud moment to be holding my daughter as the focal point of the shoot. Although she was quite sleepy from a big feed from her mum.

Do you have any plans for your first Father’s Day?

I’ve not thought as yet to be honest, just to spend some quality time with mum and daughter. 

Why is Father’s Day important to you?

To be completely honest Father’s Day has not really been something we really tend to pay too much attention to, as we show our appreciation and love to each other as a family on a daily basis.

Tell us about the Yogi’s you’re wearing and why did you pick those for the shoot?

I wore the Finn II in chestnut brown reversed tumbled leather. I firstly absolutely love the richness of the colour, secondly the negative heel outsole is incredibly comfortable! The negative heel outsole is great for your posture, which is something that is challenged on a daily basis now with twisting and lifting in all different kinds of angles as a dad. Finn and Finn II are some of my favourite Yogi upper patterns, they suit my personal style and I find they are quite versatile with outfitting.

How do you style your Yogi shoes on the day-to-day?

The Yogi footwear range offers quite a lot of flexibility in terms of outfitting, across the categories the contemporary range is probably my day to day go to with styles like Hitch Low and Rufus being super easy wearing and quick to slip into. I’ll wear the heritage styles like Finn and Lennon when I’m going out to dinner and maybe dressing up a little smarter. Styles like Lawson and Eric I always tend to pack for my holidays or city breaks with the crepe outsole being really easy going if you’re exploring and doing quite a bit of walking about, and dress up or down really well.

What does being a dad mean to you?

To me, being a dad means always, without exception being there for my family. Offering support and guidance whenever required, helping Luna and her mum achieve whatever they strive for, and of course ensuring a consistent supply of shamelessly delivered dad jokes to ensure I’m not taken too seriously. I’d also add that being a dad gives me additional motivation to everything I do day to day and makes me strive to be an even better person, hopefully someone Luna can look up to as I do with my Dad.

Tim is in Finn II.