Contact us: +44 (0) 1727 883549

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Contact us: +44 (0) 1727 883549

Yogi Footwear: Who makes your shoes


We recently visited our family-owned factory in Benedita, Portugal, where we were shown around the factory and taught the process of how a Yogi shoe is made. See below our step by step guide that walks you through the start to finish of the process. 

Step 1:

First, the right leather is picked for the chosen shoe. Whether this be soft or smooth, brown or olive, it is imperative that the correct leather is selected to begin the process. 

 

Step 2:

The leather is then, depending on the style, manually cut into smaller pieces. The manual cutting is usually done for the heritage collection - the classic negative heel shoe design. For other styles, the cutting process is handled by machine.

 

Step 3:

Next, the final cuts are marked along the edges, using a denting tool, to indicate where the stitching should be.

 

Step 4:

A manufacturing stamp is then pressed onto the insole, which is made from vegetable sources.

 

Step 5:

To optimise for stitching, the edges of the leather are then flattened. 

 

Step 6:

The pieces are now ready for stitching. Usually this is done in a locals home, or sometimes at the factory.

 

 

Step 7:

To join all the pieces together, a shoe last is used to mould the shoe into shape. 

 

 

Step 8:

Making it easier to shape, the shoe is then exposed to very high temperatures (170 - 180 degrees celsius). Immediately after, they are exposed to much colder, negative temperatures of minus 3 or 4 degrees celsius, to make the moulded shape last. 

 

Step 9:

A product (primer) is then applied to the bottom of the shoe, which increases the adherence to the glue which is used to attach the sole. 

 

Step 10:

A thermoplastic glue is applied to the sole of the shoe, which is made from natural sources.

 

Step 11:

The sole and its glue are then reactivated in a hot oven and put onto the shoe. 

 

Step 12:

A quality check is done at this stage, to ensure the final product meets our high standards.

 

Step 13:

After stamping the insole with the Yogi logo, they are inserted. The leather sole is made with natural leathers that absorb sweat when worn, which evaporates once they are taken off your feet. 

 

Step 14:

One of the final stages is to hand thread the laces. 

 

Step 15:

The completed shoe is then finished with an airbrush to buff and clean the final product. 

 

Step 16:

The completed pair are then packed into a Yogi printed shoebox, made from recycled materials. And then shipped to their final destination.

 

 

A special thanks to Joāo Felizardo who narrated the process of a Yogi shoe being made whilst we were in the factory. 

See the full video on our YouTube channel:

 

You can shop all of our hand finished shoes on site here or find out where we stock our shoes here.

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