Casual men's shoes

[Ernest Friedman-Hill]

(1) What do you wear? (2) Why? (3) Where do you buy them?

Extra points if I can get 'em on line, if they come in wide widths, and have good arch support.

[Henry Wong]

When I can get away with it... sneakers. Preferrably Nike, as they seem to be naturally wider than the other brands.

For business shoes, I generally go with Rockports -- although I don't really have a loyalty to a brand. If they are comfortable, then I buy them.

Henry

[pete stein]

1) Anything I can find that is actually comfortable.
2) It's hard to find truly comfortable shoes!
3) I just recently bought a pair of very comfortable Johnston and Murphy shoes online at Sherman Bros. (OK to mention the name here?). I hate going out shopping for clothes, but don't seem to have that problem when shopping for electronics. Strange, huh?

For business I've really liked Allen Edmonds. One of the best around.

[Christophe Verré]

(1) Nike sneakers, like these:

(2) Comfortable. (But the ones I use now are a bit "squeaky", which is very awkward in quite places like museums )
(3) Local store

[Hussein Baghdadi]

I wear "Adidas Porsche Design" shoes, they are really comforting and well made and designed.
Also I have an Italian leather shoe similar to what Flamenco guitar players wear when I'm in the mood

[Bear Bibeault]

Here's my idea of casual footwear:

Ernest Friedman-Hill wrote:(1) What do you wear?

Motorcycle boots.

(2) Why?

Because if there's a chance you might have to put your feet down onto the pavement at 60mph, do you want to be wearing Birkenstocks?

(3) Where do you buy them?

West Coast Shoe Company

Extra points if I can get 'em on line

Yup. Ordered online. I can hook you up with a good discount, too.

if they come in wide widths

Custom made for my extra wide feet.

and have good arch support.

What do you think about their level of support?

So I hit all your points and bonuses. But somehow, I still don't feel that these are the droids that you're looking for.

[Christophe Verré]

One advantage is that you can train upper leg muscles while walking. One inconvenient is that, unless you're built up like Bear, you cannot flex your ankle, which makes you look like a cheap Star Wars droid. They should at least put little wheels under them to help you move like R2D2.

[Muse Ran]

for Mon-Thu Bata
for Fri - any sports shoe (reebok, nike) anything..
.. and comfort slippers at home..

[marc weber]

I usually wear Converse Chuck Taylor hightops. Of course, these are notorious for their poor -- almost nonexistent -- support, so the trick is to add Spenco Polysorb Cross Trainer insoles. This turns cheap Chucks (and other intolerable footwear) into "real" shoes.

Traditional Chucks run large, so you probably want to size down a half size. I wear a 10 in most shoes, but a 9.5 in Chucks -- even with the added insoles. If you're used to a small shoe, like Nike or Puma, then size down a full size or even a size and a half.

Stick with the plain canvas or corduroy Chucks for comfort, because these should be flexible enough to lace perfectly around your foot. Leather Chucks don't fit well across the top and don't break in well. Their suede looks cool, but it's on top of regular canvas, so it's double stiff.

Avoid the higher-end Chucks, because these have "improved" support that still isn't very good and makes adding an insole difficult. (On these higher-end Chucks, you either need to rip out the glued insole before adding the Spenco, or size up a half to accommodate both.)

Chucks: Usually about $40 (range from $35 - $90) at converse.com
Insoles: $20 at footlocker.com

I think I have about 20 pair of Chucks now.

[Maneesh Godbole]

[Lalit Mehra]

I prefer reebok ... as they are quite comfortable and it feels good when you wear them ...

it's also easy to purchase one ... from the local reebok outlet

[Michael Matola]

Ernest Friedman-Hill wrote:(1) What do you wear? (2) Why? (3) Where do you buy them?

Extra points if I can get 'em on line, if they come in wide widths, and have good arch support.

Keen Austins are excellent. I own several butt-ugly pairs. They're so awful looking they're on the way back 'round to good looking. They go with nothing, which means they go with everything.

http://www.keenfootwear.com/product/ss10/shoes/men/blvd/austin/black%20olive

So, so comfortable. They don't have explicit wide sizes, but they (and the Austin model in particular) are "slightly wide." I don't have particularly wide feet, but I have "high insteps" -- the classic solution for which is to buy wide shoes.

I buy mine from REI but you can find them many places online.

[marc weber]

marc weber wrote:I usually wear Converse Chuck Taylor hightops...

Whoops, I forgot to say why. But if you have to ask... I mean, what other shoe offers so many options in plaid?

Aside from that, once the insole is added, these are the ultimate in shoe comfort. (Without the insole, they are unwearable.)

[marc weber]

Christophe Verré wrote:(1) Nike sneakers, like these:

...

I have a similar pair in one of Nike's "Joe Strummer" color schemes. Quite a stretch in marketing, but I went for it.

[Ernest Friedman-Hill]

Michael Matola wrote:
Keen Austins are excellent.

Oooh, those sound good. They have a color called "potting soil." How can you resist that?

[marc weber]

Other hip/comfortable recommendations:

http://www.tsubo.com/
http://www.camper.com/

I still use the insoles in these, although the Tsubos are quite comfortable out of the box. Ignore the wacky designs. Focus on the cool ones.

[Somnath Mallick]

Sneakers mainly. Me too prefer Nike. Don't like Reebok and Adidas! Although i have to wear formal leather shoes to office. Hate it!

Generally buy them from Nike retail outlets. Online shopping isn't that popular here in India.

[Peter Rooke]

And now for something completely different

1) What do you wear?

Split toe trainers:



and sometimes five fingers:



(2) Why?
As they are more natural, health benefits.

(3) Where do you buy them?
Split toe - local shop.
Five fingers: http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/

Extra points if I can get 'em on line, if they come in wide widths, and have good arch support.
Yes.

- Never understood the American word Sneakers - do you sneak around in them ?

[Pat Farrell]

Sperry Topsiders.
They are comfy, last at least a decade or more, makes you ready to go boating.

They slip on (loafers) so no time wasted on tying laces.