Unlike most fashion footwear on the market these days, Kuwaii shoes are made to last you much longer than just one season. We are very proud of the quality of our footwear. The way we make our shoes is complicated, time-consuming and takes a lot of patience, skill and care. In fact, it takes up to one whole day for our team of workers to complete a single pair of Kuwaii shoes. When you purchase a pair of Kuwaii shoes, you are making a real investment in your wardrobe – one that we hope you’ll be happy about for many years to come. In Kuwaii shoes we use only the very best full grain leathers, trims and materials, knowing that a well-constructed shoe can be resoled, is more comfortable over time and can last for decades. Much like any other important relationship in your life, giving your shoes a little time, attention and love will help them stay in their best condition, and will keep them by your side season after season.
Wear, Care, Repair
A guide to caring for your Kuwaii Footwear
Wear
Here’s our expert tips to keep your footwear looking fabulous over the years, we recommend applying these tips to all your shoes to get the maximum life from them:
1. Prevention is better than cure.
2. Take care of the sole. Do not let the gum wear into the sole material.
3. Weatherproof your shoes often.
4. Don’t over-wear your shoes. We recommend having three pairs on rotation.
5. Don’t ride your bike in our shoes.
6. Store your shoes lovingly.
7.Condition and polish the leather at least once per season – 4 times a year.
8. Always undo the fastening before removing your shoes.
9. Bring your shoes back to us if they need repair or renovation.
Care
Caring for your footwear used to be a weekly routine back in the old days. Since Fast Fashion has come along, the routine and ritual of the footwear care has been partially lost, and we have found that sometimes customers don’t realise that a special pair of high quality shoes requires some maintenance to keep them at their best.
Leather Care
Leather is a beautiful material, but it’s also a natural product that once belonged to a living animal. This means that each piece of leather, and every Kuwaii shoe, is unique. Even shoes that are made from the same hide will have slight differences in the leather, which can become more noticeable as the leather wears over time.
Use a conditioning cream at least once a season, applied with a soft clean cloth and massaged in, then buffed off with a shoe brush. We sell a small selection of trusted footwear care products in our stores.
Spray your shoes with a high-quality water-repellent once per season too. We will happily waterproof your Kuwaii shoes for you at any Kuwaii store.
If your Kuwaii shoes get wet, let them dry naturally and put some scrunched up newspaper inside them to help them keep their shape. Never dry your shoes in front of a heater or fan as this could warp the leather.
Suede Care
Spray with a protector often, and brush with a suede brush to remove any dirt and revive the suede. If your suede shoes are particularly dirty or looking in bad shape, try giving them a gentle steam clean. Hold your shoes above the steam from a kettle for a few seconds, and then gently brush with a suede brush.
Rest
We all need a break sometimes. Your shoes need rest time between wears, too – it gives them a chance to aerate and relax back into shape, and stops them from wearing out too fast. We recommend that you have at least three pairs of shoes on rotation. This is a major factor in prolonging the life of your footwear.
Sole Care
Even the toughest soles wear out. Streets are rough, and if you wear your shoes often – especially in a wet city like Melbourne – you’ll need to replace your pink gum every 10-12 months, or when they show signs of wearing down. Please bring your shoes back for repair before the sole protector has worn into the material below so that we can have the best chance of repairing them.
Repair
We want you to get as much wear out of your shoes as possible, so we offer a maintenance, renovation and repair service. What this means is that we are able to send your footwear for repair to the factory where they are made, which is an amazingly unique service we offer. Our makers have the exact same materials that your original shoe is made from (for example our trademark Kuwaii pink gum!) so that you will get the best possible result on your beloved shoe.
We would first like to talk to you about maintenance, before we begin talking about repair. Because all well-made footwear needs to be maintained to keep them at their best. No matter the shoe, or how expensive it is, a shoe is not invincible, so we can’t talk enough about maintaining your precious pair of Kuwaii shoes. Think of it like a car. You can purchase the very best car that money can buy, but you still need to take it in for its regular service every year. The same with your shoes. We are all about continuing the useful life of Kuwaii items, so the better your shoes are maintained, the longer they will last you, and the more they will thank you for it – like the saying goes “take care of your shoes and they will take care of you”!
For shoes that require repairs, the earlier that you can bring your shoes in for repair, the best chance we will have of bringing them back to life. We do see some heavily worn shoes come back for repair, and sometimes by this stage it is too late for us to be able to work our magic.
Once you’ve decided that your shoes need maintenance or repair, please bring them into our Brunswick store or email us at contact@kuwaii.com.au. We’ll assess your shoes and talk you through the options and prices to bring your favourite footwear back to life.
Due to Health and Safety guidelines we cannot take any dirty or odorous shoes for repair. Please ensure your shoes are deodorised and cleaned properly before bringing them for repair, our staff may not accept any unclean shoes into our repair program. Our footwear repairs can take up to 4-6 weeks. View our footwear maintenance price list here
We are always happy to give further information about our repair policies, so please feel free to get in touch with us if you have any questions at contact@kuwaii.com.au
Warranty
We value our customers and the integrity of our products, and are happy to offer a six-month warranty on any manufacturing faults or defects. In the rare case that a manufacturing fault arises, we will repair your shoes free of charge. However, this will not apply if the damage is caused by overwear or overuse – we expect our customers to care for their shoes with the same careful attention we give to their design and manufacture.
We are always happy to give further information about our warranty and repair policies, so please feel free to get in touch with us if you have any questions on contact@kuwaii.com.au.