A Shoe with a Touch of Cheek

Opus Porter show by John Fluevog. Photo by Samantha J Walker.

Last night I got to meet a Vancouver shoe legend (yes, there is one.) Opus Hotel hosted an event with John Fluevog to celebrate the shoe he designed for the porters at the Opus hotels.

Firslty, I have to say that its pretty cool that Opus hotels (Vancouver’s boutique hotel and there’s one in Montreal too) really support local talent. Jason Matlo has designed their server’s dresses (a black jersey wrap dress), and now John Fluevog has designed the shoes that their porters wear. I think its great that they tap into the local talent for the hotel uniforms.

The porter shoe is a basic, classy mens lace-up, but it has “a little bit of cheek” in the form of the shoe’s upper, which is pink. You obviously can’t put the porters into something unpractical, so this does the job, looks slick, and is pretty noticeable with that slash of pink. The shoe is available at Fluevog stores and through the mini bar at Opus Hotel.

John Fluevog's car parked outside the Opus Hotel was very cool.

Such a cool car! And his hubcaps are personalized too.

The event itself was pretty low key, cocktails and an opportunity to meet John Fluevog, which was pretty exciting for me. I love meeting shoe designers, especially ones that have had some sort of impact in my life. I remember coveting John Fluevog shoes in my teens, and nearly always having a pair on deposit in the store (you pay it off bit by bit, and when its fully paid you can take it home.) I bought some amazing Fluevog shoes many years ago (about 15…) that I recently brought out of the closet. There’s a picture of them below, they are amazing, and I get tons of compliments when I wear them. That’s why I like to live by the motto of never throw any clothing or accessories away, you never know when you’ll want to wear them again. Fluevog is celebrating his 40 year anniversary this year, and its funny that on my last trip to London I had a couple of friends ask about the brand. Maybe its time for a proper revival. The Fluevog heel may be ready for a comeback…

A blurry photo of John Fluevog and I.

My very old Fluevog shoes.

A typical Fluevog men's shoe.

A Fluevog women's shoe.