A Quick Comparison of Three Mid-brown Suede Loafers (Carmina, Meermin and Spier & Mackay)

One of my most-worn shoes are some snuff suede penny loafers (from Allen Edmonds) I wear when it’s warm (but I wear them when it’s cold, too). The second most worn pair are are a pair of snuff suede chukkas (from Meermin) for when it’s cold out. Sadly the loafers have worn out, stretching enough over time that they no longer fit.

So I have been in search of a replacement pair and recently ordered a trio of shoes to see if any would fill the gap. This post is an examination of each for your benefit.

The criteria I find most versatile for how I prefer to dress are:

1. A last shape neither too pointed nor too rounded, to go well with both casual outfits as well as dressier ones.
2. A mid-brown suede color which looks good with everything from white to medium-dark pants.
3. A leather sole since I’ll wear them primarily in the warmer months when a rubber sole would feel hot.

Penny loafers work perfectly as a shoe that dress up or down. I wear mine with navy suits or dark blue jeans. I prefer suede because it looks at home with jeans; it’s a tougher sell with the dressiest suit outfits (like a dark navy suit, white shirt and black tie; a black balmoral would be best with that fit). But I wear that kind of outfit so rarely, that’s a non-issue for me.

They also wear super well in both warm and cold months, in my experience (although any leather-soled shoe will suffer in wet or slushy conditions, hence why galoshes exist if you do a lot of walking outside, or why shoes with rubber soles exist if you know that’s how it’ll be outside).

So I ordered three pairs from three different makers: Meermin, Carmina and Spier & Mackay. Other makers I was told to try were TLB Mallorca, Grant Stone and Sons of Henrey. Obviously the Alden leisure handsewn in snuff suede came up as an option, as well. But none of those other makers were going to work for me either on account of price or availability.

And one final note before I get into it: I used PayPal to pay for all of these purchases, knowing that if I ended up returning the shoes, I could submit the return shipping cost to them for reimbursement. PayPal pays you up to $30 for return shipping on purchases you make (when checking out using PayPal to pay for the original purchase) on up to 12 purchases per year. I take advantage of this as often as possible, and it takes a ton of doubt out of the process of buying clothes or shoes online.

Meermin Penny Loafers in Polo Suede

Meermin is well-known as making affordable Goodyear welted shoes on pretty stylish lasts. For the price, the shoes are hard to beat from that perspective. However many complain they’re too stiff and nearly impossible to break in. The loafers I got did not feel that way, and as I mentioned my chukka boots are one of my most-worn pair of shoes, hands down, and I never felt that they were too stiff. Perhaps it’s their calf leather models, not their suede, that are the problem?

Anyway, this is the pair I ultimately decided I liked best. The last shape is ideal for my purposes. It has a fairly low toe spring (that is, they don’t curve upward too much in the toe), a medium-high vamp, a pretty low-profile toe, with a toe that’s neither too rounded nor pointy. The polo suede is definitely more red than the snuff suede AE’s they’re replacing, but I decided not to be neurotic about that. I predict these will get more compliments to be honest.

Another thing Meermin is also widely known for is miserly customer service, which frequently refuses to acknowledge issues with their shoes and likewise refuses to pay to accommodate a replacement if your shoes have defects. Such is the case with me on this go-round, unfortunately; they acknowledged from my photos there were some stains around the “tongue” of the shoe, then suggested how to clean it. When that didn’t work, their responses simply pretended I’d never asked for them to make me whole. “Just send them back to this address.” I understand their entire business model is predicated on keeping low margins by not including “free shipping”, and I am glad to pay for shipping for that reason. But it’s unacceptable that there were clear defects with what they sent me, and they simply refuse to pay for the shipping to exchange them for non-defective ones.

It’s tough to recommend them on those merits; but if you don’t have any obvious problems with the shoes, then it’s easy to recommend them for the price they charge. Just go in with your eyes open. As I mentioned, I liked these enough that—assuming the replacement pair I receive from them after having ponied up for return shipping—I’ll be keeping these. But boy do I harbor resentment about that.

Carmina Penny Loafers in Polo Suede, Simpson Last

Carmina is the best of the Mallorca-based shoemakers (which includes Meermin and TLB Mallorca), but is more expensive than either Meermin or Spier & Mackay by about double. I found a pair on sale for about $100 more than those, however, so I figured I’d give them a try.

One of Carmina’s differentiators is that they put a lot of emphasis on being able to discern what the right size is in each of their myriad lasts using a comparison tool. Since I’d gotten a pair of Carmina’s earlier this year made on the Soller last, I used the tool to guess how to size on the pair in question, which were made on the Simpson last. All advice suggested I go a half size up from my normal for a shoe on the Simpson last.

I did, and sadly they simply don’t fit. My heel slipped quite a bit, but the front of the shoes in the toes and ball of my foot were comfortable. I think the size I took on a lace-up would be great; but for a loafer, not great.

The Simpson last, by the way, has a subtle yet rakish chisel toe. For a dress shoe that you would wear with a suit, like a black balmoral or dark brown single monk strap, I can imagine it’s gorgeous. On the penny loafers, it definitely made them feel more dandy to me, but not in a dorky way. If they fit well, I would have had difficulty making the decision. As it was, I sent them back.

Spier & Mackay Penny Loafers in Volpe Suede

Spier & Mackay has only dabbled in selling shoes, and they claim to make a superior product than Meermin at a similar price point. Namely they’re made in Portugal instead of China, and they use better tanneries for their leather. The pair I got were called Volpe suede, which was lighter than either of the other two but still within the realm of mid-brown in my mind.

Of the three, these had the most casual vibe, but were still versatile enough to dress up in my mind. Specifically, they had a lower vamp and a slightly more rounded toe shape, which I’d describe as almond shaped.

Sadly they did not fit, giving me worse heel slippage than the Carmina’s. And the way they fit, I could not imagine sizing down a half size (which I learned after the fact was recommended by people with experience); they felt a little too narrow on my foot already.

They also looked a little less refined on account of the sole color being black instead of a mid or dark brown. So they went back.

Conclusion

Which pair are your favorite? In a perfect world and all three fit well, which would you choose? As it is, I’m excited to get the pair from Meermin and begin wearing them. I miss having a pair of penny loafers that I can throw on as my default pair of shoes.

Below you can see the three pairs compared to the snuff suede penny loafers I’m looking to replacing (top left) and a pair of tan suede tassel loafers (also from Allen Edmonds), which have become my go-to loafers since the pennies have all but bitten the dust.

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