Studied under John Lobb's last maker.

At the age of 30, Hayano moved to England. He ended up meeting Stephen Lowe, a man who had been carving wooden shoe molds at John Lobb in London for a quarter of a century.

"Indeed, my mentor was thinking about his son's future and wanted him to try shoemaking. His condition was that he would teach me how to make shoe lasts if I taught his son the basics of shoemaking on weekends. I readily accepted the offer. I became his first apprentice."

On my first day as an apprentice, I was handed a single sheet of paper with the instruction, "Memorize this," which outlined the order in which to carve the wooden mold. When I looked where he pointed, I saw the paper framed and displayed next to a photograph of me standing beside my master.

Overwhelmed by the fact that there is a specific order to carving the wooden mold, Hayano eagerly absorbed his master's teachings. As his vision became clearer, like someone whose nearsightedness had been corrected, the greatness of his master, the inheritor of tradition, who stood before him, became clearly apparent.

"My master's wooden molds are simply beautiful. That's because they embody the universal balance that Britain has achieved through its long history. And there's a reason behind every balance that we perceive as beautiful. These reasons are revealed one by one. I was thrilled."

While captivated by the profound world of shoemaking, he also dedicated himself to shoemaking once his apprenticeship was over.

"I started collecting vintage items and poring over old documents. It might be something intuitive, but when the shoe last changed, the design philosophy I had learned up to that point just didn't feel right. I reset my shoemaking process from scratch and rebuilt it."

Just as river stones exposed to water for a long time become rounded and smooth, Hayano's collection has a similar feel. The square toe, sidewalls, and fiddleback, which generally give a sharp impression, all have a very rounded silhouette, and you can definitely feel something universal about British shoes. The 11 stitches per inch of stitching on the outsole and the equally fine stitching on the upper give them a vintage look.

There is no such thing as being "myself," and there is no need for it.

"My goal is simply to give form to what I've learned from my master. Wooden mold making is like an inexhaustible spring; there's no such thing as 'finished.' First and foremost, I want to thoroughly pursue my master's teachings."

Japan is now a battleground for bespoke shoemakers, each vying to establish their own unique style in order to survive.

"There is no such thing as 'my own style' in my shoemaking, nor is there any need for it. My mentor taught me the significance of shoemaking as weaving and connecting history. I simply want to be there to preserve the wonderful craftsmanship of my predecessors for future generations."

Photo: Tatsuya Ozawa
Text: Kei Takegawa

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Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building , B1F = Men's Shoes
03-3352-1111 (main representative)