While some call it the season of the witch, the autumnal cusp also forebodes the fashion boot’s emergence. In places like Paris and New York, the transition from Fall onwards is particularly nostalgic as chunky knits, newsboy caps, car-length coats and boxy blazers are pulled from wardrobes. As far as footwear goes, the cooler season’s go-to boots and booties elevate the cozy season’s aesthetic. Come evening, different heights and heel styles can provide warmth to the calves and ankles without sacrificing sleekness. Importantly, they can often do so without sacrificing the city-dweller’s need for a quick walking pace—an essential for catching the train.
Boot aficionados have long-known that there is no other footwear choice as versatile. Boots are such a fashion classic that, as former Harper’s Bazaar fashion editor, artist and content creator Kerry Pieri puts it, “there’s a lot of ‘anything goes’ in the realm of boots.” Presently, she points out that knee-high and above-the-knee boot styles are especially on-trend, adding that there is a special penchant for Boho-inspired, slouchy suede styles thanks to Chloe’s new creative director, Chemena Kamali.
Pieri adds that there is also a great influence by “performance boots,” such as styles inspired by equestrian or biker boot aesthetics. “I would argue that Miu Miu brought back the biker boot,” she continues, referencing fashion’s top brand for Q3. (Miu Miu is Prada’s “sister brand” and the outlier in luxury fashion’s struggling market.) Performance boot styles also make trusty black leather, or aged tobacco brown shades reminiscent of conditioned saddle leather, notable hues for leather boots and apparel. Although, Pieri adds, animal print is also having a moment.
How fitting that this month, in the heart of boot seasons, the Instagram-beloved boot brand, Thursday Boot Co., celebrated its ten-year anniversary in business. With over a million followers on social media, what began as a humble, Kickstarter-funded, direct-to-consumer boot brand is now a heavyweight in “boot culture,” with A-listers like Chris Hemsworth and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as fans.
The brand is known for their expansive boot design, which ranges from classic to trend-forward styles, which actually translates into high-quality product when it arrives at your doorstep. Most impressively, they pull it all off at an alarmingly accessible price point compared to the greater industry.
It is no small feat to break into such an iconic category of fashion footwear and succeed. What stands out about the boot across all genders is the way that a broken-in pair of boots can be as comfortable as a favorite pair of jeans, or comforting as your old College hoodie. Yet the right pair is still transformative to your personal style—particularly for someone that makes the transition from sneakers to boots or booties.
“Nothing brings an outfit together better [than boots],” writes Nolan Walsh, co-founder and CEO of Thursday Boot Co., in an e-mail to Forbes.com. He fondly recalls a personal anecdote about the way a pair of Thursday Boot Co. boots transformed his sneaker-loving friend’s relationship with fashion.
“He exclusively wore sneakers for years and I remember the first time I saw him after he bought his first pair of Thursday Boots. He excitedly told me that he was getting a ‘weird amount’ of compliments—and not just about the boots,” Walsh says. He then alludes to the subtle and empowering shift in style that a boot can convey, from a slight boost in height to the confident sturdiness it lends to the step.
As he witnessed, this translated into a new sense of confidence for his friend. In the daytime, boots effortlessly elevate a casual outfit’s appearance. Come evening, they can be paired with trousers, boots, mini skirts or dresses depending on the mood you are dressing for. From a sleek, ever-chic sock bootie with a stiletto heel to an emboldening pair of lug-soled Chelsea boots, embracing “boot culture” unveils a world of fashion choices that can be personalized to suit virtually any mood.
For some, putting on a pair of boots represents a link to their rich sartorial legacy; all it takes is a glance at fashion week street style photos to see how meticulously a pair of boots can be selected. One particular style of boot that is popping up frequently this season is the below-the-calf, laceless Chelsea boot, with its signature elastic at the ankle—a culturally evocative design that unfailingly brings back thoughts of The Beatles and the iconic Mod era of Sixties fashion. From there, the mind segues into the era’s quintessential white, mid-calf Gogo boots, as dubbed by Corrèges, which were paired with the then-revolutionary, high-hemmed mini skirt.
The point is that contemporary boot styles possess a rich fashion legacy. The Chelsea boot is presently available in countless iterations, with the Anine Bing Bekah boot and its high-shine finish, chic point-toe and an angled block heel making a striking statement in High Street fashion. Thursday Boot Co. also keeps several adaptations of the Chelsea boot in its rotation, from the Classic curved toe and modest heel, to matte finishes, platform soles and even a lug-embellished heel.
Besides this cultural connection to the collective, it is of course the individual’s personal taste that inspires the draw to a pair of boots. It is no small undertaking for a fashion-lover; the psychological underpinnings of these choices might be conveyed subtly—or not so subtly—via the moody nuances a pair happens to evoke.
Contemporary looks might channel a classic or preppy feeling from an equestrian-inspired, knee-high pair with a modest heel, whereas a heavy lug-sole might be used to command respect or convey an air of defiance. The look continues with choices in accessories like hats and outerwear—with oversized, boxy and softer, “cozy” textures of blazers all conveying the individualized process inherent in styling.
It is because the selection of a boot is highly personal that Thursday Boot Co. prefers not to follow market trends. They embrace the functionality of the boot while striving for their styles to make longer-lasting appearances in their shopper’s wardrobes than the trend-based fashion cycle. Their four-person design team, which Walsh considers an asset, instead makes their decisions by deferring to personal taste. They also place great stock in customer feedback and preferences, which have tended towards platform styles, taller boot heels and penny loafers, of late.
“To begin a [design] project, you have to want it, and to launch it, you have to love it,” he says of their process, which forces them to be “intentional and thoughtful about every product we create.”
Walsh still personally oversees most of their product development, taking customer feedback on design and reasons for returns into consideration while doing so. He balances a desire for business growth with the ability to adhere to their brand values—to continually improve, prioritizing the creation of high-quality, long-lasting wardrobe staples at accessible prices.
“At the end of the day, the number one priority is always to strive for 100% customer satisfaction,” he continues. “This [client-attuned] line of thinking has really made a huge impact on our brand trajectory and led to some of our best products.”
Their business model has always been mindful and considered; Walsh was even initially hesitant even to expand in sneakers. Yet growth can be organic—boot pairings go hand-in-hand with the selection of outerwear, making their foray into apparel intuitive. The risks they have made, like the introduction of the higher-priced Black Label collection and dress shoes, have been quite successful and paid off. This comes with their continued development of new designs in boot styles, with variations in grain, sole, height, style and even a vegan leather offering.
These are all good signs for the anticipated success of their two brick-and-mortar storefronts beyond New York City. With ten years under their belt, the brand possesses an impressive social media fanbase and a formidable collection. But these in-person experiences will allow customers the instant gratification not available online and the ability to interact with the brand in a new way. Whether you have already shopped from the brand or will be a new in-person customer in Chicago or New Jersey, Walsh assures us that Thursday Boot Co. has “many big releases coming up” before the end of the year with what he considers their “best work” to-date.