For the past three years, CEO Shuyler Mowe has lacing up his now decade-old Builder Pros to helm Nicks Handmade Boots, shepherding the Spokane maker from a pure focus on work boots and into a new era of lifestyle relevancy—and dramatic growth that's seen the company add more than 40 employees in that time.

This episode, Shuyler and Ben dip into Nicks' deeply interesting, twisty-turny historical path,  what it’s like to exist in the uniquely competitive Spokane bootmaking landscape, the limitations of Nicks' MTO offerings and how their lead times are trending, the brand's growing content empire on YouTube and beyond, developing their proprietary 1964 leather with Seidel, if Nicks 55 and White’s 55 lasts are actually the same, how to fit a customer's MIND, and plenty more.

This episode was sponsored by Taft, whose new line of stitchdown construction boots is, believe it or not, right up our alley.

Theme Song: The Road by Punk Rock Opera

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We'd better see you at Stitchdown Chicago 2026—the world's fair of shoes and boots and leather and more—Nov 6-7 at Artifact Events.

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