“When we look at it, a person wearing sneakers cannot wear classic shoes. Yes, actually he can’t. Over time, it deteriorates the foot structure and has a great harm to human health. People may be buying these fake shoes cheaply, but the shoes are directly related to the brain and psychology. If your feet are comfortable, your health will be in place. Your mind will also be in order. So your happiness hormones are higher. It also affects personality. In other words, the choice of shoes, the choice of dress, the person’s personality and walking style affect everything.”
In our Magazine Leather Company visits, Mr. Seyfettin Polat, the owner of POLAT SHOES company, will talk about the historical background of the company that will explain its brands. OGGI Marketing Manager Fevzi Alpaydın will explain the sector and product groups. Shoe Design expert Erdal Bodur, We will talk about footwear and foot health.
Editor: Mr. Seyfettin, as the founder of POLAT Shoes and Brands and Owner, can we get to know you first?
Seyfettin Polat: In 1952, when I was 6-7 years old, my father gave me to a shoemaker (Yemeni shop) as an apprentice. A neighbor of ours had a child a little older than me. He used to take me to the workplace because we were still children. That was a memory, of course that’s how I started my career.
One day the journeyman told me to buy bread from the bakery, my child, I had just seen the bazaar. I came to the bakery but there was a restaurant next to it, I saw the restaurant before the bakery, of course I bought bread from the restaurant instead of the bakery, then I came to the journeyman. The restaurant gave me stale bread, that is, I bought bread from yesterday, the people in the restaurant did not tell me that this is not a bakery, then I went to the restaurant with the journeyman and returned the stale bread and bought fresh bread from the bakery. So this is how the adventure of shoemaking started in my childhood.
After that, I worked as an apprentice until I joined the army. After joining the army, I opened a shoemaker’s shop in Kilis, Gaziantep, Turkey for a while. Then we came to Istanbul. In 1971, we founded the Polat shoe company.
A friend of ours had a company. We were making and supplying their shoes. Then they quit the business, we bought the brand, and we’ve had the brand ever since. After that, when it comes to our other brands, we designed them ourselves.
We also have SEPOL-FORLI-PASIS-PALU brands.
Editor: I would like to learn your perspective on the leather sector from the past years to the present, because there was a great demand in the past. When you look at the leather sector today, especially shoemaking as the leather and leather goods sector, what kind of deficiencies do you see and what has changed?
Seyfettin Polat: In the past, the leather was of better quality. Because it should be considered as animal husbandry first and foremost. Natural feeding was more common with us. Then gradually these breeders also decreased. Some of them were taken over by big operators. And then different artificial processes were used to feed the animal so that it would gain weight and grow bigger. As the animal grew, its weight increased and the old beauty and naturalness disappeared. There are animals that weigh five hundred kilos, six hundred kilos and a thousand tons. The skin is also carded accordingly. In other words, animals used to be fed freely in the villages and their skins would be very beautiful. Both in terms of meat and skin, so of course, as time went on, we could not find those beautiful leather.
There were “Yemeni”s in your time. They are being made now.
Yes, I know.
Have you ever made “Yemeni”s?
I mean, I mentioned my first apprenticeship at the beginning, my first apprenticeship started as Yemeni. There used to be wedges, we made them. There were a lot of sandals back then. We used to make sandals. After a short while, I started as a shoemaker myself.
Is “Yemeni” or shoemaking more difficult?
Now yemeni is a little behind shoes. Shoemaking is a different craft, an in-depth profession, that is, a craft with a broad horizon, so the more new designs you make in this art, the more beautiful it is possible to make. So Yemeni is not like that. Yemeni has a certain mold and you go on it. But of course it also has a labor. So it is not such a simple craft. It too has an art, it too has a history. But not as much as shoes. In other words, kundura is more elaborate, more different, I mean, the mold is special, the inside is different, so there are professionals all over the world, especially in Italy.
As a country, we started shoemaking and shoemaking very late. For example, there are schools, but there are apprentices coming out of schools, but you can’t even train an apprentice at the age of 18. In other words, our education policy is to educate children until the age of eighteen until they finish high school. After that, the child does not do apprenticeship. Apprenticeship requires a long process. Because our generation did apprenticeship as children. When the apprenticeship is long, everything about that profession gets imprinted on you. At the age of eighteen, you can’t get a child to do apprenticeship anyway, he or she just takes the craft by the scruff of the neck.
In the past years, as you know better, there used to be Village Institutes (schools that offered all crafts with practical lessons). It was a school that guided crafts. When this school was closed down, the crafts have come to the present day.
I mean, a few apprentices came to us in the past years, for example Erdal (shoe designer) came to us after he graduated from school, but he grew up with us, we have a second one, let’s see if he will grow up too. He needs to enter the craft early. This is the last remaining generation of masters. After that, you can’t find those people. They don’t grow, so how will you find them?
Since the majority of young people are more oriented towards technology, space technologies, there is also a big gap between the craft sectors.
As you say, there is a big gap in finding craftsmen. I mean, the masters who have grown up in this craft, if they leave, no master grows after them. I hope they will make an arrangement. So this needs to be addressed. It doesn’t matter which branch. I mean shoemaking, apparel. I don’t know, it would be much, much better if they were directed to every craft.
Mr. Seyfettin, you have different brands, could you tell us a little bit about them?
These brands are our international brands, for example, we use SEPOL in the USA. We also use SEPOL in the Turkic Republics. We have it in Switzerland. We have it in Germany. Some customers print and give their own brands. We also give some of our brands to others.
Mr. Seyfettin, as a master who has devoted his heart to this sector, as a master from the core who knows the craft, what would you like to say about technologization and mechanization?
It used to be hard work, but it’s not boring. Those who work in our business don’t know the passage of time. So it doesn’t bore you mentally. After that, of course, many things became easier because of mechanization. But our work is still labor-intensive compared to other sectors. For example, we have shoes assembled, but in order to make an arrangement, an adjustment, a leveling, a master must stand at the machine. Since we make quality, we pay attention to the smallest detail. Now in our profession, for example, fifty to sixty people used to work in a company, they do the same volume of work, but now fifteen to twenty people can do this work.
We first opened our place in Gedikpaşa in Istanbul, and after staying there for a while, we came to Güngören. We stayed in Güngören for about fifteen years. Then we moved here to the Shoemakers industrial site (AYMAKOP). This place was built through the association. So when we came here, we opened our showroom.
Well, Mr. Seyfettin, thank you very much. You have joined our broadcasts. Thank you for your efforts.
I thank you and wish you good publications.
Editor: We are in the showroom of the company that promotes its products globally with the OGGI brand within POLAT Ayakkabı. We have Mr. Fevzi, Marketing Manager and Mr. Erdal, Shoe Design expert. Mr. Fevzi, first of all we would like to get to know you.
Fevzi Alpaydın: I am Fevzi Alpaydın. I have been in the trade since about 2002. It has been twenty years since I met leather in shoes, but I have seventeen years of translation in shoes.
In terms of marketing, my duty in the company is to strategically market the shoes, domestic and international fairs. How and in which market we will take place. At the same time, I am also involved from order taking to the shipment of products.
Well, I guess you have manufacturing here, don’t you?
Yes, here we, as POLAT SHOES, manufacture everything within its own structure. From A to Z, we definitely do not have a contract product from outside, nor do we give a contract product to the outside. Starting from the upper to the milling of the sole, we do everything from the finish to the packaging.
And do you participate in international fairs?
Yes, we mainly participate in Micam fair. We have been to Las Vegas before, we went to the Magic fair twice. Apart from that, we participated in the Dubai fair. Now we want to participate in China, Russia and other important fairs on a global scale.
And what kind of shoes do you produce in your workshop?
As POLAT SHOES, our main production is classic stout leather. But apart from that, rubber ready-made soles based on Eva. We also make these within our organization. We do milled works. In general, we buy soles from companies abroad, we also buy soles from companies in the domestic market.
But we buy the best quality of these. We integrate them within Polat shoes and offer them to the market under the OGGI brand.
Craftsmanship requires a craft. So a handicraft requires experience.
Definitely, the shoe sector is a craft that really gives importance to handcraftsmanship. At this point, craftsmanship is really important. But without love in this work, it is definitely a product that emerges with the integration of heart and hand. This is not only a product that comes out of the hand alone, but also a product where heart, love and sincerity are given.
As far as I can see, the majority of your products are leather weight.
Yes, it is genuine leather, we do not use any synthetic material.
Editor: Speaking of leather in products, there is generally more “Sustainability” on our world agenda at the moment. That is why leather is a sustainable material. Especially the shoe industry, which is the locomotive of the world leather industry, comes first. For this reason, do you have sustainability policies?
Fevzi Alpaydın: As you said, leather itself is already a sustainable natural material. But the recycling of this leather can be recycled again because it is a real living being. We utilize the leftover leather pieces used after shoe making. There are companies that buy them. These can now be used in their own organizations, for repairs or other ornaments.
So even the smallest parts are the same. It is the same for EVA shoes, it is the same for rubbers. These are already recycled materials.
Editor: Which models are the ones you call Eva?
Fevzi Alpaydın: Eva rubber mixture, these are all leather, first class leather, we shape them here. We do all the painting, finishing, milling, sewing and assembly in our factory. So we have different product groups. But Eva is preferred because it is lighter in weight. As far as I understand, these models are generally preferred more in these classic shoes.
They are comfortable and there is a lot of hand work in them. A master can only sew maybe ten pairs of these shoes until the evening. Because it is difficult to do this. The stitches have to match each other and they are of good quality and comfortable. In other words, the most difficult work in shoes is called “rok moccasin”. In other words, this shoe takes longer than other normal classic shoes. So the labor is very high.
Editor: Well, Erdal Bodur is with us right now, he’s taking care of the design of the shoes. Mr. Erdal, can we get to know you?
Erdal Bodur: First of all, thank you for giving us this chance. I graduated from the Footwear School in 1998 and started here as an intern. I worked in production until 2005. Then, after receiving Modeling training, I am currently working as a Modeling and R&D manager.
As we said, with our own unique lines. It is obvious from the fairs we participate in by doing something different with our own colors. We participate in many fairs to introduce ourselves in Micam, Dubai and many other countries. They really like our shoes. In other words, they compare us with Italian shoes not only in Turkey.
Editor: So what kind of R&D work do you do to add innovations to your products?
Erdal Bodur: I can say that Italy is the master of this business in general. With the molders there, with the companies doing R&D work, with the sole masters and companies. By following the latest studies, of course, it is not enough to buy from there.
Here we create our own line and produce new models. So we don’t directly make what we buy from there. We take a mold from there, for example, we adjust it according to our own line. We make a special mold for ourselves. We prepare our R&D work accordingly. Obviously, it is different from them. So we try to do something unique to ourselves.
It’s not a copy, it’s unique, in other words, you create your own mold yourself. Just as they trained me, I am training people for the future in this company, because everyone has to train the next person so that this business can continue. We are doing our best.
Editor: So you have now established your academy here yourself, right?
Erdal Bodur: Yes, yes, we are training new employees. Recently, there is also a shortage of finding staff, a shortage of finding available workers. As POLAT FOOTWEAR, the biggest feature of our company is that the shortest employee is five years. In other words, a new employee is a five-year employee. The others are twenty years, twenty-five years, that is the main reason why we make such high quality shoes in Turkey. I started in 1998 and I am still continuing. Mr. Fevzi came after me. He is also ten years old, maybe more. As I said, the reason why we make such high quality shoes is to be able to keep qualified personnel, which is a must for making high quality shoes. Otherwise, it is not possible to make such high quality shoes with two or three year olds. It is also not possible to make designs. Because you need to train the staff. It takes time for that. You can’t make something beautiful and new without qualified staff.
Of course, it is very important to love this craft. In other words, a person cannot be successful if they don’t love their profession. So it is not only for our profession, all professions are like this. The biggest reward for us comes from our customers. As long as we get a product back to us, it is a great reward for us. So you sent the product but it didn’t come back to you. This is not a success and not a reward anyway. But when the biggest reward is that return and when it is mentioned by customers, this is already enough for us. Our aim is not a competition, I mean, maybe I can participate in a competition and come first, but that is not our aim.
Honestly, we want to show the world that we can make good shoes as a factory. In other words, whether in Africa or abroad. When we see our shoes in Germany and Italy, we want to be able to say that our Turks can do anything. In other words, we want to make a race in the world in this way.
Actually, it is not a personal race, but we want to show the world what Turks can do. You know, not only for Turkey, but for everyone in the world to know this with its design, line and comfort. So that not only Italians but also Turks can do this job.
Fevzi Alpaydın: I have an anecdote on the subject.
In certain periods, I go abroad and travel, and I went to Ukraine for a while. I went to a shopping mall there. I had my guide with me, of course. I saw a store on the second floor and downstairs there were textiles. I saw some shoes. I said to myself that I should go up here, I should sell shoes here.
So I should introduce myself. I went in. There’s a corner full of shoes. You know how you recognize your own products? I said these look like our products. They look like the products made by OGGI, POLAT Shoes. Indeed, the brand is different, but the model codes inside are ours. I said to myself how much they copied it. By the way, we know that they make good copies. I mean, I looked at it as OGGI, the brand is different, the quality is our quality, the model number is a copy. On the other hand, I don’t want to believe it. I look at the different product and it’s the same. Then there was a gentleman inside, I said hello, where are these shoes from? He told me to wait, he had a customer inside. Then the customers left. I said these aren’t Italian. I said these are OGGI, POLAT SHOES and he told me to wait again. Then he came up to me and said, “Don’t you recognize me? He told me that you wrote these products. He said I had come to your store, to your factory. I said, “Who else was with you?” I said, “My wife.” I didn’t recognize her at first, but then I remembered her.
Then I asked why you told me to wait. He said that the shirts and suits you see are made in Turkey, we can say that with peace of mind that they are made in Turkey, but in shoes, your Turkish shoes, especially Polat shoes, are even better than Italian shoes. In other words, we know them in terms of comfort and quality. But we could not break this Italian line. He said that we could not overcome this in “Made in Turkey” shoes. I also experienced an example like this in the USA, when I went to the Las Vegas fair, I walked around there. They said the same thing there.
But again, we lack both as producers and as the official institutions of this business. In fact, if we work hard together with the representative chambers of this business, such discourses will come to an end. But only if we work sincerely and willingly. If a good work is done for the promotion of Turkish shoes, I think we will surpass everyone, but we will believe in this work.
Editor: Exactly, shoe design competitions are already organized in Turkey. Yes, we need to make it global. We need to create a global brand. So you are absolutely right. But there is also something like this, of course, Turkey is generally always a manufacturer in the leather sector, that is, in the leather and leather products sector, unfortunately, I already know this from my own father.
As Mr. Erdal said, it’s not a copy, but unique. I mean, if we do it, it’s okay. I mean, it’s not if foreigners do it. It is if we do it. But we definitely need to get out of this copycat mentality.
Editor: There was definitely a workshop of the Turkish Footwear Manufacturers Association (TASD) recently. In that workshop, these copy products were also on the agenda. Solutions were discussed together with the Ministry of Trade. I hope that a common point will be reached and a more detailed study will take place on both copied products and branding.
Fevzi Alpaydın: The second big copying thing, I mean we call it a knockoff as a slang term. I tell you sincerely, I don’t normally wear such knock-off products myself and I don’t make my children wear them either.
They made Turkish people forget real shoes. Therefore, when we look at it now, a person who wears sports cannot wear classic shoes. Yes, actually he cannot. It deteriorates the foot structure over time, and it has a great harm to human health. People may be buying these fake shoes cheaply, but shoes are directly related to the brain and psychology. If your feet are comfortable, your health will be in place. Your mind will be in order. So your happiness hormones are higher. It also affects personality. In other words, the choice of shoes, the choice of dress, the personality of the person and the way he walks affects everything.
So when we look at the old movies, there is a serious stance on the way those people dress. But when we return to the present, sneakers are not a type of shoe to be worn every day. So for a normal working person, for a civil servant, leather shoes are absolutely essential for daily use.
If there is a decline in classic shoes or classic clothing, one of the reasons for this is the liberalization decision taken by the state or governments. In other words, people can dress as they want, yes, it is true, but in fact, when we look at it from a point of view, there are no masters in this craft due to the emergence of alternatives and copy products.
When we say classical, art emerges. In other words, when this lack of freedom emerges, people are not trained in this field because there is no need. Why? Because everyone is left free to do everything.
In other words, classic clothing needs to be brought back into life. Only then can we make exports with high added value, and the foreign currency inflow to the country will be higher because everyone is doing the cheap and simple. The important thing is to do what cannot be done.
Editor: Yes, you have definitely made a very good point. I would like to add something at this point.
Editor: Recently, there are also posts on social media accounts. Sometimes they put petrochemical particles under the machine. Then they produce plastic-based PVC-based shoes or slippers. These are really a very harmful factor to the health of the person and he will not be able to understand it at the moment he wears it. But I hope that studies are evaluated at this point. If steps are taken at the right points, we hope that branding and products that are harmful to health will not enter the market and will also benefit the sector.
Editor: So how is your position in the international market right now? I mean, you mentioned that you participate in fairs in the European market. Are you also present in the Asian market?
Fevzi Alpaydın: As POLAT SHOES, Mr. Erdal knows us better. I mean, since he was in this company before me, of course, we were following it from the outside, we heard its name, as POLAT FOOTWEAR, we have a serious place in the domestic market. In other words, we do not have our own stores to appeal to the end user. But we work customer-oriented. Especially in Anatolia in Turkey, leathery classic shoes are already used more frequently. Especially places like Erzurum, Erzincan, Malatya, Tokat, Nevşehir.
We call classic shoes, that is, kundura, due to the increase in costs, especially when I say cost, that is, the excessive increase in the dollar has affected our costs. We had a serious loss in the domestic market. It is going on now, but this situation did not affect our foreign sales. Ninety-nine percent of our exports shifted abroad. The biggest market here is Central Asia, all Turkic Republics and Africa. There is a serious problem in Africa right now, and there is a decrease in orders there, especially in Nigeria, due to the dollar rising too much.
We currently have our own warehouse in Europe and America. In Texas, I won’t say it for the sake of advertisement on the leading websites there. Online sales are made on three or four leading websites. At the same time, we also sell to other stores from the warehouse. We ship products from here to there. We have orders for England slowly at the moment. They will be shipped soon. We mostly have Central Asia, Africa and a little bit of China. But this doesn’t mean that we are not sitting in our seats right now, we are constantly trying to gain customers by establishing dialog with people. Because production does not stop.
Editor: So do you have different models? Only classic models?
Fevzi Alpaydın: We produce different models within the classics. The top is classic and the bottom is casual, in other words, sports soles are in fashion right now, whether the top is beautiful or the bottom is comfortable. In other words, even if the sole is leathery, we have always attached importance to this. We also have such segments now. We are already making boots for the winter season. We also produce shoes with Eva underneath, but in a casual style, in a way that you can say oh be when you wear it.
You mentioned recycling in shoes, now if you recycle the whole shoe, that is, the whole shoe, I have the chance to use it. As much as I can see now, we also saw it at the Italian supplier industry fair. At the moment, this recycling is mostly in the soles, especially very slowly, and of course, it will not be on the market all of a sudden. There will be a slow transition period. Anyway, if it settles suddenly, it will cause very big problems. We may lose the market. But what are we going to do? By following this, we will gradually start to incorporate them into our own organization. We are already in contact with the leading companies in Italy that do this job.
Like I said, we do it in classic boots. We also make Eva boots. Now there is not much winter season in Turkey, there is no snow anymore. Maybe in the future, in the regions we address, maybe these boots will completely disappear. In other words, we will make boots with staples, we will make boots with holes, in fashion. We will create fashionable or our own fashion ourselves. Our products vary according to the region.
We put about a thousand models of products in our showroom in a season. Azerbaijanis come and choose a model for themselves, Africans come and find a product for themselves. In other words, no matter which part of the world people come from, they never return empty-handed. I mean, if they understand shoes, if they have that taste and that love, they do not return empty-handed.
Editor: It certainly looks very nice in terms of accessory details and design already in your showroom. Well, when we look at the design aspect, what should the end user pay attention to when they wear it?
Erdal Bodur: Of course, comfort comes first. If a person’s feet are not comfortable, as Mr. Fevzi said, he will have the discomfort in his feet in his mind until the evening, he will not be able to relax, his mind will always be there with his work and emotions. That’s why our first goal is comfort.
Editor: Usually when people wear it, the heel hits the foot more.
Erdal Bodur: Yes, in the past, when you bought your first shoe, the back would sink. Of course, in the past, when Turkey used to only focus on its own domestic market, the places where it bought materials used to put the materials in randomly. But it is not like that now. In other words, many good companies that attach importance to quality, including us, attach importance to the material inside and we bring it from Italy.
The back and the front, of course, because these materials are of very high quality, they do not cause any discomfort to the foot. I also remember those old foot shootings, when you wore the shoes on the first day, they would immediately shoot the foot. So now there are no such risks. Because we buy the best quality materials from Italy. What the customer should pay the most attention to is comfort and not touching the foot.
I also want to say this about sustainability. Since our shoes are made of leather, leather all the way down to the inner lining, they have a feature like this. As far as I know, after the serious use of shoes dies, they break them down in machines, they make internal materials, and I know that those materials are also used. So the fact that it is leather everywhere shows that this shoe is not wasted in the future, but can be used again as a sustainability material.
For example, we have such a system as POLAT SHOES, our aim is that when the customer comes to the fair stand, we want him to see all the products. From classic to boots, from rok shoes to sports, we want them to see them all here and buy them from us without going anywhere else. That’s why we have all varieties within the scope of R&D and in our showroom. So we have no problem in that regard.
Editor: Then they can go to your website and examine it in detail so that they can find you.
They can also see our shoes in all categories on our website.
Fevzi Alpaydın: In addition to what Mr. Erdal said. He talked about shoe comfort. We are working to offer this comfort. Since I am a very active person and Erdal Bey himself, when we are going to make a product, we first try the mold in our own structure. If necessary, Seyfettin Bey also tries it on his own feet. I try it too. We climb the stairs, we travel, we walk around. We look at whether the leather is cracking or not, where there is a mistake in the mold. It is obvious on those sensitive feet. After organizing these, we finally present it to the customer’s taste. When the customer buys it, then we say with peace of mind that this mold is very comfortable or this mold can wear such and such feet, this mold can fit such and such feet. We also help the customer in sales in this regard. That’s why we are also comfortable while selling. Because we are already auditing the test work of this within our organization. In other words, we inspect and test something we make over and over again. Then we present it to the showcase.
Editor: I was going to ask about that. The testing phase is usually sent to laboratories. You also mentioned that you do it yourself. So what can you say about the sole?
Fevzi Alpaydın: The sole, which we already work with, comes from abroad. Those companies have already tested it with a report. After we do it at the last stage, we leave it in snow water. The shoe stands in the cold in snow water. We have snow water that we bring from the original mountains and we leave it to the cold test. Whether there is cracking or not. We leave it to temperature and heat test. If there is anything, we are already in contact with customers.
We also make Eva shoes, a combination of leather and Eva shoes. We say to customers; after wearing them, do not dry them on the radiator in the winter environment. Because Eva is subject to heat, when it sees the heat, it will shrink from the leather. What will happen? This time the customer will say that your shoes are bad, so we also offer the conditions of use. So we don’t have very modern laboratories within ourselves. Because we don’t need to establish such a thing. There are already laboratories doing this job. When the customer requests test reports, we send the shoes. He already receives the reports himself. So far, we do not have a shoe that has not passed such a test. But does the leather crack in our own structure? Does it not? Does it sweat after wearing? Does it? We test it in our own structure. Because we are live witnesses. In other words, we do not use the leather that we test ourselves and do not like.
Editor: Well, what would you like to say to people who are dedicated to this profession, who are dedicated to this craft?
Fevzi Alpaydın: Let me put it this way, those who get involved in leather cannot leave this business. We are the same way. I met leather in the bag industry before shoes. People who use genuine leather and do this job well cannot leave this business. Leather has such a feature.
Our advice is that, as Mr. Erdal said, in which area will I be useful to this society, to people, to the world? If it is shoes, he needs to give himself completely to this work. He needs to feel it down to his cells. If he is going to do this job, if not, he should devote himself to another field.
Shoemaking in the shoe industry could not become a sector in Turkey. There are some reasons stemming from those who founded this business. We like to speak openly. I mean, there are also reasons stemming from the bosses, or as I said, we have a disconnected connection such as official institutions, associations, foundations. In fact, I think there is a disconnect between these factories and these shoe schools, vocational schools, professional chambers. Now, I have been here for 10 years, they say that you need to have a certificate, you need to have a master’s certificate. These are the last part of the job. So far I have not seen a single student from shoe schools or vocational schools visiting the factories.
Maybe even those people (students) do not go to those schools willingly. In other words, the people who will study in those schools need to embrace this business so that they will come. They should look at the factories, how these shoes are made, how they are sold, what is being done. There are no students coming from schools.
Editor: Actually, theoretical lessons are given in schools, but…
Fevzi Alpaydın: Shoes are of no importance in theoretical lessons. The real school to see is the factories. As long as masters like Mr. Seyfettin, the main masters of this business of the past period, are alive, these opportunities should be appreciated. Because they will not be able to see otherwise. The most important thing is that the Ministry of National Education develops policies and solutions that strengthen the craft in education. This craft needs to establish an infrastructure that promises a more sustainable future.
When we had a store there, we used to call the craftsman from afar and scold him, saying that this place is like this and that place is like that. When I came here to the factory, we now provide service from here, and the most important place is the factory. If a manufacturing company has production power, it definitely needs to do marketing within its own organization. In other words, it should provide service from here, from the source, not by sending goods here and there. When I came here, I said to myself that this is not the case, this is not what it looks like from afar.
I am still involved in manufacturing when the time comes. I am doing something to learn. I am not someone who came from shoemaking in the past, but now I am trying to learn something to the extent of my own abilities. I explain what I have learned to the customer better.
In other words, I may have a recommendation for vocational schools. The diplomas should actually be given to the students by the masters in the factory, not the teachers there. If the student will get one hour of theory there, he/she will get three hours of lessons in the factory, and this is how the student learns the craft as a profession. Otherwise, neither a craft is learned nor a profession is benefited. In other words, no matter what profession it is, I am not only talking about shoes.
So vocational schools, in my humble opinion, there is only one school. There is nothing else. So hopefully there should be a solution to this. Regulations need to be made. I also graduated from school, but we learn ninety percent of the work in factories. So actually these factories are a university, the University of Footwear. A master from Gaziantep told us. He said your factory is a university. Because, he said, he learns as a craftsman and comes out as a master. It really is so. Those who enter here learn a craft, become a craftsman, at least I can say so.
I wish success to all our producers in the market who produce seriously and make original production. From here, we definitely advise people to buy the best quality shoes that they can afford. Because our feet are really important. I learned this after getting to know these companies. They should not wear garbage.
I recommend our employers to invest the money they earn in R&D studies, invest in people, and value people. Because there is no one to replace the outgoing employee, even a master, even a warehouse employee who has left.
Erdal Bodur: In other words, our impressions in the following times are as follows, whether in Italy or in other countries, as Mr. Fevzi said, R&D work should be given importance, otherwise you will not get the results in the future.
That is why they need to attach great importance to R&D. In every aspect, the R&D work with the upper and lower materials of the shoe must be very good. For sustainability. That is why we need to give more importance to R&D in Turkey. We need to get out of the copycat mentality and do something in our own essence, otherwise we cannot go forward.
Editor: Well, when we look at these shoes as classic shoes as stout leather shoes, what important places and important points should be paid attention to in terms of health?
Fevzi Alpaydın: As Mr. Erdal has just said, the sole on the back is now more orthopedic compared to the past years. In other words, in terms of health, not only the outer appearance of the shoe, but also the inner material should be free from chemicals that harm people. We usually use stout leather to absorb sweat inside the shoe. Whatever the material underneath, the material we use inside is the same.
Some customers say, why didn’t you throw this lining all the way through, did you steal it? When they ask, we say no, not for health reasons. Actually, this is a healthy shoe. It will absorb sweat and at the same time conduct the electricity in our body to the ground. Therefore, it should be used from the chemicals of the material used, that is, from materials that are tested for health and do not harm health.
So health in shoes is not only the mold. In other words, the comfort of the mold, the material used inside is also very important. If the sole used underneath melts quickly, if the heel melts quickly, this also affects health quickly. Especially if a sole is melted, it needs to be replaced immediately. Because this will either cause it to press inward or outward. In other words, foot structure, bone structure is very important for health.
Erdal Bodur: I want to make an addition here, people are wrong about one thing. I also wear sneakers sometimes and ninety percent of people are wearing sneakers now, right. But when the sole of that sneaker does not breathe, that foot gets sweaty. Diseases such as fungus appear in sweat over time.
But the shoes with natural leather inside have a feature like this. Maybe it is a little uncomfortable like sneakers, but since it absorbs sweat, there is no moisture on the foot. Since moisture does not form, fungus does not form. This is very important for foot health.
But when you wear a shoe with a stout leather sole, this does not occur in the foot. Because this shows that the shoe is healthy.
In other words, he needs to give his heart to this craft, starting from the basics. At the same time, they can do their internship under a brand here, at least produce a product here and then do much better quality work.
Yes, in this way it serves both the sector and the country.
With POLAT SHOES OGGI brand, Mr. Fevzi and Mr. Erdal with us, we conducted our interview by focusing on both the shoe industry and foot health by providing more detailed information in the shoemaking sector. We would like to thank them very much for sharing valuable information and participating in Magazine Leather publications, I wish them good work.
Thank you for giving us this opportunity.
