Field Report: 074
Like most of my Bond inspired purchases, these are an investment, an investment that may last me 20 years.
Spectre (2015) EON Productions
Dressed up for a funeral
Daniel Craig’s James Bond goes undercover as an Italian Gangster to the funeral of Marco Sciarra in Rome joining by the ranks of the shadow organisation which he’ll later find out is called SPECTRE, which is also the name of the film.
Bond is dressed in black with a TOM FORD black herringbone three-piece suit in the Windsor style, a TOM FORD white shirt with a pin collar and Dr No cuffs, a black woven diamond patterned tie, a TOM FORD while silk pocket square with black boarder and a pair of Crockett & Jones Black Camberley boots.
These boots are a double buckle monk strap boot made from black calf leather, with toe cap and Dainite soles using the 348 last, the same last on most of the Crockett & Jones shoes worn by Bond in Skyfall, SPECTRE and No Time to Die.
Purchase Date: December 2023 – Purchase Price: £250
The look
I’ve been a big fan of this outfit, I’ve purchased the tie and pocket square as part of the SPECTRE capsule, I purchased all the SPECTRE ties and Pocket Squares shortly after the release. And then later I made my first made-to-measure purchase of the shirt.
Much later, I had a similar suit made by Anthony Sinclair, which I had made for my wedding. What I hoped to get were these boots, but I couldn’t get them
Well, that’s not quite accurate, they have been available since SPECTRE came out, it’s just I never found them to be comfortable. And for the price, which has been rising from £400 to now (as of January 2025) £610, just wasn’t worth the expense for a pair of boots that would sit in the cupboard unworn.
I tried time after time, every time I went into one of the Crockett & Jones stores in London or Birmingham I tried on a pair. In my own size they would always rub, if I went down half a size, but they were too snug. Never any joy, and so they were always left in the store.
Model: Camberley
Northampton Factory
It has been nearly eight years in searching for a pair of Camberley boots that fitted me, and I found them in the most unlikely place.
In December 2023 I attended a meeting in Northampton, I was there for most of the day, and when it ended, I decided to take a detour home via the Crocket & Jones factory and visit their factory shop.
It wasn’t the first time I visited, but this was the first time I made a purchase. The store is located on Perry Street to the right of main entrance. You go through gate and then go up the stairs to the shop, there are signs requesting no photography or filming.
The shop is the size of one of their smaller stores, but everything is displayed in size order. Looking around in my sizes were a variety of different shoes and boots in all different styles and colours.
A group a businessmen came in around the same time, with them an American who had come up specifically to get several pairs of shoes from the store with the others who’d been travelling for a few hours to get there.
Different Styles
They were asking the staff for several different styles, some by the name of the shoes, and they went off to try them on.
Once they were trying them on, I enquired about the Camberley, believing that either, they didn’t have any, or if they did, they would fit like they always had and rub.
I was presently surprised to find out this wasn’t the case. They fitted so well, that I made a purchase. They are technically called seconds or subs (substandard), so they are not quite perfect enough to be sold in their stores at the full value.
These were £250 on the day, at this point I think this saved me £340 (assuming Camberley’s were £590 at this time), I couldn’t see anything wrong with them, and I did ask, but the staff couldn’t tell, excluding the “SUB” stamp on the inside of one of the shoes, and on the box.
Before paying I asked about the 007 Hammington, or the 007 James, thinking rightly that they wouldn’t be available. What the store doesn’t contain are any of the Hand grade shoes are not included in the factory store.
Model: Camberley
A few weeks later…
Getting the boots from the factory store means you have a reduced amount of time to return them, at least that’s what I remember.
As with all shoes I wear them around the house before setting foot outside the house, to make sure they’re suitable.
However, as soon as I went out in them, having reassured myself they were okay, they did begin to rub a little, as they wore in. And they took a lot longer to wear in then the other Crockett & Jones shoes.
But eventual they did, and I’m very happy with them, they are an excellent alternative to my Tetbury boots and can be easily dressed up or down.
Result!
I’m very happy with this purchase, but the main reason I’m happy is because I doubt that I’d have taken the risk with these boots if I was paying full price. If they’d turned out to been unwearable after venturing outside, I’d have wasted a lot of money! Paying less than half the price and taking the same risk, I could live with.
My view on all my Bond related clothing is that they are investments, and not museum pieces, I wear and use them, if I can’t do that then I’d not bother getting them.
If you do go into Northampton, I’d take a look, I can’t guarantee that they style of shoe or boot will be there for you, but the value alone is worth taking a look, even if you get something else instead.
Images:
Crockett & Jones and James Bond Lifestyle
Article by Daniel Gaster.
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