Fairhaven, MA -- FootJoy, the #1 Shoe in Golf, announced today that it will cease
footwear manufacturing operations in its Brockton, MA facility, within the next six
weeks. As a result of the plant's closure, the company will eliminate 103
manufacturing and support positions.

FootJoy's shoe factory is the last remaining footwear production facility in a city
that was once known as the "Shoe Capital of the World" in the early 1900s.
Brockton's collection of footwear factories once supplied over 50 percent of all
domestic footwear in the United States. .

"This was a very difficult decision made necessary by the declining demand for
premium welted, leather soled golf footwear," said Jim Connor, President of FootJoy.
"While this factory produced a small portion of our worldwide supply of golf shoes,
some of our craftsmen and women were from several generations of shoe makers. All
of us at FootJoy are deeply saddened by this outcome."

The Brockton facility produced Classics Tour and Classics Dry Premiere golf shoes
and a small line of men's dress and casual footwear. Those categories will be
discontinued this summer when stock is depleted. The company does not anticipate
this decision will impact its worldwide sales of golf footwear or its continued
leadership of the category in every major market around the world.

No more classics? Are you kidding me?

I just got the email myself. I couldn't believe what I was reading and thought there might be another place where they made Classics. At the bottom of it is a FAQ area that makes it clear that once all stock is depleted, there will be no more Footjoy Classics.

That's worse than the loss of the Hogan line.

When Classics are gone, it will be a sad day indeed.

that would be ridiculus to stop making classics. nicest shoes on the market in my opinion.

Wow, what a disappointment. I purchased a pair of USA made classics about three years ago and they are still in excellent shape after very 100 rounds or so. This is really too bad.

No.... 100% NOT kidding you!

That's it! No more FJ Classcs lines! Stick a fork in them they are done! (I only hope that FJ is not done because of this. The Classics were not a flagship shoe any more for them, they had become more of a niche shoe due to the price they were listing at at reatail.)




Damn this recession!! !!
Damn it to hell!!!!!

I cannot believe that I'm reading that. What are the half of the Titleist/FJ tour staff now going to now wear? Sorry Poulter no more new purple shoes.....

No more $375.00 golf shoes?? You GOT TO BE kidding me!

It's a very sad day for the golf industry. While the Classics line and the factory that the shoes were made in hadn't made Foot-Joy any money for awhile, it was a separator for them. So many of the people there were second and third generation- some had worked there 4 decades or more. What's crazy is that over 50% of shoes made in the US came from the city of Brockton and this was the very final footwear plant. It will be missed.
Ken
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There's one of the problems, the classics last so long, that consumers don't repeat purchase nearly as often as other shoes. I remember a Foot-Joy glove that had graphite powder in the palm, it lasted like a whole season! They stopped making them immediately! Stride Gum, the flavor last so long, but please, chew another piece!

Looks like I have to buy my last pair of FJs. I've gone to Adidas, but the classics are truly an excellent shoe.

Foot Joy is closing its Brockton Mass Plant. They will no longer produce Classics.

More news to follow...

WHAT!!!!!?!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!?!?!?!?????!?!?!?!?

Exactly! They can take their Classics and stick 'em. There are MUCH better shoes out there for less than half of that.

Well that just all around sucks the big one.

personall preference. i have a ton of shoes and there is not better shoe then the footjoy classic. Ecco classics are close but still not the styles to keep up. And very few people pay 375. You can get them for 170- 230 on most websites. that is what you would pay for any quality shoe.

True, I just paid $180 for shoes that are built like a tank. It is what it is. There is a difference between that and a $50 shoes. Gotta treat your dogs right!

Where did you hear this?

Classics are just sooooo nice. Not the same with anything else.

Crikey.

No more Foot Joy Classics is on a par with there being no more Christmas. Truly the end of an era.

Very sad news.

I've gotta ask, have you even worn them?

Probably the most comfortable pair of golf shoes I've ever owned after they were broken in.

As it was noted above, people rarely paid over $300 for a pair. I know I never did.

Got an email this afternoon....

Fairhaven, MA -- FootJoy, the #1 Shoe in Golf, announced today that it will cease footwear manufacturing operations in its Brockton, MA facility, within the next six weeks. As a result of the plant's closure, the company will eliminate 103 manufacturing and support positions.


FootJoy's shoe factory is the last remaining footwear production facility in a city that was once known as the "Shoe Capital of the World" in the early 1900s. Brockton's collection of footwear factories once supplied over 50 percent of all domestic footwear in the United States.


"This was a very difficult decision made necessary by the declining demand for premium welted, leather soled golf footwear," said Jim Connor, President of FootJoy. "While this factory produced a small portion of our worldwide supply of golf shoes, some of our craftsmen and women were from several generations of shoe makers. All of us at FootJoy are deeply saddened by this outcome."


The Brockton facility produced Classics Tour and Classics Dry Premiere golf shoes and a small line of men's dress and casual footwear. Those categories will be discontinued this summer when stock is depleted. The company does not anticipate this decision will impact its worldwide sales of golf footwear or its continued leadership of the category in every major market around the world.

I liked their tassel loafers - much like Allen Edmonds.

I'll be honest: No I haven't. I can't fathom paying upwards of $300 for a pair of shoes. Especially a pair of shoes that I'm gonna wear about 50 times per year, if that. I'm sure you'll want different styles and colors to go along with different color pants, so now you're in for at least 2 pairs. I might spend $500 for equipment but it'll be a cold day in Hades before I drop that on 2 pair of shoes. Sorry, but I find that rather ridiculous.

Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

I walk, almost exclusively on the golf course. I don't have a problem paying for comfort and quality, especially when the lack of comfort would come at the expense of my feet.

Again, I don't personally know anyone who has paid $300 for Classics.

What a shame- have been wearing a variation of the Classics for close to 15 years. Looks like I'll be stocking up on a few pairs soon...

That's what it all boils down to: Different strokes for different folks.

Very sad.

It also boils down to.. you've never worn them!!

I'm going to buy 3 or 4 pairs of them. What a shame. I guess the resoling and all of that will end too.

This is the only thing that set them apart from nike and adidas, I think this is a mistake, but I guess the big wigs know better.

Is this going to make the price of them go up or down? I too might have to buy a couple pairs.. I've been wearing the 360LTD's lately but the Classics are super comfy as well.. and look well.. classic..

It's probably best that I didn't, because that'd be my luck: Get a great shoe and they quit making them!

No more beryllium wedges.

No more green Victory Cords.

No more balata golf balls.

No more coloured Ping barrel-shaped headcovers.

No more World Matchplay Championship at Wentworth.

No more cheers echoing through the trees of Augusta's back nine.

And now no more Foot Joy Classics?!


The comfort blankets of my life are disappearing, one by one, before my eyes.

Not true, you just havent been looking in the right place!!!!

I am in absolute shock. Why not just consolidate the factory instead of completely eliminate it?

The only truly great line of golf footwear that remained...........it's quite sad. It's getting very hard to buy anything made in the USA.

Next it'll be Red Wing boots!

I know. Why can't they move production somewhere else? I know they're handmade and the only shoes made in the US still, but it will be sad to see them go. I've got 5 pairs and they fit like a glove. Its the only shoe I wear. I'll have to stock up and scour eBay looking for more.

It almost makes me a little sick.

Sucks getting old huh? Well, you know what they say, your vision is the second thing to go....

A sad day indeed...especially for the employee's of that plant. Brockton is also know as the city of champions...hopefully they will find work soon.

I have 2 brand new pairs of classics that aren't even broken in!!

DBOGEY

i'm floored. i refuse to wear a classic tour if the keep those. i don't know what i'll do, honestly. maybe i'll stock up. i can just see myself years from now playing barefoot when my last pair bites the dust.

i was just gonna send a pair in for a little touch up. procrastination bites me again.

I'm for sure going to be looking for them now and saving/keeping them. The BEST shoe out there when style counts. Don't get me wrong I love my 360 LTD's but when I want to feel and look like a million bucks (without spending $375) I put on the classics. They are called classics for a reason. This is truly when marketing doesn't overhype the results. Sad day indeed.

Another sign of the times I guess...

I wonder if footjoyblog that posts on here will chime in and shed some light on this..

Ouch! I lived in these in the 70s. Ordered a couple of pair last year for old time's sake. Not only do they look great and are extremely well made, they provide a very sturdy, stable base to swing from. Heavy and stiff, but that's what makes them what they are - the best!

Well, I would guess that the majority of the tour staff were already wearing the new SynerG, and the DryJoys, along with the ReelFits. Some of the more "out there" players (like Poulter) will have to go elsewhere and find shoemakers who will make thier crazy colors and patterns.





Very true! Because they are so expenisive FJ has created shoes at 1/2 or 1/3 of the price of classics that are just as stable in the footbed... like the new SynerG shoes.

The Classics line was for the tour players, high-end country clubs, etc. in a sense... a niche market. Getting smaller and smaller all the time. I'm sure that FJ saw the orders placed by their reps across the country and this is what made the decision to close them out and discontinue them. There was only ONE factory that made them. In Mass. So sad that it is a U.S. manufacturing plant with American jobs being lost. Most of the new shoes are made overseas now.

This might be the first showing of the recession hitting the golf industry other than course closings, where for the first time in 2008 course closings outpaced course openings.

Soooooo sad!!!!

I was told by my FJ rep today that there is a good chance that the Classics line could return. Apparently FJ has had samples made overseas over the last year as they knew the current cost of producing the shoes in Brockton has gotten out of hand. I was told the current makers of the Classics make over $80/hr thanks to the unions.

Now some sense is made of all this!

I would guess that even though they are a niche shoe (due to the cost at retail) that they (FJ) couldn't keep the shoes completely off the market. They just needed to find a way to make them more cost effective to produce.

I hope it really isnt the end.

Looks like I'll have to pick up a pair real soon.

Another story of a Union burying a company rather than negotiating realistic wages. Wait until those workers try and replace that income, they'll wish they had the opportunity to take the lower wages footjoy probably offered that the union rejected.