Well... one set of the Markhors are $120. Most of them seem to be $250 and up.
And, despite being handmade, are not available in my size.
Yep, handmade probably does not mean "custom" or "bespoke" in this case, which means limiting the options presumably allows them to take advantage of economies of scale to lower the price compared to other options for handmade shoes.
I've never used the product from Markhors, it was just one example I was using for my point previously. I'm more the type of guy that either wears cheap sneakers or actual bespoke shoes, not much in-between.
Markhor doesn't appear to be doing anything new or special. You can get similar shoes for less from makers like Meermin. They're not a venture funded startup though.
That is trickle-down consumerism.
Re:YC’s 2016 Holiday Gift Guide
by clock_tower on Monday November 28, 2016 @06:06PM
(#13059220)
But it's been done successfully many times -- sugar, tea, coffee, liquor, automobiles, air travel, and computers, for example; likewise ownership of clothing in quantity. No reason it can't work again.
That's the nature of capitalism. Identify a market for goods people want, and as demand goes up, figure out a way to supply it at a price people can afford. As these types of ideas iterate, the cost will continue to go down and new things will become available at the top of the price ladder.