Urban Shepherd Boots

Tiago Máximo founded Urban Shepherd Boots in 2014 by sourcing handmade boots from Portuguese factories and selling them in local markets. In 2018, Mike Lodzinski encountered the brand in Barcelona and, together with his wife Krystle, entered a business partnership with Máximo to increase the reach of the company. In 2019, the business headquarters moved from Portugal to Houston, Texas.

Urban Shepherd Boots are produced in a small, family-owned workshop in Benedita, Portugal. The workshop follows shoemaking traditions established over five generations. The manufacturing process uses handcrafting techniques passed down through this lineage.

Urban Shepherd Boots use a 360-degree Goodyear welt construction that allows for resoling. The upper uses hand-buffed Portuguese top-grain cowhide leather with a thickness of about 2.2 millimeters. The midsole and removable insole are made of genuine leather, while the sole incorporates Vibram Gumlite material. The heel consists of stacked leather with a Vibram heel protector, and a steel shank adds stability. The cork footbed is hand-laid and forms to the foot. Leather used in production is sourced from Alcanena, Portugal, a region known for its tanning industry.

Urban Shepherd Boots offers several models, including the Original, which is based on 1950s work boot designs and features red stitching. The Country model has a triple-stitched cap toe and a commando-style Vibram half-sole. The Backroad model uses soles made from recycled truck tires. Each pair of boots is made to order, and crafting and shipping usually take between four and five weeks.