Oliver Cabell is the best of both worlds— on multiple counts. Exclusive, yet affordable, the brand brings high-tech practices to old-school craftsmanship and ethically-sourced materials. Every batch of shoes is extremely limited, but comes direct from the site without retailer markup. These aspects of the brand’s ethos are what make it so easy to support, on top of the irresistible foot candy that it is. DuJour caught up with the CEO and Founder behind the brand, Scott Gabrielson, on how these practices make the brand so unique, and why their products are perfect for both summer kicks and Father’s Day gifts.
DuJour: How would you describe your Father’s Day gift-giving philosophy?
Scott Gabrielson: On the Father’s Day side of things, from a general perspective, we believe that something fathers will actually wear is the best gift you can give. Gifts are great, it’s the thought that counts, but receiving something you’ll use, we think, makes it especially great. Our thought —and this is how we lead the conversation with our customers— is to think outside the box a bit in terms of what you’re gifting. The traditional items, like ties and golf balls and useless gadgets are great, but having something that shows more effort and attempt and aligns with the Dad and their life seem to resonate better.
DJ: What about your shoes make them such alluring gifts?
SG: In terms of our collection, there’s really sort of four ways that we could think about it for Father’s day. There are the traditional silhouettes that men wear and translate into every person. And that would be black and white low-top, which we’ve seen really resonate across demographics. The next thing we think of is something a little bit more modern, and the things we see moving best in that category right now are Chelsea boots. We partner with an italian outsole supplier, it’s all custom for our footwear. And that makes them a little bit more comfortable.
Photo Credit: Oliver Cabell
DJ: Of your shoes, which are the best for the coming summer months?
SG: The perforated shoe is the time-is-now, summer-ready shoe. We have it in two styles. One is the Low 1, the other is the Erving. They do really great this time of year and would be great with shorts or lighter chinos. This is very different, but a very summery choice is the nude Low 1. They look really great on. It’s really hard to get the right color of pink with it not being too feminine and not too bright. It looks super great with jeans or denim. It goes with almost every colorway. Some fathers are really focused on comfort and fit, and all of our shoes really resonate with that, but two are really focused on that. One is the Erving, which has a thicker outsole that gives it much more support and cushion, and the other is the Rennes, which is a trainer. That has more of an athletic, retro look to it. It’s a really great silhouette that does really well for us.
DJ: As a gift, what do you think your shoes say to their recipients?
SG: I think the one thing that really separates us, and it partly goes into how the gift is presented, but we spend a ton of time focusing on what our values are as a brand, what materials we use, and how our shoes are made. Gifting the products that we make echoes those sentiments to the people that are gifting it, and it’s not just a pair of shoes. You’re giving a pair of shoes that you’ve been very thoughtful to seek out, like, ‘here are the reasons why these are great for you, and why these shoes are great.’ Whether it’s gifting or branding, when you can have that backstory to it, it really brings whatever you’re gifting to life. It just has much more of a meaningful impact.
Main Image Credit: Oliver Cabell
