Some shoes simply prove themselves over time. The Olympia was one of those shoes.

The Olympia was one of the most successful sneaker designs I created during my years at J.FitzPatrick. After many requests for its return, I’ve brought the design back as part of The Shoe Snob collection. Of all the sneakers I produced, the White Calf Olympia was the one that consistently stood out.

And now, the Olympia is available again — this time under The Shoe Snob.

For those who owned the original version, there is very little mystery here. I have not tried to reinvent something that already worked. The construction, fit philosophy, and overall design remain essentially unchanged. This is the same clean, classic leather sneaker concept that made the Olympia so successful in the first place.

What has changed is simply where you can buy it.

Why I Brought the White Calf Back First

I eventually intend to offer the Olympia in additional colors and materials, but white calfskin was the obvious place to begin.

The previous suede options I used are no longer available from the factory, so I have had to source and test new suede alternatives before placing another production order. Those samples have now been worked through, and additional versions are expected to arrive over the coming months. And I have some new ideas soon coming to light that I am also excited about.

The White Calf Olympia, however, was already a tried-and-tested product and was easy enough to relaunch without overthinking it.

I knew how it wore. I knew how it fit. More importantly, I knew there were customers who had been waiting for it to return. Including myself. I love this shoe and probably have 7 pairs of them. And I wear all of them. I even use one to mow the lawn. After taking a chunk out of the toe by kicking the concrete stairs, it became my junk shoe. True story, no jokes.

So rather than hold everything back until the entire range was ready, I wanted to bring back the model I had the most confidence in first. The rest will soon follow.

A White Sneaker Is Not Just a Summer Shoe

Launching a white sneaker at the beginning of autumn might seem like slightly unusual timing, but I have never really subscribed to the idea that white leather sneakers belong only to spring and summer.

A classic white sneaker is one of the most versatile shoes you can own.

With denim, chinos, flannels, heavier trousers or even relaxed tailoring, white sneakers continue to work throughout autumn and winter. In many ways, the simplicity of white calf becomes even more useful as clothing becomes darker and heavier.

There is really no wrong season for a clean pair of white leather sneakers.

And unlike highly seasonal colors or materials, this is the kind of shoe that can remain in rotation twelve months of the year.

The Olympia Design

One of the things that has always separated the Olympia from most dress-shoe-inspired sneakers is its pattern.

The Olympia is designed more like an Oxford shoe than the typical Derby-style leather sneaker.

Most leather sneakers have open quarters and a construction visually closer to a Derby shoe. The Olympia uses a cleaner, more integrated pattern that gives it a sleeker and more refined appearance without trying to turn a sneaker into a dress shoe.

That distinction was intentional when I originally designed it, and it remains one of the main reasons I believe the Olympia still looks different from the countless minimalist leather sneakers on the market today.

Construction Details

The Olympia White Calf is made using:

• Full-grain Spanish calfskin leather
• Fully leather-lined construction
• Vegetable-tanned leather lining
• Rubber outsole
• Leatherboard reinforcements
• Cushioned removable insole with arch support
• 360-degree stitched sole construction

The removable insole is particularly useful for anyone who prefers to use a personal orthotic.

And because both the upper and lining are leather, the Olympia tends to soften and give relatively quickly with wear.

Olympia Sneaker Sizing

For sizing, I recommend sticking with your normal sneaker size.

If you normally fall between half sizes in dress shoes, I recommend moving up to the next whole size in the Olympia.

For example, if your typical dress-shoe size sits somewhere between two whole sizes, choose the larger whole size rather than trying to size down.

As with most fully leather-lined sneakers, expect the upper to relax and conform to the foot fairly quickly once worn.

The Same Price as Before

One thing I also wanted to maintain was the price.

Despite the Olympia returning under The Shoe Snob, the White Calf version is being offered at the same price it was previously sold for.

With manufacturing and material costs having moved considerably over the years, I felt it was important to keep the Olympia positioned where it had always been rather than use its return as an excuse to reposition it at a significantly higher price.

A Familiar Shoe, A New Chapter

There are always products you look back on and wonder whether you should have done something differently.

The Olympia is not really one of them. It worked. And customers loved them. It is one of my greatest creations.

Customers liked it. They wore it. Many came back for another pair. And years later, people were still asking me when they would be able to buy it again.

So rather than redesigning it for the sake of having something “new,” I decided to do the opposite. Bring back the shoe that people already wanted.

The Olympia White Calf Sneaker is now available from The Shoe Snob, with additional versions planned for the months ahead.

Find your pair here: https://www.theshoesnob.com/products/olympia-sneaker-white-calf

—Justin FitzPatrick, The Shoe Snob

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