Stitchdown Expo 2026 Chicago x Super Trunk. It's Time.

It’s hard to overstate how excited I am to be teaming up with Jesper Ingevaldsson of Shoegazing, Justin FitzPatrick aka The Shoe Snob, and the one and only Kirby Allison for our Stitchdown Expo Chicago 2026 this Nov 6-7, back at our fabulous venue from last year, Artifact Events.

Kirby, Justin, and Jesper’s tri-continental Super Trunk Show has been the premier show for classic dress shoes, bespoke tailoring, and more for nearly a decade. Our Stitchdown Expo has traditionally espoused a somewhat more rugged point of view on great footwear.

These worlds have zero reason to be separate. So now it’s time to bring them together.

(“Wait, ‘Stitchdown Expo’?!? But I only go to Boot Camps,” you might reasonably say. Yes, we’re changing our event name to Stitchdown Expo going forward. The Boot Camp name served its purpose—but it had become more of a roadblock to representing non-boot forms of incredible footwear and other goods than I ever thought. Plus half the attendees just called the event “Stitchdown’“ anyway. Stitchdown Expo. Easy.) Kirby, Justin, and Jesper all ran so Stitchdown could even consider jogging. The paths they laid in both media and events gave me the confidence almost eight years ago to say: I think I can also cover the footwear space, and I think there’s an appetite for a fresh perspective. Stitchdown and this show literally wouldn’t be here without them.

But we all do it differently—always have. Now we’ll be doing it collectively.

Below I’ve popped two separate Shoecast interview episodes with Jesper and Justin. It’s a great way to hear about their paths in the space, the things they love (and sometimes, don’t) and just get to know them a bit before the show. Kirby’s YouTube channel is certainly the best way to get to know him.

Many more Super Trunk exhibitors to come of course, but presenting Expo sponsor Saphir Médaille d’Or, plus Bridlen, Peter Qu, Emi Bespoke, Divij Bespoke, and Charles Paige is one heckuva start.

The Super Trunk team and Saphir will also be hosting the inaugural Americas Championship of Shoe Shining on Saturday Nov 7th—an outgrowth of their US Shoe Shining Championship that will now include competitors from the entirety of North and South America.

Both Stitchdown Expo and Super Trunk have always been truly global events, so this development is pretty exciting to say the least. Tickets are coming soon. Endless more exhibitors too (you can see our full current lineup through here and below). I cannot wait.

This November 6-7, we’re incredibly excited to put you in extremely direct touch with…

PRESENTING EXHIBITORS

GOLD EXHIBITORS

SILVER EXHIBITORS

Red Wing Heritage