You need to get out more.
The current fashion craze is, I kid you not, the tan suede Timberline work boots.
Better for kicking in windows and doors I guess
That happened in the 90s in NYC.
Put the price of Timberlines out of reach for me, so I switched to Wolverine. One day I go to my local shoe store to get a pair. Not carrying them anymore. Owner told me that the only Wolverine sales he had were myself and another working man. Considering the mark-up he made off the kids with Timberline, it didn’t pay for him to carry the non-fad brands.
I ended up getting my work shoes out of a semi trailer at the Water Tunnel 2 site in Astoria, Queens. Good source for other inexpensive work clothes also.