Architect and interior designer Jason Schlabach used to shun the working boots he had to wear growing up in a farm in Ohio, but now that he's based in Hong Kong, he'd go to great lengths to get his hands on a pair.
'My style is inescapably American,' says Schlabach. 'The further I move away from the US, the more American I get. I don't think I ever owned a pair of American-built shoes until I moved here, and now I'm all about the Aldens.'
His staples include a good pair of chinos, paired with leather boots and Oxford shirts.
'For me it's a mix of high and low. I wear my J Crew chinos and Uniqlo shirts with the more high-fashion stuff,' he says.
Some of his favourite pieces include wool jackets from Parisian label A.P.C. and a vintage Burberry trench coat.
Schlabach also likes attention to detail. Since he bought his first pair of custom-made Aldens a year ago, he has been hooked on the bespoke service. 'I met the brand rep at a trunk show. They didn't have the colour I wanted for this style, so the factory rushed the first pair off the line for me,' he recalls. 'It's nice getting personal attention.'