Vibe Spring2025 - Flipbook - Page 60
As Peter Limmer looks on, Adam Lane-Olsen measures New Hampshire Fish & Game Conservation Officer James Benvenuti’s foot to begin the process
of creating a custom-made pair of boots.
the company in the 1990s, having the Limmer name gave him no
divine wisdom—he was simply a steward of the family business.
Like Adam today, he faced challenging decisions about how to
run the shop and maintain the company’s reputation.
Peter also emphasized that close friendship can be nearly
as valuable as family. Thinking back on his years working with
Adam, he said, “I’ve always considered Adam and I to be twin
brothers by different parents.” Since passing the reins, Peter
has continued working for the shop part-time. His primary role
is die-cutting the boots’ outer leather “uppers,” a particularly
skilled part of the process.
Taking the Next Step
Since taking ownership, Adam has changed very little about
the company, or the Limmer boot itself. Nevertheless, he has
taken some new initiatives, which he hopes will strengthen their
professional standing and bring new customers to their door. In
October of 2024, Adam, Annie, and Patrick traveled to New York
City to attend a professional conference of leather footwear-makers, known as Boot Camp. Located in the heart of the bustling
waterfront district of Brooklyn, the conference convened some of
the most prestigious bootmakers from across the country.
Peter Limmer & Sons is very well established in its trade
(after a century of making respected hiking boots), and yet
the team felt like underdogs when they arrived at Boot Camp.
Historically, “Limmers” have been well known within the New
England hiking community, but often not beyond it. Furthermore, while most of the attending vendors made fashion-oriented footwear, Limmer boots were unique as practical footwear
designed to withstand punishing terrain. For these reasons, they
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weren’t sure what to expect.
In the face of uncertainty, the Limmer crew did their best
to import the Intervale shop’s rustic charm to their designated
conference space. They set up a wooden workbench, displayed
tools of the trade, and lay down saw dust on the floor. As people
walked by their diorama, Annie remembered feeling a newfound
confidence as they pitched their product to prospective customers. Boot Camp, she said, “was the first time I described our
boots to people as tools.” Intrigued, people lined up to have their
measurements taken, and to order boots.
Adam said that while many attendees had heard of Limmers,
it was “a revelation for some folks to actually have our product in
their hand and feel the substantialness of it.” Ultimately, they were
well received at Boot Camp by fellow proprietors and customers
alike. There is a certain irony in the idea that Peter Limmer & Sons
was new to the conference, given that the company was established at a time when handmade footwear was the status quo.
The Boot Crafters
To those who craft Limmers, the boot represents something
more than merely a commercial product. Whereas much of the
clothing industry today is defined by “fast-fashion,” where a
product’s expendability is seen as a virtue, Limmer boots amount
to something distinctly different. The value of a Limmer comes
precisely from its slow-changing and resilient design. Adam and
his employees often remind prospective customers of the practicality of buying their product, which will long outlive a modern
hiking shoe. And beyond the economic value of the boot, they
tout the organic relationship between Limmer-makers and their
customers, which promotes a tradition of mutual care.
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