How long does it take to break in a new pair of leather shoes?

We all wish we could skip this step, but even the Queen of England is known to hire women to wear her new custom made shoes before the Queen does.

How long it takes to break into your new leather shoes will depend on the construction of the welt, the fit, and the leather used. Single leather Blake stitched soles will normally take less time than Goodyear welted soles to break in because the sole is much thinner, but Goodyear welted shoes made of full grain calfskin from Italy or France takes on average a week of wear before the leather softens and starts to mold to your feet. If shoes don't get more and more comfortable after this period of time, then the problem lies with the fit of the shoe.