The Bata Shoe Museum

An interesting but not mind blowing museum. We were here for 2 hours and that was probably the maximum time someone without a fashion degree could spend here.
The museum gives a nice lesson of how shoes and fashion integrated with history and different cultures around the globe.
There was a special exhibit called Victims of Fashion that documented some of hazards of shoes making: usage of poisonous dyes, poor working conditions of cobblers, etc…
Overall a nice, neat museum.

No — really — it is a shoe museum. You’re probably thinking — how much information is there about shoes that require a museum? Well, then go to Bata and you are going to learn more information about shoes, their making, their wearing, their problems, their silliness, and their history. It is really quite fascinating and the museum staff does a great job in presenting the story of shoes from the very beginning of time, and around the world, and I guarantee you will be surprised at much of what you will learn. I don’t want to spoil the surprise, but arsenic is involved, as are sexual arousal, rock stars, divas and diamonds. That got your attention and so too will this gem of a museum — pay as you wish on Thursday 5 — 8 p.m.

Pretty cool museum. It hits equal points of fashion, trends, and history. The building is interesting in how it is used to display the items (it was made for this museum).

Visited this museum this summer when I was in Toronto. I went on the free evening night, since it fit into my schedule. It’s 3 floors of the history of shoes and footware, with exhibitions on the 3^rd floor. They had an exhibition on men who wears heels and how it has progressed over history. It’s an interesting and unique museum, and very hands on, especially on the lower floor. You can try on shoes! You also have some shoes worn by celebrities, such as Justin Bieber and Marilyn Monroe. The museum is very clean, has clean bathrooms and water fountains, and there’s free high speed wifi throughout the museum. A definite for anyone visiting Toronto!

I actually had a really nice time. I was surprised! My boyfriend wanted to take me here for my birthday. He knows I love shoes, and figured this would be something fun to try. And he was right!
It was really cool seeing Marilyn’s red heels.
I wish they would have had hockey players skates! They had snow shoes and these scuba boots. I think skates would of been a nice touch, but I still had fun.

Theres a few things I would like to change about this place. I really wanted to see beautifully designed shoes. Im talking concept shoes, more shoes that have been on celebrities and super fancy ones. This place is mostly the history of foot ware. Interesting too, I was just wanting more visually appealing displays. To read about everything you get a serious neck cramp, the plaques about the displays are about 2 feet off the ground :/

I make shoes by hand and this is the *IT* establishment for souters & shoe fetishists alike.
Traveled to Toronto specifically for the Bata Shoe Museum. The permanent collection, the history of the shoe, «All About Shoes: Footwear Through the Ages» and my favorite, «Beauty, Identity, Pride: Native North American Footwear» are verifiable homages to the craft and its crafters.
While this is not a look at every shoe that ever existed, it is a glimpse into which shoes changed history or took fashion by storm. It is well worth the visit. A few years back I was fortunate enough to see, «Roger Vivier: Process to Perfection» and it was a superb show that displayed the design and illustration process alongside the actual formation of the shoe on the last itself coupled with various heel components.
Lasting techniques have not changed much in the cobbling world and it was tremendously validating to see incredible craftsmanship on view and honored. If you make shoes or design them, everyone will agree that this is a MUST.

First things first — go online and look for a 2 for 1 coupon for your admission.
Secondly, I think this place is really cool. No, it’s not just for shoe lovers or foot fetishists. If you have an appreciation for history and culture, you might dig learning about those things through fashion and footwear.
I really enjoyed how each area was laid out and how items were showcased and presented. The «Fashion Victims» exhibit was my favorite — it’s about how society people were basically slowly killing themselves with the chemicals and dyes used in clothing during the late 1800s. REALLY interesting and beautifully designed exhibit.
Seeing Sir Elton’s platform boots and Madonna’s sparkly stage shoes was neat but I appreciated all of the education and information that Bata presents to go along with everything.
Highly recommended. I wish we had spent a bit more time reading everything more carefully.

Just spent several hours at the Bata Shoe
Museum with my 5 yo daughter. We both enjoyed it, but I have several observations and thoughts on our visit.
First off, it’s a fun place. They’re gonna love it, if only because there are so many wacky items in juxtaposition in one place… a shoe for a cow? Yes… Barbie doll high heels? Yes… glass slippers and multiple different Cinderella stories (versions from China, Korea, and others) to read? Yes… film clips of Madonna and Justin Beiber? Yes!
It was fun to try to follow her lead – and I’m glad we went at a less busy time. It’s not a very big place. My dau loved certain display cases and wanted to hang over them for long periods, chatting about them – would not have been possible if busy!
There were all kinds of wacky shoes to try on… this was fun, but I think they could really take it to another level. It really could be wackier (why no really outrageous clown shoes or bedroom slippers?)
There’s space for arts and crafts, but on
the day we were there (a Tuesday), there were virtually no supplies (we were given a small baggies with several foam cut out shapes in it when we entered) – and why no
Shoe-​related crafts project? How about making cool shoe laces or punching holes and making designs with laces and paper? We really enjoyed the museum, don’t get me wrong, but it seems there are fabulous possibilities yet to be explored!
We loved all the shoe-​related books and spent a good bit of time reading… that was lovely… a little hard to read in the darkness tho (I totally understand and accept why the exhibit areas need to be darker) – perhaps there could be a better lit area for reading and for the arts and crafts tho?
We had a SUPER time! My biggest complaints: the doors are very heavy and most of the gallery space was really dark – harder to maneuver kids and stroller – but still super fun, and I really had a good time too!

The entrance fee is pretty decent, however u do get what you pay for.
For under $ 15 don’t expect it to be the best thing ever, it’s just a plain old museum with no frills.
With that being said, it was very interesting to see the types of shoes (it’s organized by a timeline), and the vintage designer heels section was my favourite!
Overall i would come back if i’m in the area and bored, or as a date!

I came here on a free pass with my friend Jimmy now living in KL. What I thought was going to be the most boring hour of my life turned out to be very interesting. Quite interesting and I highly recommended. You would be surprised how interesting shoes can be. We all own at least 10 pair, yet we don’t know the history or what goes into making a pair.

I didn’t know a shoe museum existed so imagine our surprise to find 3 floors or shoes, glorious shoes! While we enjoyed the history of and the many cultural differences, I felt there was an abundance of the native american variety. We got a kick out of the designer shoes through the decades but most interesting were the shoes of the 1920’s. I appreciated the Louise Vuitton trunk made especially for shoes. The shoes of that time period were works of art. The detail and craftsmanship could not be duplicated today. We were on vacation so only had limited time in the museum but we will be back. The Dali Lama’s rubber slippers were sweet. If you appreciate shoes, this is a must stop.

Cheap with student ID…
Shoes from all over the world…
Love the Roger Vivier collection on the top floor!

The Bata Shoe Museum was not on my original itinerary when I went to Toronto, but my goodness, was I so happy that I ended up going. My friend and I passed it in the car, and we decided that if we had time, we would check it out. WE HAD TIME!
We were able to use our student ID’s to get a discounted rate, and we spent a nice part of the afternoon surrounded by shoes! It does sound girly or lame, but I really learned a lot! I have a soft spot for fashion history, so to learn about the history of something that has become so basic and everyday for us was quite cool. My favorite part of the museum was their special exhibit, Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture. All of these sneakers from every era were in glass cases, and you were able to experience how sneakers started as something very practical and became a fashion commodity.
Overall, this was a great museum that I would encourage you to visit! If you want a good deal on a ticket, use a student ID or going during special hours!

To be fair, there is a lot of content, including some stuff on the «how shoes came to be», «all kinds of foreign shoes», and an interactive screen that let you design and print your own shoes.
However, I feel like there were only two main focuses: Native North American shoes and the then-​current Roger Vivier collection when I visited.
Lacklustre displays elsewhere.

I know how girly and typical this is going to sound, but bear with me while I declare my absolute and mad love for shoes. True love. No passing fling here. My shoes are in The Container Store plastic boxes to create universality in my closet and to let each pair know how much I love them. Flats, heels, wedges and boots. I. CANNOT. HAVE. ENOUGH. I could reference Carrie Bradshaw here for comparison, but you understand what I am saying.
On my last day in Toronto, I was told by the lovely Joni Hubred-​Golden (Hi Joni!) about the museum and immediately reworked my plans to make a stop before heading to the airport. I am nothing if not committed to my love of shoes. (One could note that this love should have alerted me to knowing about this museum before my last day in Toronto, but I could not conceive of such a wonderful thing. I was blissfully surprised and my belief in my travel karma was confirmed.)
Showing up a little before they opened (and a little before the young field-​trippers) at 10am, they recommended that I start on the ground floor and work my way up to the sneaker exhibit on the top floor. I dutifully followed directions.
Walking around and seeing some of the almost 10,000 pairs of shoes on exhibit here (covering hundreds of years and many different cultures), I have never in my life had so many people (mostly employees and museum volunteers) look at my shoes in my life. I started to walk differently after awhile. Longer strides and all. Pointed-​toe. I think I started the five basic positions of ballet. They all needed to know with whom they were dealing.
The ancient Egyptian’s tiny sandals, the Indian’s jeweled flats and China’s embroidered slides were there. The Tudor’s rigid metal boots were there, too.
Some shoes were ceremonial and others were drinking cups (the Germans, of course), but what I found the most interesting were the stories connected to specific kinds of shoes.
From the museum’s placard: In Judaism, according to Biblical law, when a man dies and leaves his wife childless it is the duty of his brother to marry his widow to perpetuate the family line. If the brother declines to marry his sister-​in-​law, the halizah ceremony is performed. The halizah shoe, which is the property of the community, is placed on the man’s foot and in front of witnesses, the widow unlaces the shoe and removes it thereby releasing her brother-​in-​law of his obligation and she becomes free to marry whomever she wishes.
Well, I am a big fan of everyone marrying whomever they wish and having the halizah ceremony connected to footwear is interesting. There were also slightly less binding pieces of shoe information like: did you know that bootleggers made shoes that, when tracked in the snow, appeared to be going in the opposite direction to avoid detection? Clever.
And now, I satisfy your curiosity by letting you know that Bieber made his way in. Well, his sneakers did. You just KNEW Bieber was going to sneak his way into this museum.
In a little musican-​focused section, they had a tribute to some (use your own adjective) artists. They included:
Ella Fitzgerald
Elvis Presley
John Lennon
Sir Elton John
Madonna
Barbra Streisand
Sarah McLachlan
and Justin Bieber
I mean, really? Ok, Canada. Ok.
Next there were some clogs and some Zuni boots that I definitely wanted to steal. I just pictured myself goading you like Catherine Banning does to Thomas in the museum date scene in The Thomas Crown Affair.
TC: «What would you take?»
CB: «For my personal choice… that one.»
TC: «You? You would like to have that?»
CB: «Why? Would you get it for me?»
A girl can dream. ANYWAY, next comes the kicks.
In their exhibit Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture, I was reminded of that Missy Elliott MTV Cribs episode about her well-​stocked sneaker closet and learned that Nike hasn’t spent one marketing dollar on the Air Force 1 (white-​on-​white) mostly because they get free publicity through rappers. JayZ allegedly only wears his once before discarding them for a new pair… and I thought I had a shoe addiction.
Out of the Box did a nice job of keeping the entire museum current by basically throwing it into modern day (you don’t count, Bieber) through:
Christian Louboutin’s 2012 Roller Boats
Lanvin’s Patent Toe-​caps from This Year
Louis Vuitton x Kanye West Don’s 2009 Collaboration
and PUMA x Alexander McQueen’s Joust Boot.
Just lovely. Would I recommend coming here even if you are not a fanatic about this genre? Yes. Even if it is just to steal those Zuni boots for me.

I really enjoyed the Bata Shoe Museum — especially the sneaker exhibit they have going on upstairs. It was $ 14 to get in for an adult ticket and it gives you 2 for 1 discounts at other local museums.

I love going to museums so when I heard about the shoe museum I knew I had to check it out. Visited Bata Shoe Museum last weekend and had a lot of fun! It’s a really small museum, so the quality of the experience is totally dependent on what special exhibitions they have on.
I definitely liked the bottom floor the most — they had a really cool photo-​exhibit of personal shoes, and the Shoes Around the World exhibit was really awesome and fascinating. I didn’t really care for the sneakers special exhibit myself, but it was educational nonetheless, and the documentary they had projecting on the wall was really fun to watch. Would definitely recommend a go at least once!
You can find buy-​one-​get-​one-​free admission coupons if you look around, usually in the racks where you find all the other touristy fliers. We were both University students ($ 8 each) and had a buy-​one-​get-​one free admission coupon, so we got in for $ 4 each (!!!).
Also, they have a partnership with other museums, so if you keep your receipt, you can get buy one get one free admission to a few other museums in Toronto. I definitely don’t think I would have enjoyed it if I had paid the full $ 14 dollars, but as it was I had a lot of fun and was really glad I got to check it out.

It’s a museum. Full of shoes from through the ages. In downtown Toronto.
Some history was learned.
For example, did you know bootleggers made shoes that when tracked in the snow appeared to be going in the opposite direction to avoid detection.
And, apparently, Justin Bieber is from Canada. You’ll have to trust me on this one.
As far was I can tell it is Toronto’s version of Navy Pier. Locals visit when friends are in town. $ 14CAD. Which is basically $ 14US.

I had the opportunity of visiting this museum a couple years ago and absolutely loved it! I actually tried returning more recently and was very disappointed to realize they open 2 hours later on Sundays…
I love order and timelines, so the All About Shoes: Footwear Through the Ages was a favorite. At the time, there was also a special footwear exhibition called On a Pedestal: From Renaissance Chopines to Baroque Heels (which ran from late 2009 to late 2010). I had no idea what a platform chopine even was before seeing this exhibition so I learned so much from these shoes!
Hopefully, I’ll be able to return to this museum sometime soon. It’s a must-​see when visiting Toronto!

Je recommande vraiment ce musée. Il est fort intéressant de remonter le cours du temps à travers les chaussures que portaient les différents peuples. De plus, l’exposition actuelle (juillet 2010) autour de la chopine est assez impressionnante.