It costs $28,000 for a pair of Miron Crosby cowboy boots and an astrological reading. This was one of the options listed as part of Neiman Marcus’ annual Fantasy Gifts holiday guide in 2024 — signaling that luxury western boots are highly coveted right now.

“For the Fantasy Gift boot, we wanted to create something once-in-a-lifetime, luxurious, whimsical and uniquely Texan,” said Miron Crosby cofounders and sisters Sarah Means and Lizzie Means Duplantis. “Inspired by the West Texas night sky, the Celestial Boot shimmers with intricately placed pavé diamond stars, set in 18-karat gold against lustrous jet-black leather, mirroring the captivating beauty of the night sky with every step.”

Of course, most Miron Crosby cowboy boots are not $28,000, nor do they include an astrological reading. But the brand is still part of a niche of labels making high-end cowboy boots with a hefty price tag; prices at Miron Crosby include $2,395 for the mid-height Rush Crème style and $1,095 for the short Marianne option. The brand, which employs master artisans to hand-last boots in Mercedes, Texas, and Léon, Mexico, also offers a Design-Your-Own option, which utilizes a digital technology allowing customers to customize their own boot with a visual of what the finished product would look like.

Luxury boot makers emphasized to FN that their customers are those that value the artisanal expertise and quality materials that go into creating such a shoe.

“Nobody does what we do,” said Nevena Christi, who leads the team at Rocketbuster Boots, an El Paso-based brand that offers custom boots. “So not only do we do a hand-stacked leather heel and 100 lemonwood pegs and everything the way it was done at the turn of the century, but we’ve taken the art to a whole new level.”

For Christi, who has a background in fine art, the blank canvas of a boot allows for unbounded creativity. Take, for example, the Sicilian-themed set she just created for a client over the course of three years, showcasing all sorts of nods to the Italian region, from Marionette puppets to lemons and figs.

Christi said, “I don’t think there’s any limit in the art that we can do on a boot, which is why our boots can take anywhere from three months to three years, depending on the difficulty.”

Some orders, however, are requested with a bit more urgency than others, with Kendrick Lamar‘s boots worn on stage during his surprise appearance at Coachella in 2022 being a prime example of that. The silver boots were designed with a variety of references to the rapper. Christi shared, “Our boots take months, but the first pair of boots we did for him, we did in four days. We missed FedEx, I had to fly to Coachella to deliver them.”

Meanwhile, Tres Outlaws Boot Company, another El Paso brand offering bespoke boots, has serviced a long list of celebrity clients including names like Harrison Ford, Johnny Cash, Joni Mitchell, Post Malone and Whoopi Goldberg, per an extensive list on its website. (The “Ghost” actress also reached out to Christi, who put her on hold before realizing who she was.)

Lucchese Bootmaker, also based out of Texas, has several well-known fans as well, and has collaborated with country stars like Chris Stapleton. The brand even inspired an entire song by country singer Kane Brown, “2 Pair,” released in June — featuring lyrics like “Give me two pairs of Luccheses” and “Just got paid, blew it all on my feet.”

Doug Hogue, vice president of product at Lucchese Bootmaker, said of the musical ode, “To have a whole song dedicated to our craftsmanship, and even showcase our proprietary Black Cherry color, is an honor and a testament to the incredible work our artisans produce daily.”

Scott Wayne of Tres Outlaws, who has made more than 70,000 boots over the course of more than four decades, stressed how involved the process of crafting such a high-end product is. “The art of luxury boot making is not easy,” Wayne told FN. “If you really want it nice and you really want it to come out perfect, it takes a lot of time and technique, which I developed and engineered throughout the years.”

The luxe elements of Wayne’s shoes comes from materials like sterling silver, 18-karat gold, turquoise and hand-tooling and detailing.

While Lucchese, Miron Crosby, Rocketbuster and Tres Outlaws are all based out of Texas, it’s not the only state showing interest in upscale western style. Wayne, for example, mentioned his store in Cody, Wyo.

Meanwhile, Means and Means Duplantis shared, “Our customer base is now national, reaching far beyond Texas. We often reach them through our studios in Dallas, Aspen and Houston; trunk shows on the road from coast to coast, and our online boutique. Word of mouth continues to be one of our strongest drivers. Once someone slips on a pair of Miron Crosby boots, they usually come back for more and bring their friends along with them.”

Hogue discussed expansion as well: “From Dallas to Bozeman to Nashville, and now further east with new stores in Charlotte and Atlanta, we are expanding to aspirational destinations. In every market, our focus remains on delivering a bespoke retail experience that highlights the craftsmanship, quality and heritage that define Lucchese.”

While not attainable to all consumers, luxury cowboy boots have certainly made an imprint in the footwear industry — and it remains to be seen if the style will make its way onto the 2025 iteration of the Neiman Marcus Fantasy Gifts list.