May I know what is your budget that is reasonable to you? Around RM 200+ ? I believe Clarks are quite okay for budget shoes, can top up a bit and buy during sales.

I have been to Clarks but all their design kind on "uncleish". I find Tomaz to have better design but their shoe is as hard it could get.

Bata. Yes, I know, its blasphemy to mention that name in this forum, but they have a promotion at MidValley,
Made-In-Italy Real Leather shoes for RM299. But be warned, they have rubber soles, not in keeping with
the uppers. And likely cemented.

I've recommended Bata numerous times in this thread as well. Might as well. Tomaz is also cemented, so same same....

I think Clarks price are reasonable as it's very comfortable to wear for long periods but just that design wise  .

I've never tried any Tomaz because just looking at them...they try to copy classic designs with their own twist and fail, and their leather quality is just not there. Only so much you can do at that price point...

But I am curious though, what do you mean by hard? The leather soles (if they have models with leather soles) are hard? Or the uppers are too stiff? Or something else.

Shoetree project allows you to change size in case not fit
their customer service quite good, prompt reply

Just got my shoe tree, 42 bucks
Not cedar wood, but built quality not bad

TLB Artista on Picasso last in dark brown

I paid 548 SGD (approx. 1700 MYR) in-store from Yeossal. They're on sale now on their website.

Bumping up an old question; am browsing for formal shoes within RM100-200 (preferably) or RM200-300 if I can get a proper quality pair.

But from what I can see, RM100-200 is still mostly faux / PU leather.
I saw lots of Clarks recommendations but their prices are just about over budget.
I saw lots of Tomaz wearers but some of them complained their shoes broke within months
I saw quite some Hush Puppies wearers who claimed decent lifespan, but when I check out their website, their shoes only mentioned "cow leather"; not full grain or top grain, and it seems like they use the low-grade cementing type of construction.

Any up-to-date tips and recommendations? All the while I've only bought cheapskate generic shoes from Bata/Parkson/Aeon, so its probably time to upgrade.

Add: Will prefer a physical store as I have flat feet and will need to try them on before buying.