I Made a Big Mistake Storing My Shoes

I have spring/summer shoes and fall/winter boots and shoes. This past season I could not store all my fall/winter boots and shoes in my closet. I always keep my shoes in the original boxes I bought them in, so I packed up about 10 pairs of shoes and booties, and stored the boxes in a large cardboard box and put them in the basement.

I never gave it a second thought. They were not stored on the floor, they were up high on top of other boxes. So today, I decided to put away my summer shoes and get out the winter ones. I opened up the cardboard box and began to take out the shoe boxes. Then I proceeded to open the shoe boxes. All the shoes were spotted with MOLD. Yuck!!!!

They were mostly black suede shoes and leather booties, and some pairs were really good ones - fairly new Donald Pliner booties, and my snakeskin boots. How could I be so dumb? I've stored things in the basement before and never had a problem. Must have something to do with suede and leather. Never make that mistake again. I think I was able to salvage 3 pairs of the best booties, but that smell and just knowing they were attacked by mold is a big turnoff to me. I have phobias about mold, etc.

Is this an excuse to buy some new black shoes?