Once the shoemaking capital of Europe, the county of Northamptonshire has a history of shoe manufacture dating back to the 13th century. Born in the village of Wollaston, Northamptonshire in 1881, five villagers banded together to form a co-operative called the Northamptonshire Productive Society (NPS).
Beginning with an order from the government for army boots, production grew rapidly with the development of industrialisation. During the 1950s Austrian Dr. Maerten (we know as Dr. Marten) and his associate Mr Funck developed the air cushion sole and NPS were chosen to manufacture footwear with this new sole. In 1959 the first English pair of sample boots with air-cushioned soles were welted in the NPS factory. They produced boots and shoes under the name ‘Dr Martens by Solovair’ (sole-of-air) for 35 years!
Following this success, during the 1980s and onwards, business declined in line with UK manufacturing, mainly due to imports from other countries. At the turn of the century, the shoe factory with over 130 years of experience was saved from the verge of collapse by a local man, Ivor Tilley, preserving local skills and jobs. The factory has since regained strength, distributing shoes worldwide and supplying well-known British and international brands.
To see how NPS shoes are made, from start to finish, take a look at their factory page.
