Workwear British-Made Men's Boots — Voted by the Community

The United Kingdom has a long history of footwear making, and Northampton and the surrounding county are its best-known centre. In the Middle Ages Northampton had a street of cordwainers, or shoemakers, and a Shoemakers Guild was set up in 1401 to regulate the trade. In 1642 a group of local shoemakers won a contract to supply 600 pairs of boots and 4,000 pairs of shoes for the army going to Ireland, and the area went on to make army footwear for many later wars. By 1841 there were 1,821 shoemakers in the town. Several of today's makers began in this period. Tricker's was founded by Joseph Tricker in 1829, and its Northampton factory on St Michael's Road opened in 1904. Crockett & Jones was set up in Northampton in 1879 by brothers-in-law James Crockett and Charles Jones, and became known for Goodyear-welted footwear. Both still make their boots in Northampton. British bootmaking has served farm and estate work, the army and town wear, and today's makers still use welted construction and traditional methods alongside newer designs.