Vorige week was BLVD Man te gast in Level Eleven, Amsterdam waar we niet alleen getrakteerd werden op heerlijke speciaalbiertjes, maar ook op de historie van ’s werelds meest herkenbare schoen. De Timberland Yellow Boot. Een icoon in de geschiedenis van footwear.
Sidney Swartz introduceerde de originele Yellow Boot™, in 173. Hij had niet kunnen voorspellen dat het zo’n impact op de wereld zou hebben. It just happened that way. De schoen was gecreëerd voor hardwerkende New Englanders, gebouwd uit 39 componenten. Vorm, functionaliteit én vakmanschap was belangrijker dan de weg van de mode volgen, dit werkte schijnbaar averechts.
In Europa werd de schoen het symbool van “Made in the USA”, in Azië werd Timberland een statement van individualiteit én in Amerika droegen mensen uit alle lagen van de bevolking de Yellow Boot™.
Sidney Swartz had een revolutionair idee. Een schoen die de basis zou vormen van zijn bedrijf. De Yellow Boot werd ontworpen om zelfs de meest harde weersomstandigheden aan te kunnen.
“Making an all leather boot that was waterproof was considered to be ridiculous – nobody thought that made any sense at all,” aldus Sidney over zijn eerste originele Yellow Boot™.
Er werd tot in het kleinste detail gelet op de kwaliteit. Sidney creëerde zijn meesterwerk om de voeten warm en droog te houden tijdens de koudere seizoenen. Hij wist niet dat dit de basis zou vormen van het begin van het nowadays gigantische Timberland.
Interview met Timberland Senior Footwear Product Director Donald Desalvio:
Can you tell us something about The Original Yellow Boot™ we may not already know?
Did you know the first international sale was to an Italian gentleman? He came directly to Sidney Swartz and asked to buy 600 pairs! Surprised but pleased, Sidney sold them to him and figured he’d never see him again. But two months later, the Italian was back – he’d sold all 600 pairs and wanted more.
That’s how the Original Yellow Boot™ gained a foothold in Europe before going on to become the fashion icon it is today.
How has the Yellow Boot evolved since it was first created?
When Sidney Swartz first unveiled The Original Yellow Boot™ in 1973, it was the first of its kind. The full-grain nubuck leather with sealed seams, four-row stitching and injection-molded soles permanently bonded to the top of the boot made it completely waterproof. That attention to quality and the finest materials really hasn’t changed.
The only real evolution has come in the technology we use in its construction rather than the styling. We’ve added an anti-fatigue footbed for improved comfort with geometric cone support that gives amazing shock absorption and energy return.
Timberland has unveiled several different versions of the Original Yellow Boot™, often design and style collaborations – what’s been the inspiration behind these?
We’ve created many different Yellow Boot variations over the years – some simple like color changes, using new materials and a few with added details or embellishments to make them unique. It’s such an iconic product that we like to seek out one-off collaborations with great designers as well as innovative style designs, like our variousLimited Releases (like our collaboration with Pharrell that led to our Bee Line boots, inspired by a honeycomb image the hip hop artist found and made with bionic canvas – 50% organic cotton and 38% recycled PET).
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