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Refined over centuries

Making Tricker's

265 individual processes over 8 weeks - That's the Tricker's way

Our shoes and boots are 100% made in our Northampton factory, the shoemaking capital of the world.

We train and develop skilled crafts people who live and breathe shoemaking, keeping an essential trade alive and well. You won’t find more skilled craftspeople than those within the Tricker’s Factory.

Construction

The full process | 10 min

Construction

The full process | 10 min

Clicking

It takes years to develop the skill required to cutout the distinctive patterns of each pair of Tricker’s hand-made shoes and boots. Our clickers have to judge which direction to cut the leather in, and how the piece of hide they are working with will stretch to fit afoot perfectly. Only when they are entirely satisfied will a clicker sharpen their blade and set to work with their knives, cutting against the brass-bound edge of their pattern which makes the distinctive ‘clicking’ sound that gives their craft its name.

Closing

Sewing together the different pattern pieces to create a single upper for a shoe or boot is a craft that takes years to learn. This is where our shoemakers add eyelet holes, rivets and the brogue patterns that make every pair of Tricker’s distinctive. It’s also the only part of our factory where ‘skiving’ is permitted – indeed encouraged – because that’s the name of the painstaking process of hand-thinning leather. Once the uppers are closed, they are hung for a number of days to moisturise, ensuring the leather will always be supple and flexible. Every pair is then labelled and numbered by hand, giving them a unique identity.

Lasting

For all our designs our shoemakers draft the closed uppers over individual lasts. It’s a delicate operation that requires a brilliant eye, heat, moisture and the occasional touch of force. The upper is then secured to the woven rib on the insole with small nails and staples, which hold the shoe together until the welt is attached. The welt joins insole to upper on every pair of Tricker’s shoes and boots. The sole is then stitched onto the welt. As our welted shoes are sewn together, skilled craftspeople can unstitch and repair them whenever it is needed.

Welting

Our shoemakers now add a wooden shank to the sole, making the shoe strong and supportive. The cavity between welt and insole is then filled with a layer of cork, which moulds to the wearer’s foot, providing insulation and comfort. The cork is then covered with a leather mid-sole for protection. At this stage the chosen sole is added – either leather or rubber – the excess is rounded off and the sole is lock stitched to the welt. After drying fora few days, the heels are then added to each shoe or boot. Now, it is ready for finishing.

Finishing

No Tricker’s shoe or boot could ever be accused of being rough around the edges. Each pair is hand finished by one of our shoemakers, who trim the soles and heels and buff the edges until they are smooth. It takes years of experience, and a very good eye, to master this traditional freehand skill. Our craftspeople then stain, polish and wax the leather uppers, before ‘bunking’ the soles by adding decorative patterns with tools heated over a naked flame.

The Shoe Room

In the shoe room, a sock liner is fitted to the shoes or boots for comfort. The finished pair is then cleaned, and the uppers are dressed to create a patina using our unique blend of creams and polishes. After leaving overnight, the shoes or boots are polished and burnished by hand to give them their final distinctive lustre. Then, once they have passed a final inspection, they are laced, wrapped in cotton cloth and packed into their box together with their Tricker’s shoe bags.

Our Services

At Tricker's we have both a complete bespoke service and a repair service, to find out more use the links below