The shoe factory under your feet ⬇️

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Welcome to the 430 of you who have joined us since last week. We’re at about double the capacity of the LCR now - think of what we could do to the ticket sales of the ABBA Disco at the end of May.

Every dancing queen needs a pair of dancing shoes (deary me, sorry about that), and once upon a time, yours might’ve been made in one of Norwich’s shoe factories.

From royal visits to devastating fires, take a moment away from today’s chocolate consumption and learn about the surprisingly interesting past and present of Norwich’s shoe trade.

(Btw, legend has it that if you recommend this newsletter to a friend, you’ll never have a disappointing Sunday roast ever again. If you enjoy these emails and appreciate a good roast, please consider sharing it.)

Walking before we could run.

Back in the medieval times, Norwich had a solid rep for high-quality textiles. The reason some of the city’s oldest houses have big, long windows running across the second floor is to maximise the amount of natural light for the weavers who would’ve lived there.

This renown for craftsmanship lent itself to making shoes. Which is exactly what Norwich did. The first notable example, founded in 1792, is still a household name today (we’ll talk about that momentarily).

By the late 1800s, Norwich was one of England’s biggest shoe manufacturers, and by the early-mid 1900s, around 15% of Norwich’s workforce were employed at a shoe factory. Here are some of them pictured in 1951:

The rite start.

Ask a Norwich resident about the biggest companies that started in Norwich, and the answer will probably be Colmans and Aviva (formerly Norwich Union).

But another household name can be traced back to Norwich: Start-Rite.

Founded in 1792 by James Smith, Start-Rite became the de facto children’s shoe manufacturer of choice in the UK. Even the Queen’s kids wore Start-Rite shoes.

This advert - both the imagery and the slogan - became somewhat iconic in the mid-1900s:

Crome Road rings a bell, doesn’t it?

Some of you might’ve heard about the huge fire at an old shoe factory earlier this year.

Yup - that was on Crome Road too. Here’s what it looks like now:

It’s hard to resist using these burnt remnants as a metaphor for the fate of Norwich’s shoe trade, and I’m a glutton for an easy metaphor. Start-Rite moved production overseas in 2003, and as importing shoes became cheaper and easier throughout the 1970s and 80s, most of Norwich’s 30+ shoe factories closed their doors.

Most. But not all.

Going underground.

Head out of the City centre down London Street and, opposite Gonzo’s tea room, you’ll find Bowhill and Elliott, one of Norwich’s only surviving shoe manufacturers.

Famous for its trademarked “Street Slipper”, Bowhill and Elliott have been making shoes on this site since 1874.

But why can’t you see the shoes being made when you step inside?

It’s because their small but fully functioning factory is hidden underground. Still as industrious now as it was when it opened its doors over 150 years ago.

It’s an overlooked gem that points towards a largely forgotten but hugely important part of Norwich’s history. Next time you’re walking down London Street, spare a thought for the shoes being made right beneath your feet.

Some extra info you might appreciate:

• Queen Elizabeth II visited Norwich’s Edwards and Holmes shoe factory in 1951:
  

  

  Photo thanks to Norwich Heritage.

• The Shoebox on Castle Meadow is so called because it occupies an old shoe shop (Ponds). I’d thoroughly recommend a tour of their Hidden Street, which, aside from the fascinating medieval history, includes pictures and antiques from the building’s days as a shoe shop.
  

• Start-Rite actually invented the default method for measuring children’s feet (those slidey foot gauge things).
  

• Bowhill and Elliott’s ‘Our History’ page is definitely worth a read if this email has piqued your curiosity.

Thanks for reading! Your feedback is greatly appreciated and will help to shape future newsletters, so please keep it coming if you have a moment:

See you next Sunday,

Secret Norwich.