The article
Penn – The English Ivy League
Jul
As one would expect, Crockett & Jones’ illustrious history extends far and wide. None more so than ‘over the pond’… an Atlantic sized pond that is. Over the years, producing fine shoes for some of the most recognisable American brands. Some of whom are still trading today.
During its 140+ years, Crockett & Jones is extremely thankful to have manufactured footwear for some of the greatest retail brands and design minds in the world. Inviting some of the most famous designers and design houses to its rather humble, unchanged factory in Northampton, England (Ye Olde England… not New England!), time and time again!
In the States, among great department stores and retail brands, Crockett & Jones gained recognition for its manufacturing prowess. None more so than throughout a pillar of all American style, Ralph Lauren.
A generation of Jones back, in the late 1970’s, Ralph Lauren introduced Polo for Men. Following suit in the early 80s with its first retail store outside the US in none other than London, England. Heavily interested in English style, Ralph Lauren enjoyed his high quality English footwear. So much so that he sought an English manufacturer, Crockett & Jones, to produce a collection of Loafers, Saddle Oxfords and Bluchers (Derbys to the Europeans reading this). All seamlessly fitting into the Polo design ethos and a wise choice, for they continued to sell for decades.
A key element to this Ivy League look, ‘white nubuck’ or ‘bucks’ aside, was a brick red sole. Rewind to a design meeting between Crockett & Jones’ American agents and Lauren’s design team at the time, a red sole was non-negotiable and it MUST be made in England! In this instance, Richard Jones, Jonathan Jones’ father, knew just the place. The Harboro Rubber Co. Mr Richard, as he was known in the factory, took off down the road with haste. Design plans and sample ideas under his arm.
In the 80s, sporting heritage flowed freely throughout the Polo collection, and there really was just one red rubber sole to go with, if sporting heritage was a requirement – the Red Rubber Unit! Marketing terms were less important back then… It was RED, it was made using high quality RUBBER, and it was a sole and heel combined, a UNIT!
In the 1930s lawn bowls was rife, this sole was used almost entirely for lawn bowls with its sturdy tread width and horizontal grips. However, the Red Rubber Unit was a sole that had been laid to rest in the archives for nearly half a century. Richard Jones, not wanting to fail his most important wholesale customer (at the time), funded new moulds and resurrected this forgotten sole once again. Ralph Lauren approved the samples and Crockett & Jones, until very recently, continued to produce these shoes for them for another 40+ years. Remarkable!
Whilst the Cordovan Collection continued until the very end, today, due to the rise in manufacturing costs for products such as ours, we sadly no longer produce shoes for Ralph Lauren. But that does not mean these styles or the Red Rubber Unit, should be forgotten.
