A local industry with a global footprint

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British Footwear Association

Established in 1898 and currently based in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, The British Footwear Association (The BFA) represents the interests of over 130 UK-based companies supplying the ...
Photos recorded at community history event September 2012

These pictures we brought in to Desborough Heritage Centre by the public during the Global Footprint event.
From shoemaker to F1 racing car engineeer

Peter followed his father into the family business which became Distinctive Footwear Ltd of Long Buckby. He describes the success of their manufacturing, their trading ...
Growing up with the smell of leather

Robert remembers his father working at a shoe factory in Northampton and the Christmas parties with the children of other factory workers.
Bringing the world to see how Northamptonshire makes shoes

Vera worked for the British Boot and Shoe Institution and was responsible for bringing shoemakers from all over the world to Northamptonshire to see how ...
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'FOOT STEPS' by Stan’s Cafe

Colourful footsteps across Wellingborough town centre encouraged participants to discover the hidden stories of the streets with this interactive work from award-winning Birmingham based theatre ...
'Stitch' by Jo Fairfax and FLOW

STITCH was a 3 mile long path of light that travelled across the beautiful Nene valley, pinpointing two prestigious boot and shoe-making factories (Barker shoes ...
Daventry