Dr. Martens, or Docs, have become world classics worn by everyone - from cops and punks to top stars.

What is known about the inventor of this shoe?

Dr. Klaus Martens during World War II served as a doctor in the German army. All his life, apart from medicine, he adored skiing. He got especially vivid impressions while riding in the Bavarian Alps. Once he was unlucky, or maybe quite the opposite. At least he was able to benefit from his bad luck.

And so, while skiing, Klaus broke his leg. And since the former military doctor of the "victorious" German army had only army boots after the war, the crippled leg had to be shod in just such a boot. It turned out that in them the sore leg will recover for a long time. The rough skin and the nailed sole further traumatized the foot. Martens changed the sole to a soft one that absorbed the hard touch of the foot with the ground.



At the end of the war, Martens began to develop his idea, and joined all his efforts with Dr. Herbert Funk. In 1947, in the small town of Seeshaupt near Munich, they opened the production of orthopedic shoes, which were sewn from the remnants of leather things, insoles from shoulder straps, and a soft rubber sole from tires, fortunately, on the fields that were once the bases for Luftwaffe, there were many abandoned planes.

In 1952 year, entrepreneurs have already launched a large factory in Munich, where about two hundred models of shoes were produced.

In the 1950s Over the years, Bill Griggs bought a patent from a German company, and from that moment he began to produce such shoes at his Cobs Lane factory in Wollaston in the UK. In the early 60s, Bill Griggs decided to bring the boots to the English market, slightly modifying them.

What has he changed?

He gave the toes of the boots a more rounded shape, stitched the boots with the signature yellow thread, changed the sole - made it more comfortable by adding deep protectors. On April 1, 1960, the improved boots Dr. Martins first appeared on the English market.



The boots were named Dr. Martens. Model "1460", ie April 1, 1960 (1.4.60) - sturdy work boots with eight pairs of lace holes, contrasting yellow stitching and a loop on the heel. They had a rounded toe, raised sides, tread soles and dark edges. Although it was originally planned to release martens in black, they nevertheless decided to choose cherry. Each pair bore the words "AirWair" and the heel loop read "With Bouncing Soles".





Neo-fascist youth groups, preaching the cult of a strong personality, racism and chauvinism, were seriously engaged in physical training and did not hide their views. And not only ..., they fiercely and aggressively defended their territory, and for this they were often helped in fights by boots. In the late 60s, it became clear that muscularity was gaining popularity in men's fashion.

Skinheads became more and more aggressive. They shaved their hair bald, wore jeans with suspenders and tucked them up so that they could see the boots, which have now received a different name, or rather their purpose - boots for fighting. Spikes and metal socks appeared on the boots.

Movies were released that contributed to the popularity of Dr. Martins' boots. The boots were on a thick sole, lined with nails, and quite heavy.And many at that time felt this on their ribs or head, especially representatives of sexual minorities. In the 70s they were put on by punks, then by Chelsea fans.



By the mid-70s, Dr. The representatives of the musical culture liked the Martens, and after their tour in the USA, the Americans did not want to part with the Martens either. The company soon opened several stores in Los Angeles, New York and Chicago. In 1975, Elton John also appeared in these high-platform boots in the film Who's Tommy.

Dr. The cherry-colored Martens with sixteen pairs of holes were almost fetish in their aggressive belligerence.

A little later, Dr. Martins' boots appeared in grunge style in the early 90s. But before, in the 80s, they were mastered in the gay culture, and now skinheads and gays could no longer distinguish from each other.



At the same time, women also paid attention to Dr. Martens, and decided why not complete the look in Azzedine Alaya's slinky bandage dress with army boots. The shoes began to change color, colored laces were threaded into them.

In the 80s, people of different ages who had nothing to do with subcultures began to wear them. In 1990, there was even a pair of clear vinyl. During this period, Dr. Martens already distinguished themselves by the texture of the leather, the color scheme and the shape of the sock. They were worn by young girls with light dresses, show business stars, actresses and singers, they became part of the image of many popular characters. They were worn by Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, Uma Thurman.



Dr. Martens (Doctor Martens) is a shoe brand of the British company AirWair Ltd. Brand Dr. Martens has a clothing line that includes unisex styles such as denim overalls, plaid shirts, work vests, and more. In 2011, the Dr. Martens presented a limited edition spring / summer collection of 350 models.



To date, the private equity fund Permira has bought the British footwear company R. Griggs Group Ltd. Now the rights to the iconic Dr. Martens went to the Permira foundation, which also owns stakes in brands such as Hugo Boss, New Look, and the Spanish clothing chain Cortefiel.

Brand Dr. Martens sells up to about five million pairs of shoes a year, most of which are made overseas. About 70 thousand pairs are still manufactured at the R. Griggs Group factory in Northampton. Iconic boots are sold in over 60 countries around the world. Despite the economic crisis in many countries, sales of Dr. Martens is growing, so is the number of stores.