Grenson

A Rushden, Northamptonshire shoemaker founded in the nineteenth century, known for brogues, derbies and boots made with Goodyear-welted construction.

About Grenson

Grenson makes men's and women's leather shoes and boots, with derbies, brogues and boots at the heart of its range. It has added trainers and a brogue-trainer mix, and it has used soft styles such as moccasins and desert boots since the 1950s and 1960s. The company's shoes use Goodyear welting, a stitched construction that lets shoes be repaired. Its brogues are sold in its own shops and in stores around the world, including Harrods, Harvey Nichols, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks, according to a history on the Northamptonshire Boot and Shoe site.

The story starts with William Green in Rushden, who learned shoemaking from his mother and began by working from home. In 1866 he stopped making shoes himself and became a factor, arranging orders, finding materials and employing craftsmen, and the business became William Green and Son. It later became Grenson, a name shortened in 1913. The first factory, Greens Yard, opened in 1874, and Grenson was among the first in the world to use the Goodyear welt method for men's shoes. In the Second World War it made boots for soldiers, and it employed more than 400 people by the end of the 1940s.

Grenson is based in Rushden, Northamptonshire, where its factory stands. According to the Northamptonshire Boot and Shoe page, it has three shops in London and one in Copenhagen. The Rake article from 2018 says the factory had moved to newer premises nearby, with a caption dating the move to 2013, so some details may have changed since. Its shoes are also stocked by UK department stores.

In recent years the company has been led by Tim Little, a former advertising professional who left his job in 1996 to launch his own shoe brand and later bought Grenson from the founding family around 2010. He has said many British makers had become stuck in older ways, and Grenson was meant to avoid that. The Rake summed it up as a company that "isn't stuck in the past" despite its heritage. These are the company's and a magazine's descriptions and we have not verified them independently.

Jobs at a shoe company include the people who cut leather, stitch the uppers and build the shoe, as well as designers, product developers, buyers, shop teams, and staff for online sales, marketing and finance. If you enjoy design or want to learn how classic shoes are made, it is one of the best-known British names in the field. Check the company website for current roles.

What they do

• {'desc': 'Derbies, brogues and boots that can be resoled and repaired.', 'title': 'Goodyear-welted footwear'}
• {'desc': 'Newer lines alongside the classic range.', 'title': "Trainers and women's shoes"}
• {'desc': 'Shops in London and Copenhagen plus department stores worldwide.', 'title': 'Own shops and wholesale'}

Key facts

• Business grew from William Green of Rushden; William Green and Son from 1866 and Grenson from 1913
• First factory, Greens Yard, opened in 1874 and used the Goodyear welt method early
• Three London shops and one in Copenhagen (Northamptonshire Boot and Shoe site, undated)
• Led by Tim Little, who bought the company around 2010 (The Rake, 2018)

Website: www.grenson.com