What Jamaica that? Clarks shoes are a hit in the Caribbean

When I was a nipper there was a stye of Clarks shoes called Pathfinder.  These had animal tracks on the soles and a compass in the heel (the latter of which was really useful you when you got lost on the way home from school); a few of my friends had them and thought they were cool....I just felt they were a bit rubbish and a bit too sensible.  Even at that tender age I preferred Doc Martens - black with 10 holes; to me Clarks shoes were just a bit too square, shoes for nerds and old people and definitely not fashionable.

Conceived in 1825 in Street, near Glastonbury the C&J Clark Ltd. brand is now world renowned and although their shoes are no longer manufactured here (the Clarks Village shopping complex occupies much of the old factory space), their fully-automated worldwide Distribution warehouse still operates from Street (in a new centre opened in 2005).

Despite their nerdiness, however Clarks shoes still find fans in unlikely places.  In the late 1990s there was a surge in popularity when Noel and Liam Gallagher from Oasis started wearing Desert Treks, and now thanks to Jamaican rapper Vybz Kartel, there is a resurgence in Jamaica due to his trilogy of hit singles eulogising the brand  “Clarks” and its 2 follow ups, Clarks Again and Clarks 3.  In fact so much so that there is a shortage on the island, prices have virtually doubled and thieves are now targeting stores.  Kartel admits: "I personally have more than 50 pair of Clarks; I have more than there are states in America”.  

I find it amusing that a man whose controversial material has seen him banned from several Caribbean nations can make a living singing about the footwear traditionally worn by pensioners and schoolkids (everybody haffi ask weh mi get mi clarks, di leather hard, di suede soft, toothbrush get out di dust fast), I certainly can’t wait until he discovers Hush Puppies.

Picture: Jason White