Collection: Clarks

It began with a flash of inspiration. It was 1825 in the tiny English village of Street, in the county of Somerset. James Clark was busy working at the tannery owned by his brother, Cyrus. Among the sheepskin rugs, the off-cuts and cast-offs were piling up when James had a brainwave. “Slippers!” he exclaimed and the Brown Petersburg was born. Sales were soon averaging more than 1000 pairs a month.

Within a few years the brothers’ pioneering and entrepreneurial spirit was rewarded with two awards at the ‘Great Exhibition Of The Works Of Industry Of All Nations’. Held in London’s Hyde Park and with an average daily attendance of 43,000, the event was organized by Prince Albert to showcase modern industrial technology and design.

And so began a remarkable story of vision, innovation and invention; a story that continues to unfold to this day.