To begin telling Dr. Martens’ story, it’s vital that TOWER takes you back to 1901 when the Griggs family established themselves as a worker’s industry staple at the heart of Wollaston, Northamptonshire. This tightly-knit team were soon-to-be-known throughout English shoe manufacturing’s community - after all, it marked the birth of Doc’s multi-faceted reputation for producing timeless work boots.
In 1960, the third-generation Griggs family noted an advert for soldier Dr. Klaus Maertens and Dr. Herbert Funk’s air-cushioned sole whilst browsing a magazine - this was 15 years after its conception, designed to support Maertens’ broken foot. Following the acquirement of an exclusive contract intertwined with a handful of visual changes, ‘Airwair’ was born, sporting ‘With Bouncing Soles’ embroidered at the heel.
Cue, Dr. Martens.
From their first eight-holed 1460 boot, the Griggs quartet used Dr. Martens’ air-sole to conquer all aspects of worker’s footwear. But, which celebrities contributed to their success?
When pinpointing brand-defining moments from household names to personally customised boots, there’s no questioning the impact that a musically-dictated punk generation including The Sex Pistols and The Clash had on DM. Whilst finding themselves as an article of standard ‘70s police-attire, they also sought company with everything counter-culture - mods would branch into multiple sub-genres with Doc in tow, quite literally sculpting a generation.
However, in the modern day we see everyone from Beckham, Ryan Gosling and Zayn Malik to Kendall and the Hadid sisters building silhouettes into everyday wear - both in front of, and away from the camera.
At 2000’s turn of the century, we celebrated Doc’s fortieth birthday by reimagining what it meant to wear a brand so rife with heritage - they were still at the industry’s centre, this time inviting designers specialising in high fashion to customise that totem1460 boot. Just 10 years after this, DM was once again at the centre of a diverse adoption circle spanning public figures, free-thinking individuals and of course the musical culture in which it made its name.
TOWER maintains its position as one of Dr. Martens’ biggest UK stockists, continually pushing ‘Airwair’ to the retailer’s forefront whilst celebrating our newly-opened Camden retail space with a launch party supported by DM. After all, the history behind TOWER and Doc’s present bond is one to relish.
Having sixty years of development and product creation behind what was already a footwear manufacturer in high demand, it’s clear to see how Dr. Martens has managed to bolster itself as a core brand throughout fashion’s ever-changing industry.
TOWER boasts a variety of classic 1460 iterations, cut down as the 1461 low and not forgetting 1970’s 2976 boot - Doc even broke off into sandals, integrating modern Poly reworks together with toddler-friendly alterations.
In 1960, Dr. Martens was for everyone.
In 2022, Dr. Martens is still for everyone and available at TOWER.