Shoe Repacking Project

The Trust recently moved the collections from their old inadequate storage into The Grange, a new archive and museum store near Clarks HQ in Street, Somerset. Along with our digitisation project, we are also improving the documentation, storage and care of our collections.

A new project is about to begin which will see all 25,000 shoes in the Trust’s care cleaned, properly documented and repacked before photographing. Expected to take at least 2-3 years, this project will provide an invaluable opportunity to study the entire collection, protect the objects for the future and make it more accessible for researchers.

Every shoe will be inspected for damage and cleaned. With shoes made from a range of materials from furs, skins, leathers and plastics, there will be will many issues to contend with, from mould outbreaks and pest damage, to corroded metals and degraded plastics.

After cleaning and documenting, each shoe will then be repacked in acid-free tissue and museum-grade storage boxes. They will then be housed in environmentally controlled conditions within the Trust’s strongrooms.

Researchers will be able to access the newly repackaged collections by contacting us and visiting The Grange.