0:00:02 > 0:00:04If you're anything like the average British man,
0:00:04 > 0:00:06then you own nine pairs of shoes.
0:00:06 > 0:00:08And the average British woman?
0:00:08 > 0:00:1017 pairs!
0:00:10 > 0:00:12We love our shoes.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14But have you ever considered
0:00:14 > 0:00:17what it takes to make a pair of shoes from scratch?
0:00:18 > 0:00:23We've come to this remote stretch of the Cumbrian coast to find out.
0:00:23 > 0:00:29This is the largest sport shoe factory in the UK and...
0:00:29 > 0:00:30they've let us inside.
0:00:32 > 0:00:33'I'm Gregg Wallace.'
0:00:33 > 0:00:36I made this shoe right from the very beginning.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38'And tonight I'm going to show you how this factory
0:00:38 > 0:00:44'produces over 3,500 pairs of trainers every single day.'
0:00:44 > 0:00:45Heel first, upside down.
0:00:45 > 0:00:49Whoa! Whoaaaa! Goodbye, shoe.
0:00:49 > 0:00:53'They will get through over 140 miles of cotton thread.'
0:00:53 > 0:00:54Yes!
0:00:54 > 0:00:59'And sew over 32 million individual stitches.'
0:00:59 > 0:01:00I broke it.
0:01:00 > 0:01:04'I'll be making my very own pair of trainers on a human production line
0:01:04 > 0:01:07'where mistakes can be costly.'
0:01:07 > 0:01:09How many shoes behind are we now?
0:01:09 > 0:01:11- About 40.- Useless!
0:01:11 > 0:01:14'I'm Cherry Healy and I'll help one of the country's
0:01:14 > 0:01:17'largest leather tanneries process thousands of hides
0:01:17 > 0:01:19'for the nation's shoes.'
0:01:19 > 0:01:22Watch out! Coming in!
0:01:22 > 0:01:25'And see how one company painstakingly
0:01:25 > 0:01:28'turns 37,000 square metres of satin
0:01:28 > 0:01:32'into 250,000 ballet shoes every year,
0:01:32 > 0:01:36'some of which will only last for one performance.'
0:01:38 > 0:01:42And historian Ruth Goodman traces the surprising origins
0:01:42 > 0:01:46of the humble trainer to the back streets of Bolton.
0:01:46 > 0:01:48Reebok? Reebok is British?
0:01:48 > 0:01:531.4 million shoes come out of this factory every year,
0:01:53 > 0:01:56heading to shoe shops all over the world.
0:01:56 > 0:01:59Tonight, we'll show you the painstaking work
0:01:59 > 0:02:01that goes into every single one.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05Welcome to Inside The Factory.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25This is the New Balance trainer factory in Flimby, Cumbria,
0:02:25 > 0:02:28on the edge of the Lake District.
0:02:28 > 0:02:32When they opened their first factory in 1982,
0:02:32 > 0:02:37they had a reputation for making a performance running shoe.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40Today, they are also known for producing
0:02:40 > 0:02:42a fashionable and colourful range of trainer.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47This 6,000 square metre factory
0:02:47 > 0:02:52has 279 people working hard to meet global demand.
0:02:52 > 0:02:56Tonight, I'm going to show you how, in just 24 hours,
0:02:56 > 0:03:01they can make 3,500 pairs of shoes.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04They make here over 30 different styles.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08This is one of their biggest sellers
0:03:08 > 0:03:11and it goes through 35 different pairs of hands.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14Well, I want to make that 36 pairs of hands.
0:03:14 > 0:03:19This is the 576 classic leather trainer.
0:03:19 > 0:03:25They've be making it for nearly 30 years, longer than any other model.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28It's made from 27 individual pieces
0:03:28 > 0:03:31that all fit together in a specific order
0:03:31 > 0:03:35to form the upper, heel, toe and sole.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38And I've got the mammoth challenge
0:03:38 > 0:03:41of learning how to fit them all together
0:03:41 > 0:03:43to make my very own pair of shoes.
0:03:43 > 0:03:48My journey starts here, in Material Intake.
0:03:48 > 0:03:53This is where they keep all the raw materials for shoemaking,
0:03:53 > 0:03:54from leather to polyester.
0:03:56 > 0:03:58I'm with quality controller Jim Fox,
0:03:58 > 0:04:01collecting everything I'll need to make my shoes.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05We are starting with foam for the shoe's padding.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07OK, Gregg, so we are going to pick up the foam.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10- Just rip off one bit?- No, we need the full, what we call the block...
0:04:10 > 0:04:14- All of this?- All of that. - Don't be mad, Jim!- It's very light.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17'This sheet will make over 300 trainers.
0:04:17 > 0:04:21And just 35 minutes from now,
0:04:21 > 0:04:24'this foam will form just one part of my finished shoe.'
0:04:24 > 0:04:28We are then going to pick up the toe puff material.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30A bit of toe puff.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33'Next up is 3-mil black polyester,
0:04:33 > 0:04:36'one of eight different textiles we'll need.'
0:04:38 > 0:04:41- Now, this is cut precisely, so handle it with care.- Yes.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44'Incredibly, each year the factory gets through
0:04:44 > 0:04:48'enough synthetic material to cover more than six football pitches.'
0:04:48 > 0:04:50- We'll load that onto here. - For crying out loud!
0:04:50 > 0:04:52Modern synthetic materials are key
0:04:52 > 0:04:56to making many of our modern trainers.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00However, the majority of our shoes are made from a material
0:05:00 > 0:05:02that we've used for thousands of years.
0:05:02 > 0:05:03Leather.
0:05:06 > 0:05:11New Balance get their leather from Pittards' tannery in Somerset.
0:05:11 > 0:05:17Every pair of leather shoes you've ever worn started life...
0:05:17 > 0:05:20like this.
0:05:20 > 0:05:21Rawhide.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25# Rollin', rollin, rollin' Though the streams are swollen... #
0:05:25 > 0:05:29The hides they use here are a by-product of the beef industry
0:05:29 > 0:05:32and almost all of them come from the UK.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36They are treated off-site using chromium sulphate,
0:05:36 > 0:05:39a chemical that stabilises the protein of the skin
0:05:39 > 0:05:44to stop it rotting. After that, they are sent here for processing.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49Inside each of these huge steel drums are 200 hides.
0:05:49 > 0:05:50They are mixed with dye
0:05:50 > 0:05:53and a top-secret blend of chemicals
0:05:53 > 0:05:55that colour and condition the leather.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59They might look like giant washing machines,
0:05:59 > 0:06:04but inside these drums is some fairly complex science.
0:06:04 > 0:06:09Everything about the leather on your trainers - the precise colour,
0:06:09 > 0:06:11the durability, how waterproof they are,
0:06:11 > 0:06:14even how flexible they are when you walk -
0:06:14 > 0:06:19comes down to the 24 hours they spend in these drums.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26'Now they've been coloured and conditioned,
0:06:26 > 0:06:28'the hides need to be processed,
0:06:28 > 0:06:30'so I'm taking to the tannery floor
0:06:30 > 0:06:33'to join leather operative Paul.'
0:06:33 > 0:06:36Hello, I'm geared up and ready to work.
0:06:36 > 0:06:38What happens next?
0:06:38 > 0:06:42We have to physically put the skins onto that horse.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45Oh, it weighs a tonne!
0:06:45 > 0:06:48- That's a light one? - That's really light.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51That weighs a tonne!
0:06:51 > 0:06:53OK, watch out, coming in.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00'Hides are natural products, so it varies in thickness,
0:07:00 > 0:07:03'particularly at the rump and the neck.'
0:07:03 > 0:07:05Wow!
0:07:05 > 0:07:08'But this machine uses super-sharp blades
0:07:08 > 0:07:12'to shave it down to a consistent 1.5 millimetre throughout.'
0:07:14 > 0:07:15Come with me.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Whoa!
0:07:17 > 0:07:19'Now an even thickness...'
0:07:19 > 0:07:20Wow!
0:07:20 > 0:07:22Wayhey!
0:07:22 > 0:07:26'The leather gets treated with polyurethane to help it wear well,
0:07:26 > 0:07:28'along with a final touch of colour.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31'Sales director Mike Dodd is showing me
0:07:31 > 0:07:33'the spraying machine that does it.'
0:07:33 > 0:07:35- This is the finishing operation.- OK.
0:07:35 > 0:07:39We spray the top of the leather to give it its final colour
0:07:39 > 0:07:41and give it those final protective coats.
0:07:41 > 0:07:44There's also a level of scuff resistance
0:07:44 > 0:07:45that gives us the confidence
0:07:45 > 0:07:48that this is going to make a nice piece of robust footwear.
0:07:48 > 0:07:49Here we go.
0:07:50 > 0:07:51Wayhey!
0:07:51 > 0:07:55- Oh, it's beautiful! - OK, watch your head behind you.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57Get it on the pole.
0:07:58 > 0:08:00And this is where we earn our corn.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06Whoa!
0:08:06 > 0:08:08Got it, got it, got it.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11'The finished leather spends an hour drying on the sky train
0:08:11 > 0:08:14'before it's finally checked over and graded.'
0:08:14 > 0:08:17There's no substitute for a visual inspection
0:08:17 > 0:08:19of where the scratches are, where the scars are,
0:08:19 > 0:08:21where there is damage on the hide.
0:08:21 > 0:08:25And this is classic for British cattle - scratches from barbed wire.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27As long as we get barbed wire in the UK
0:08:27 > 0:08:30and the cattle occasionally get an itchy bum,
0:08:30 > 0:08:32so we have to account for that in the grading.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34Someone had a very scratchy bum.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37'Scratches will show on a finished shoe,
0:08:37 > 0:08:39'but, provided there aren't too many,
0:08:39 > 0:08:41'the shoemakers can work around them.
0:08:41 > 0:08:46'So, this leather makes the grade and it's ready for packing.'
0:08:46 > 0:08:48There's over 50,000 square feet of leather
0:08:48 > 0:08:51coming through this factory every day.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53It's been sent all over the world,
0:08:53 > 0:08:57but this is on its way to the Cumbrian coast,
0:08:57 > 0:09:00where its journey to become a pair of trainers is just getting started.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08'Back at the factory in Flimby,
0:09:08 > 0:09:11'I've spent the last four minutes collecting the raw materials
0:09:11 > 0:09:16'for my shoes. And now I'm ready for the latest delivery of leather.'
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Whoa! Whoa!
0:09:19 > 0:09:21Lovely! Thank you very much.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27Oh, that is very attractive.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30'The leather from Somerset will be used
0:09:30 > 0:09:34'for 91% of the exterior of my trainer.'
0:09:35 > 0:09:38The 279 workers in this factory
0:09:38 > 0:09:41are split into six uniquely named teams -
0:09:41 > 0:09:48Greta, Derwent, United, Ellen, Indians and Solway.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51They are all capable of making any one
0:09:51 > 0:09:53of the company's 30 trainer designs
0:09:53 > 0:09:57and are assigned a different shoe to work on each day.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00With 495 years between them,
0:10:00 > 0:10:03Team Solway have the most experience
0:10:03 > 0:10:06and they are going to help me make my leather trainer.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11I'll join their tightly run factory line
0:10:11 > 0:10:16as the raw materials pass through eight individual processes,
0:10:16 > 0:10:18from embroidery to sole fitting,
0:10:18 > 0:10:23as we try to hit our daily target of 444 pairs of shoes.
0:10:25 > 0:10:27First stop, Cutting.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34This shoe has eight unique leather shapes
0:10:34 > 0:10:39and chief cutter Billy Edgar is the man to show me how you make them.
0:10:39 > 0:10:41Billy, I'm Gregg.
0:10:41 > 0:10:42Pleased to meet you.
0:10:42 > 0:10:44You are master leather cutter?
0:10:44 > 0:10:46Yeah, but you are coming into my kitchen today,
0:10:46 > 0:10:48so let's have a pinny on, please.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50All right. All right.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52Well, that's not a bad bit of kit, that, Billy.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55I've been doing this job since I left school in '66.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58You've been doing this since 1966?
0:10:58 > 0:11:01England won the World Cup, Billy started cutting leather.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04'By carefully choosing where he places the templates,
0:11:04 > 0:11:07'Billy can get eight pairs of shoes
0:11:07 > 0:11:10'out of one piece of leather with hardly any wastage,
0:11:10 > 0:11:12'known as the skeleton.'
0:11:12 > 0:11:14I want you to be cutting like this.
0:11:14 > 0:11:15That's your skeleton.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18Ann Summers charges about a tenner each for them.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22- I'll never do it.- You will. - I won't!
0:11:22 > 0:11:28'The skeleton offcut is thrown away, so every cut has to count.'
0:11:29 > 0:11:32- Whoa, you are right on the edge. - That's all right, don't worry.
0:11:32 > 0:11:36You just want it to come away like that.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38- You can do that, can't you? - I think I can.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41'Time for me to have a go.'
0:11:41 > 0:11:43All right, we're all right.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45- Yeah?- Yeah, go for it.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49'And it's harder than it looks.'
0:11:53 > 0:11:55Oh, Billy, look at that! Yes!
0:11:56 > 0:11:58'Billy would have cut out 23 pieces
0:11:58 > 0:12:01in the time it's taken me to cut out four,
0:12:01 > 0:12:04'and I've wasted a lot of leather.'
0:12:04 > 0:12:06My skeleton is a lot fatter than yours.
0:12:06 > 0:12:08'If I cut leather like that all year,
0:12:08 > 0:12:13'I'd cost the company nearly £500,000 in wasted material.'
0:12:13 > 0:12:15That's been my favourite bit so far.
0:12:15 > 0:12:17- Have a good day.- Cheers, Bill.
0:12:17 > 0:12:18You all right, darling?
0:12:18 > 0:12:20'I've cut my leather,
0:12:20 > 0:12:22'now I need the synthetic parts for my shoe.'
0:12:22 > 0:12:24Flip over like that...
0:12:24 > 0:12:28One machine cuts the black polyester six sheets at a time.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31Another cuts the foam.
0:12:32 > 0:12:36And, together, they will form the soft cushioning in my trainer.
0:12:37 > 0:12:41I've now got all the parts I'll need to assemble my shoe.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47These shoes are what the industry knows as lifestyle shoes.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50They share a lot of the same design and technology
0:12:50 > 0:12:53as high-performance running shoes,
0:12:53 > 0:12:55but they're basically a fashion item.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57So, when were they invented and why?
0:12:57 > 0:13:01Historian Ruth Goodman is finding out.
0:13:05 > 0:13:09The cobbled streets of Bolton may seem like an unlikely birthplace
0:13:09 > 0:13:11for the global phenomenon that is the trainer.
0:13:13 > 0:13:17But David Foster's family believe they kicked off the whole thing.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21The guy that started it all, really, is my great-grandfather,
0:13:21 > 0:13:24pictured here, Joe Foster.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27And he invented his running spike back in 1895
0:13:27 > 0:13:30above his father's sweet shop, here in Bolton.
0:13:31 > 0:13:35'Incredibly, runners would run in their regular leather shoes
0:13:35 > 0:13:37'before Joe Foster's invention.
0:13:37 > 0:13:42'But he wanted to give runners better traction on the track
0:13:42 > 0:13:46'and turned to the hobnailed cricket boots for inspiration.'
0:13:47 > 0:13:53So he took this concept and refined it and came up with this shoe.
0:13:53 > 0:13:58You can see the studs have grown into ginormous spikes,
0:13:58 > 0:14:02which give you much better traction on a cinder track.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04I tell you what this reminds me of.
0:14:04 > 0:14:06It looks just like a ballet shoe.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09It's actually constructed in exactly the same way.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11A ballet shoe with spikes!
0:14:11 > 0:14:13As far as an athletic shoe is concerned, I mean,
0:14:13 > 0:14:15this was quite revolutionary.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20Certainly was. This just changed the whole face of running.
0:14:22 > 0:14:28In 1904, Alf Shrubb broke three different distance world records
0:14:28 > 0:14:32in a single race wearing Foster's running pumps.
0:14:34 > 0:14:38Overnight, Joe Foster's shoes became world-famous,
0:14:38 > 0:14:40but the best was yet to come.
0:14:42 > 0:14:47In 1924, two British stars, Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell,
0:14:47 > 0:14:50both took to the track at the Paris Olympics,
0:14:50 > 0:14:53the Games made famous by the film Chariots Of Fire.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56MUSIC: Chariots of Fire by Vangelis
0:14:56 > 0:14:59Liddell won gold in the 400m
0:14:59 > 0:15:03and Abrahams was victorious in the 100m sprint,
0:15:03 > 0:15:06both wearing Foster & Sons running spikes.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10The company went from strength to strength,
0:15:10 > 0:15:12producing a range of sports shoes.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17But in 1958, feeling they had outgrown the family business,
0:15:17 > 0:15:22'two of the Foster sons split off to form a brand-new company.'
0:15:22 > 0:15:25My father and uncle, they had just had enough
0:15:25 > 0:15:28and they decided they were going to go their own way.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31So they upped sticks and moved from Bolton to Bury
0:15:31 > 0:15:34- and founded Reebok.- Reebok?
0:15:34 > 0:15:40Yes. My dad had won a South African dictionary
0:15:40 > 0:15:44- in a local race. - What a bizarre thing to win!
0:15:44 > 0:15:48They looked through this dictionary and they came up with Reebok,
0:15:48 > 0:15:49a South African gazelle.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53What did they do with this new firm?
0:15:53 > 0:15:55Literally, they took the Foster's tradition
0:15:55 > 0:16:00and then span it out using new materials and new technologies.
0:16:00 > 0:16:05I started working for my dad in 1983,
0:16:05 > 0:16:10just as we began to get into a newfangled fitness sport in the US
0:16:10 > 0:16:13called aerobics.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17And at that point, Reebok just went mental.
0:16:18 > 0:16:22Women powered the demand for the new freestyle trainers
0:16:22 > 0:16:25used in gym classes.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28Reebok sales ballooned from 1 million in 1980
0:16:28 > 0:16:32to 1 billion in 1986.
0:16:32 > 0:16:36Young girls started to wear this on the street.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38So, all of a sudden, we got into colour
0:16:38 > 0:16:42and we became a fashion brand.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46It was an incredible time
0:16:46 > 0:16:48and I was very proud to be part of it.
0:16:52 > 0:16:54'Today, Reebok is owned by Adidas.
0:16:57 > 0:17:01'But it's the retro '80s inspired Reebok Classic range
0:17:01 > 0:17:04'that remains the biggest seller.'
0:17:04 > 0:17:08Today this little Union Jack is a reminder of 18-year-old Joe Foster,
0:17:08 > 0:17:12who pioneered the running pump more than 100 years ago,
0:17:12 > 0:17:16working over his father's sweet shop in Bolton.
0:17:28 > 0:17:29Back at the factory,
0:17:29 > 0:17:34I'm 13 minutes into making my very own pair of leather sports shoes.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37So far, I've cut the parts I'll need to assemble the shoe.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43Now it's time to start putting them all together,
0:17:43 > 0:17:46so I'm heading to Pre-Fit to meet Joanne Murphy.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51Joanne, I've got to bring some bits to you.
0:17:51 > 0:17:53- What do you do here? - I do the tips and the foxings.
0:17:54 > 0:17:56- What, and add bits to it?- Yes.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58- Would you do that for me?- Yes.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02The tips and foxings are the pieces of leather
0:18:02 > 0:18:05covering the toe and heel of the shoe.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08These parts get put under a lot of stress
0:18:08 > 0:18:09by the wearer's foot,
0:18:09 > 0:18:11so they need to be strengthened.
0:18:11 > 0:18:15- You're putting the reinforced plastic bits in, aren't you?- Yeah.
0:18:15 > 0:18:16Is it heat that sticks them?
0:18:16 > 0:18:19Yes, it's heat. Heat will stick that down
0:18:19 > 0:18:21and it will come out quite hot.
0:18:21 > 0:18:22This is a lot like baking.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24- Ah, yeah! - SHE LAUGHS
0:18:24 > 0:18:26I've heard this is called skiving.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29- That's skiving. - That's called skiving.
0:18:29 > 0:18:30- What's that bit?- I'll show you.
0:18:30 > 0:18:32That's my sort of job, that is.
0:18:32 > 0:18:37'Skiving is actually an old English shoemaking term for shaving leather.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40'By making it thin around the edges,
0:18:40 > 0:18:44'they can bend the leather around the form of the toe more easily.'
0:18:44 > 0:18:47I need to take a light layer off the top.
0:18:47 > 0:18:48You're, like, giving it a shave.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50- Yes.- Can I take these bits, Joanne?
0:18:50 > 0:18:52Yes, you can.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54- Thank you.- Okeydoke, bye.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57Now my leather has been reinforced with plastic,
0:18:57 > 0:18:59I'm heading to Embroidery.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04This is where a design gets stitched into the back of my shoe.
0:19:05 > 0:19:10This industrial sewing machine can embroider up to 15 pieces at a time
0:19:10 > 0:19:13and it's overseen by Jackie Hebson.
0:19:13 > 0:19:15Jackie!
0:19:15 > 0:19:16What's going in here, a Union Jack?
0:19:16 > 0:19:18Yeah.
0:19:19 > 0:19:21'Despite their small size,
0:19:21 > 0:19:26'it will take 21 metres of cotton and 3,300 stitches
0:19:26 > 0:19:29'to sew each tiny flag.'
0:19:29 > 0:19:31- Does it sound like a machine gun to you?- Yes!
0:19:34 > 0:19:38- Why has it stopped? - Cos two lights are flashing.
0:19:38 > 0:19:40So the cottons have jumped out,
0:19:40 > 0:19:43so we would have to thread it up.
0:19:43 > 0:19:45I'm not going anywhere near that needle.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48- It won't come down.- It will! - It won't.
0:19:48 > 0:19:50'The machine might be hi-tech,
0:19:50 > 0:19:53'but it still takes a human's hand-eye eye coordination
0:19:53 > 0:19:55'to re-thread the needle.'
0:19:55 > 0:19:58- Pull it down. - This is precision engineering.
0:19:58 > 0:19:59- Yes!- Yes!
0:20:00 > 0:20:02I'll start it.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08- We did it.- Yep.
0:20:08 > 0:20:09Proper job! I love these.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15I'm finally ready to assemble the different parts of my shoe,
0:20:15 > 0:20:18so I'm heading to Auto-Stitch.
0:20:19 > 0:20:23This is where I'll make the top part of my shoe, called the upper.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29It's made from parts that vary in strength,
0:20:29 > 0:20:32thickness and texture to form the finished design.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38'It's Susan Brown's job to place the different parts of the shoe
0:20:38 > 0:20:40'on a template in the correct order
0:20:40 > 0:20:44'before a machine automatically stitches them together.'
0:20:45 > 0:20:48Can you lay that stuff down in the speed that that takes to stitch?
0:20:48 > 0:20:51- Yes.- That's about ten seconds.
0:20:51 > 0:20:53- Yes.- My word, how many of these are you knocking out a minute?
0:20:53 > 0:20:54About 20 a minute?
0:20:54 > 0:20:58You've got to do 24 shoes in 15 minutes.
0:20:58 > 0:21:00You've got to do 24 shoes in 15 minutes?
0:21:00 > 0:21:03- Yes.- How many times have you stitched your hand to the machine?
0:21:03 > 0:21:05- Never.- I would never be able to do it that quick.
0:21:07 > 0:21:09'Time to find out if I've got what it takes
0:21:09 > 0:21:12'to build a shoe in 37 seconds.'
0:21:12 > 0:21:14Stand back, Susan, stand back.
0:21:14 > 0:21:16Get me a vamp, please.
0:21:16 > 0:21:19Right foot vamp. Give me collar plugs.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22- There you are. On that side. - Like that?
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Make sure it lines up with all the holes.
0:21:25 > 0:21:26- Lines up the what? - With all them holes.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28With all them holes.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31- Is that not bad? - No, you're doing well.
0:21:31 > 0:21:34And then I twist the knobs to shut it up.
0:21:35 > 0:21:36Well done, you can have a job.
0:21:36 > 0:21:38- Are you pleased with me?- Yes.
0:21:38 > 0:21:42'Susan might be impressed, but I'm only halfway done.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45'I've now got more layers to add with Charlene Steele
0:21:45 > 0:21:49'at the next auto-stitch station.'
0:21:49 > 0:21:52You fit your vamps onto the pallets,
0:21:52 > 0:21:54then you fit your apron.
0:21:56 > 0:21:58And you tip.
0:21:58 > 0:22:03Then you place your two Ns on, your Ns go to the outside.
0:22:04 > 0:22:10'Team Solway must make 444 pairs of shoes in a day,
0:22:10 > 0:22:13'and their hourly targets are displayed on a board
0:22:13 > 0:22:14'for everyone to see.
0:22:14 > 0:22:19'I thought I was being fast, but it seems that's not the case.'
0:22:19 > 0:22:20We are minus 16 now.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23We are 16, like, behind.
0:22:23 > 0:22:25Is that because of me?
0:22:25 > 0:22:27Well, yeah, we've stopped sort of thing, haven't we?
0:22:27 > 0:22:30- I'm out of here, I won't slow you down any more, I promise.- Right!
0:22:31 > 0:22:34'Luckily, this next part is one of the quickest.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37'The final step for the upper part of my trainer
0:22:37 > 0:22:40'is to punch holes for the laces.'
0:22:40 > 0:22:41We've got lace holes.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44That, for the first time, now looks like a shoe.
0:22:46 > 0:22:49This factory makes up to 75 different designs
0:22:49 > 0:22:51and they're constantly coming up with new ones.
0:22:51 > 0:22:53Cherry has been learning the tricks of the trade
0:22:53 > 0:22:56with some of Britain's up-and-coming shoe designers.
0:22:56 > 0:22:58I'm doing OK here, aren't I?
0:22:58 > 0:23:00Yeah, you're doing good.
0:23:01 > 0:23:05Cordwainers College is part of the London College of Fashion.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08Over the last 129 years,
0:23:08 > 0:23:12it's been turning out some of the best shoe designers in the country.
0:23:13 > 0:23:18Here, students learn to design and make their shoes all under one roof
0:23:18 > 0:23:22and this is where Jimmy Choo learned his trade.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28A three-year design course teaches them how to turn creative ideas
0:23:28 > 0:23:31into practical, commercial products.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35Kitty Shukman is in the second year of her course.
0:23:35 > 0:23:39How much work goes into designing a shoe?
0:23:39 > 0:23:41Is it as easy as I think it is?
0:23:41 > 0:23:43You just get a shoe and stick things on it?
0:23:43 > 0:23:45No, not at all. I don't think anyone realises
0:23:45 > 0:23:47how much really goes in beforehand.
0:23:47 > 0:23:51You have so many stages to it and so many ideas that come to it.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53So something that can look really simple
0:23:53 > 0:23:55has actually had so much thought put in.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00'The students usually get 12 weeks to complete each project,
0:24:00 > 0:24:03'but they've offered to help me make the shoe of my dreams
0:24:03 > 0:24:05'in just one day.'
0:24:05 > 0:24:07This is such a treat, this really is.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09I can't believe you're going to help me design a shoe.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16'My brief for them is a fun and colourful party shoe
0:24:16 > 0:24:20'with a Brazilian twist. I've called it Rio Rave.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25'But there's a lot more to designing a shoe
0:24:25 > 0:24:27'than producing a fancy drawing,
0:24:27 > 0:24:30'as lecturer Ian Goff and course leader Sarah Day explain.'
0:24:30 > 0:24:35When your students are designing shoes to make in the outside world,
0:24:35 > 0:24:37what do they have to think about?
0:24:37 > 0:24:39First of all, to think about the price and commerciality
0:24:39 > 0:24:42- and suitability for the consumer. - So they've got to be wearable,
0:24:42 > 0:24:45- they've got to hold someone's weight.- Yep.- They've got to last.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48Make the company money that they are doing it for, of course!
0:24:50 > 0:24:54'The students have come up with some inspiring ideas for my Rio Rave,
0:24:54 > 0:24:56'but now I have to choose.'
0:24:56 > 0:25:00All of the shoes here today are amazingly creative and wonderful.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04But obviously I only have one day to make my shoe.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07We need to have a fairly practical design.
0:25:07 > 0:25:08This would be quite simple to make
0:25:08 > 0:25:11because it's obviously based around the court shoe shape.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13Yes, we've got some great colours there.
0:25:13 > 0:25:14I absolutely love that.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19'Student Ashley Chambers designed the court shoe we've chosen.
0:25:19 > 0:25:23'It has a continuous top edge and simple high heel
0:25:23 > 0:25:26'and it's one of the easiest designs to manufacture.
0:25:26 > 0:25:30'The next step is to pick my materials
0:25:30 > 0:25:33'and I've been let loose in the college vaults.'
0:25:33 > 0:25:35Oh, it's like Aladdin's cave!
0:25:35 > 0:25:41'A pair of women's shoes can sell for tens or thousands of pounds,
0:25:41 > 0:25:44'and that depends on the complexity of the design,
0:25:44 > 0:25:48'the quality of materials and the reputation of the designer.'
0:25:48 > 0:25:50Is this too bling for the lining?
0:25:50 > 0:25:52No, I think that would go quite well.
0:25:52 > 0:25:58'But before I can build my shoe, I need to choose an appropriate last.'
0:25:58 > 0:26:02So, a last is the foundation on which you build the shoe?
0:26:02 > 0:26:04That's correct, yes.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07There's all sorts of different shapes, heel heights.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11Basically, the shoe is constructed on the last,
0:26:11 > 0:26:13that's what gives it its shape and its form.
0:26:13 > 0:26:18So, a size seven in a shape that looks similar to what we've designed
0:26:18 > 0:26:21- is this.- And it's called Sarah.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23- That's right. - Why is it called Sarah?
0:26:23 > 0:26:27So all the lasts have an identification name or number.
0:26:27 > 0:26:32It's just an industry standard so that when you produce a design spec,
0:26:32 > 0:26:34and you send that to the factory,
0:26:34 > 0:26:37they know exactly what shape you want to make your shoes on.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40'Last year in the UK,
0:26:40 > 0:26:46'sales of women's designer shoes topped £532 million.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50'Every one of the thousands of different designs
0:26:50 > 0:26:52'would have started life as a prototype
0:26:52 > 0:26:54'built on a last like this one.
0:26:56 > 0:27:00'We are using my Sarah last to make a paper template
0:27:00 > 0:27:02'to cut the leather for the upper part of the shoe.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09'While some of the other students are getting to work
0:27:09 > 0:27:11'on the straps and accessories,
0:27:11 > 0:27:13'a thermoplastic stiffener is slipped
0:27:13 > 0:27:15'between the lining and the leather
0:27:15 > 0:27:19'to make sure the shoe keeps its shape,
0:27:19 > 0:27:21'then it's heated and moulded on a machine.'
0:27:21 > 0:27:24Oh, look!
0:27:24 > 0:27:28- You can see it is really starting to take shape.- Yes.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31'Next, we are going to add the heels.'
0:27:31 > 0:27:33It's funny cos when they are away from the shoe,
0:27:33 > 0:27:34they just don't look very strong.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37- Is that really going to hold my weight?- Yes, they will,
0:27:37 > 0:27:39because they've got metal, so they are reinforced.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42'Because the point of the heel is so small,
0:27:42 > 0:27:47'a 60kg woman exerts 16 times more pressure on the ground
0:27:47 > 0:27:51'than a five tonne elephant so, to stop them from breaking,
0:27:51 > 0:27:55'the heels have to be nailed into the shoe's base.'
0:27:55 > 0:27:56Whoa!
0:27:59 > 0:28:02'It's taken seven of us all day to make my shoes
0:28:02 > 0:28:05'and now it's the moment of truth.'
0:28:08 > 0:28:12- Look what we made!- Woohoo!
0:28:12 > 0:28:16Rio Rave they most certainly are.
0:28:16 > 0:28:20They're really good, aren't they? Well done, you!
0:28:21 > 0:28:27I had absolutely no idea how much time and effort it takes
0:28:27 > 0:28:29to make a pair of designer shoes.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32They are a real testament to the skill of the students here
0:28:32 > 0:28:35and I can't wait to see where they will end up.
0:28:43 > 0:28:49'Design and style is also key here at the trainer factory in Cumbria.
0:28:49 > 0:28:51'Development manager Chris Hodgson
0:28:51 > 0:28:54'reveals some quirky British influences.'
0:28:54 > 0:28:56The Kings Head.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59- The Royal Oak.- The Red Lion.
0:28:59 > 0:29:03- Are they pubs?- They are the three most popular pub names in England.
0:29:03 > 0:29:05You made shoes designed around pubs.
0:29:05 > 0:29:09You've got a Chesterfield settee leather on the front.
0:29:09 > 0:29:11You've got a Paisley wallpaper,
0:29:11 > 0:29:13and if you look inside it,
0:29:13 > 0:29:16you've got a stone floor with a beer glass stain on the top.
0:29:16 > 0:29:20You have! You've got a stone floor on the inside.
0:29:20 > 0:29:26- What else?- These are representations of varying jackets.
0:29:26 > 0:29:31So what you have there between the black marl and the black leather
0:29:31 > 0:29:36and the Day-Glo orange is basically a workman's donkey jacket.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41It is. That is actually a donkey...
0:29:41 > 0:29:43When you started here making running shoes,
0:29:43 > 0:29:45did you ever think you would eventually be asked
0:29:45 > 0:29:48to make a shoe that looked like a pub?
0:29:48 > 0:29:51Beyond my wildest comprehension.
0:29:52 > 0:29:54I've worn plenty of shoes IN the pub,
0:29:54 > 0:29:56but I've never been asked to make one that LOOKS like one.
0:30:00 > 0:30:04It's been 22 minutes since I started making my leather trainers
0:30:04 > 0:30:07and so far I've made the upper part of the shoe.
0:30:09 > 0:30:12Now I'm heading to Manual Stitch,
0:30:12 > 0:30:16where I'll transform my upper from flat to 3-D.
0:30:18 > 0:30:20'Jean Fox is one of eight ladies
0:30:20 > 0:30:23'whose skill with a sewing machine is essential for this job.'
0:30:24 > 0:30:27This is the start of making it look like a shoe.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29So you put that round the machine like that
0:30:29 > 0:30:32and you bring the backs together.
0:30:34 > 0:30:38Then you cut the tape and you turn it around.
0:30:40 > 0:30:42Right, step back, madam.
0:30:42 > 0:30:43Let me show you how it's done.
0:30:43 > 0:30:46Go on, Gregg, guide it along, so you're keeping these together.
0:30:46 > 0:30:48- Oh, I've got you.- Yeah.- Aah!
0:30:48 > 0:30:51- Slow, slow...- Aah!
0:30:53 > 0:30:54I've broke it.
0:30:54 > 0:30:58It's now just wrapping like a coil of rope around itself.
0:30:59 > 0:31:04- You've got that stuck. - How many shoes behind are we now?
0:31:04 > 0:31:06- A lot.- About 40.
0:31:06 > 0:31:08Useless!
0:31:10 > 0:31:14'Thankfully, Jean is able to rescue my botched upper.'
0:31:14 > 0:31:16Jean, I'm sorry, I'm out of here.
0:31:16 > 0:31:18- Thanks for your efforts. - Right, see you.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22'My mistakes are holding up the production line
0:31:22 > 0:31:25'and I've put Team Solway 40 shoes behind their target.
0:31:25 > 0:31:30'Time to stop mucking about and get serious about making my shoes.
0:31:30 > 0:31:33'Next person to babysit me is Marion Hyde.'
0:31:33 > 0:31:35- Pleased to meet you.- Now,
0:31:35 > 0:31:38can you tell me how we now turn these into proper shoes?
0:31:38 > 0:31:43First operation is what we call on this shoe backtab and collar.
0:31:43 > 0:31:45- It's called what?- Backtab...
0:31:45 > 0:31:49And collar? Isn't that where they remove the hairs from your...
0:31:49 > 0:31:52No. Backtab, not waxing.
0:31:52 > 0:31:54- Backtab.- Got you, got you.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59The backtab and collar provides support to your ankle
0:31:59 > 0:32:03and we need to stitch them to the upper part of my shoe.
0:32:03 > 0:32:05Safety first, Gregg.
0:32:05 > 0:32:08Need to tie up my hair, first stage.
0:32:10 > 0:32:14Right, on this machine it can be very dangerous, watch fingers.
0:32:14 > 0:32:16Pinkies could disappear.
0:32:16 > 0:32:17- Right?- What?!
0:32:17 > 0:32:19Be very careful.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21Just keep your fingers well away.
0:32:21 > 0:32:23Come close to the edge with that needle.
0:32:23 > 0:32:27Slowly does it. Right, follow the curve of the shoe.
0:32:27 > 0:32:29Move your shoe around.
0:32:29 > 0:32:31Get off, get off, get off!
0:32:33 > 0:32:35That's it, stop. Lift your foot.
0:32:35 > 0:32:39Turn around. Pull it out.
0:32:39 > 0:32:41Put your threads...
0:32:42 > 0:32:44'Luckily, I didn't mess this one up,
0:32:44 > 0:32:48'or I'd have put Team Solway even further behind their target.'
0:32:48 > 0:32:51I tell you what, I found all that very, very stressful.
0:32:51 > 0:32:53I held my breath through all of that.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56Did you? Why? Cos you did really well on that bit.
0:32:56 > 0:32:58- Thank you.- You've got a good teacher, you see.
0:32:58 > 0:33:03That isn't just the machine, that's human skill with a machine.
0:33:03 > 0:33:05- It is, correct.- Is that all right?
0:33:05 > 0:33:07That's a lot better. Not 100%, but a lot better.
0:33:07 > 0:33:09Can I have a sit down now?
0:33:09 > 0:33:10Not break time yet.
0:33:13 > 0:33:15Machines like this are the reason
0:33:15 > 0:33:18that modern factories can produce thousands of shoes every day.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21But when they were first introduced in the 19th century,
0:33:21 > 0:33:23not everybody was happy about it.
0:33:26 > 0:33:28There was a time before factories,
0:33:28 > 0:33:30when every town and village in Britain had a shoemaker.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35In 1851, it was a profession more common than being a tailor,
0:33:35 > 0:33:38a blacksmith or a coal miner.
0:33:38 > 0:33:40It was a cottage industry.
0:33:40 > 0:33:43The workers collected the leather from the middlemen in town,
0:33:43 > 0:33:45but they sewed the shoes at home.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53'Tod Booth still hand-makes his shoes in the traditional way.'
0:33:53 > 0:33:56This is an upper from a pair of shoes.
0:33:56 > 0:33:58- Right.- So, do you want to have a go?
0:33:58 > 0:34:02So, this is the way all shoes used to be made.
0:34:02 > 0:34:06Absolutely, they started using this method in the Roman times,
0:34:06 > 0:34:08it passed all the way through the Vikings,
0:34:08 > 0:34:10the Saxons, medieval, Tudor,
0:34:10 > 0:34:1217th century and 18th century,
0:34:12 > 0:34:16and of course even now I'm making shoes like this today.
0:34:16 > 0:34:20So, this is very much a craftsperson doing the whole process.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22Absolutely. They have to do everything.
0:34:22 > 0:34:24They have to select the leather,
0:34:24 > 0:34:27they have to design the shoe, they have to cut the leather,
0:34:27 > 0:34:30they have to prepare it, they have to put it together,
0:34:30 > 0:34:33they have to make the whole shoe and finish it as well.
0:34:33 > 0:34:37It's slow, isn't it? It's not even as if the sewing is one process,
0:34:37 > 0:34:40you've already had to go around and make all the holes the first time.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44To make a pair of shoes takes me about eight hours.
0:34:44 > 0:34:46What do you think?
0:34:46 > 0:34:47That's not bad.
0:34:47 > 0:34:51- That's not bad.- But it has taken you nearly two hours.
0:34:53 > 0:34:56I'm not sure I'll employ you as an apprentice.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59However, for a first go, that's not bad at all.
0:35:03 > 0:35:05Back in the middle of the 19th century,
0:35:05 > 0:35:09there was one town that had established a reputation
0:35:09 > 0:35:13for making some of the best shoes in the country - Northampton.
0:35:14 > 0:35:18Here, over a third of all men were shoemakers,
0:35:18 > 0:35:20mostly working from their homes.
0:35:21 > 0:35:25But this way of life, with its relative tranquillity,
0:35:25 > 0:35:29was broken in the 1850s when the Industrial Revolution came to town.
0:35:31 > 0:35:35It came in the form of a new invention - the sewing machine.
0:35:36 > 0:35:39It was up to 50 times faster than hand sewing,
0:35:39 > 0:35:43but too large and expensive for workers to have in their homes,
0:35:43 > 0:35:46so new factories were built to house them.
0:35:48 > 0:35:50At the Crockett & Jones shoe factory in Northampton,
0:35:50 > 0:35:53they still have a Singer treadle sewing machine
0:35:53 > 0:35:56that was cutting edge for its day.
0:35:57 > 0:36:01They are really quite heavy to work on, these machines.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03It takes a surprising amount of muscle, actually.
0:36:04 > 0:36:06I sometimes think, you know,
0:36:06 > 0:36:09we imagine that the coming of machines
0:36:09 > 0:36:12is always automatically a loss of skill.
0:36:12 > 0:36:15In this case, it's just a different skill.
0:36:15 > 0:36:17This is still craftwork.
0:36:20 > 0:36:22The traditional shoemakers of Northampton
0:36:22 > 0:36:28railed against the new machines, going on strike in 1859.
0:36:28 > 0:36:33They were loath to join a production line with set hours and set pay.
0:36:34 > 0:36:37But with growing concerns over cheap shoe imports,
0:36:37 > 0:36:39it was agreed that the sewing machine
0:36:39 > 0:36:42could be introduced to sew the uppers,
0:36:42 > 0:36:44work traditionally done by women.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49'Rebecca Shawcross from the Northampton Shoe Museum explains.'
0:36:49 > 0:36:52We are standing in the closing room now.
0:36:52 > 0:36:56This is the closing room probably about 1900.
0:36:56 > 0:36:59The only man I can see in this whole image is him there
0:36:59 > 0:37:02and he is clearly a supervisor.
0:37:02 > 0:37:06Indeed. And even today, the closing, which is the sewing of the uppers,
0:37:06 > 0:37:08is all done by women.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11So were men pushed out of work as a result
0:37:11 > 0:37:14of this large-scale employment of girls and women?
0:37:14 > 0:37:16Not so much, just simply because
0:37:16 > 0:37:19there's about 200 different processes involved in shoemaking
0:37:19 > 0:37:22and the majority are done by men.
0:37:24 > 0:37:28Gradually more of the shoemaking process was mechanised
0:37:28 > 0:37:30and brought inside the factory.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34So it didn't... Machines did not produce the unemployment
0:37:34 > 0:37:37- that everybody was frightened of? - No, no.
0:37:37 > 0:37:40With the rise of the machines, productivity exploded.
0:37:40 > 0:37:44A company that made around 500,000 pairs of shoes a year
0:37:44 > 0:37:46in the late 1850s
0:37:46 > 0:37:50could make five million pairs of shoes ten years later.
0:37:50 > 0:37:55Northampton boomed as a shoemaking centre, and over the next 40 years,
0:37:55 > 0:37:57the population doubled.
0:37:58 > 0:38:01And life for the shoemaker was unrecognisable
0:38:01 > 0:38:04from the old cottage industry.
0:38:04 > 0:38:06It must have been really difficult for people
0:38:06 > 0:38:09to make that transition from being somebody
0:38:09 > 0:38:11who made a whole pair of shoes
0:38:11 > 0:38:15to somebody who was just involved in part of a much bigger process
0:38:15 > 0:38:20within a regulated factory. But looking around today,
0:38:20 > 0:38:22it is clear that a level of skill
0:38:22 > 0:38:28and indeed craftsmanship, is still absolutely necessary.
0:38:32 > 0:38:35I'm at the New Balance shoe factory in Cumbria,
0:38:35 > 0:38:38where Team Solway are helping me make
0:38:38 > 0:38:40my very own pair of leather trainers.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44So far, I've cut my leather pieces,
0:38:44 > 0:38:47reinforced and embroidered them and stitched them together
0:38:47 > 0:38:49to form the shoe upper.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52And it has only taken 25 minutes.
0:38:53 > 0:38:55The next stage in Manual Stitch
0:38:55 > 0:38:58is where my upper will get cushioning sewn inside.
0:38:58 > 0:39:02Whoa, that's the fastest thing I've ever seen!
0:39:04 > 0:39:06Insides stitched.
0:39:08 > 0:39:10Tongue cushioned.
0:39:10 > 0:39:12You look like you might be a bit of a wiz.
0:39:12 > 0:39:13That's precision, isn't it?
0:39:13 > 0:39:15Heel padded.
0:39:15 > 0:39:19So I've got to hold down the tongue and then slide my lever under.
0:39:19 > 0:39:21- Don't let go of your tongue. - I won't let go of my tongue.
0:39:24 > 0:39:27All attached. My upper is now complete.
0:39:27 > 0:39:30No-one who bought these shoes would imagine for a moment,
0:39:30 > 0:39:32I'm telling you, that they have been hand-stitched
0:39:32 > 0:39:36by Charlene, Jean, Gillian, Lucy,
0:39:36 > 0:39:39Susan, Claire and Liz.
0:39:39 > 0:39:43- And not forgetting Marion.- Yes. Correct.- No-one.- I know.
0:39:43 > 0:39:44What an operation!
0:39:44 > 0:39:47I'm leaving this bit of ladies, to put them in there.
0:39:47 > 0:39:50We are going to a very blokey looking bit, aren't we?
0:39:52 > 0:39:56The section I'm heading to is overseen by Jim Fox and his team
0:39:56 > 0:39:58and it's called Moulding.
0:39:59 > 0:40:04Here, my shoes come out of an oven at 110 degrees Celsius.
0:40:04 > 0:40:07Jim, why are my shoes in this oven?
0:40:07 > 0:40:10We need them to be malleable so they mould around the last.
0:40:10 > 0:40:13- What's a last?- It's a foot mould, what we make the shoe on.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16Right, that's a last.
0:40:16 > 0:40:18That's hot and steaming in there
0:40:18 > 0:40:20because we need the leather to be pliable
0:40:20 > 0:40:23- so we can stretch it over the shape of the shoe?- Correct.
0:40:23 > 0:40:27- Can I have a go, Jim?- You can have a go. Put it onto the peg.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30Right, take the upper from the...
0:40:30 > 0:40:33- Waah!- It's really hot, yes.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35You've got a shoehorn to help you.
0:40:35 > 0:40:38I don't need a shoehorn. I'm as strong as an ox.
0:40:38 > 0:40:41- Now, where does this go?- That goes on underneath the sock.
0:40:41 > 0:40:44And you've got to do this while the shoe is hot
0:40:44 > 0:40:46so that the leather will stretch?
0:40:46 > 0:40:49That's it. You are just going to pass this across to Steven.
0:40:49 > 0:40:51Steven, show me what to do.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56The pincers are getting hold of the leather,
0:40:56 > 0:40:58feed it into the other pincers and pull down.
0:40:58 > 0:41:01He leaves hot melted glue underneath
0:41:01 > 0:41:04and he closes the uppers around the last.
0:41:04 > 0:41:06When it comes out of that after ten seconds,
0:41:06 > 0:41:09you will see what we call a lasted edge.
0:41:10 > 0:41:12Like so.
0:41:13 > 0:41:18This machine effectively stretches the leather upper around the moulds,
0:41:18 > 0:41:20gluing it firmly into position.
0:41:20 > 0:41:24I've now been making my trainers for 29 minutes,
0:41:24 > 0:41:27and they are finally coming together.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30The shoes that are made here are exported all over the world,
0:41:30 > 0:41:32so shoes today could end up
0:41:32 > 0:41:35in a high street in Workington down the road,
0:41:35 > 0:41:37or Fifth Avenue, New York.
0:41:37 > 0:41:40Cherry has been to a more unusual shoe factory -
0:41:40 > 0:41:43a place that makes thousands of shoes every day,
0:41:43 > 0:41:46none of which will ever see the street.
0:41:49 > 0:41:55No-one has a relationship with their shoes quite like a ballerina.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58And even though they are not pounding the pavement,
0:41:58 > 0:42:02they can get through a pair of shoes in a single performance.
0:42:02 > 0:42:07This is me aged nine at my first-ever ballet performance.
0:42:07 > 0:42:09It's one of my happiest childhood memories.
0:42:09 > 0:42:14I vividly remember the day I got my first pair of ballet shoes,
0:42:14 > 0:42:17I was over the moon. I cherished them,
0:42:17 > 0:42:20I loved that they were really pretty and delicate, but so strong.
0:42:20 > 0:42:24I've always wondered, how do they make them?
0:42:26 > 0:42:31Freed of London make 250,000 pairs of ballet shoes every year,
0:42:31 > 0:42:34supplying most of the ballet companies
0:42:34 > 0:42:36and top ballet dancers around the world.
0:42:38 > 0:42:41Their production techniques have barely changed
0:42:41 > 0:42:43over the last 87 years.
0:42:43 > 0:42:46Each pair is handmade by one of the 95 workers,
0:42:46 > 0:42:50often to the specific requirements of each dancer.
0:42:53 > 0:42:55'Alan Doherty is going to fill me in
0:42:55 > 0:42:58'on some of the secrets to making pointed shoes.'
0:42:58 > 0:43:00Each maker's got their own symbol.
0:43:00 > 0:43:03So anyone who is wearing a pair of shoes made by you
0:43:03 > 0:43:05- will be able to tell?- Yeah.
0:43:06 > 0:43:11'The shoe is created inside out in the traditional turn shoe method
0:43:11 > 0:43:13'to keep the stitching out of sight.
0:43:13 > 0:43:16'First, the inner soul is stapled to a last
0:43:16 > 0:43:20'and placed onto your satin and cotton upper.'
0:43:20 > 0:43:21Hold it in with a single nail.
0:43:23 > 0:43:26'Point shoes need the toes reinforcing
0:43:26 > 0:43:29'and it is done with a surprising ingredient.'
0:43:29 > 0:43:31It looks like very old porridge.
0:43:31 > 0:43:35It is flour, water and a few secret ingredients.
0:43:35 > 0:43:38- First of all, what we do is get some paste.- Yep.
0:43:38 > 0:43:41Spread it all over. All over the shoe, like so.
0:43:41 > 0:43:44Is that really sticky enough, just water and a few other bits?
0:43:44 > 0:43:47Yep. Piece of hessian,
0:43:47 > 0:43:49right up to the point where the nail is.
0:43:49 > 0:43:51A little bit more paste.
0:43:53 > 0:43:55Another piece of hessian.
0:43:57 > 0:43:59And then we finish it off with a bit of tissue.
0:43:59 > 0:44:03That is your shoe, your block.
0:44:03 > 0:44:05'Now the pleats are created.'
0:44:07 > 0:44:09Pull and twist.
0:44:11 > 0:44:13How many shoes do you think you make a day?
0:44:13 > 0:44:14I make 34 pairs.
0:44:14 > 0:44:17- 34 exactly?- I do, yes.
0:44:18 > 0:44:20'The shoes are then hand-stitched in the sewing room
0:44:20 > 0:44:24'and returned to be turned the right way round.'
0:44:24 > 0:44:26- So you're rolling it out.- Roll it.
0:44:26 > 0:44:28- Oh, I see!- Then twist.
0:44:28 > 0:44:31- This is what this is for, the broom handle.- Right!
0:44:32 > 0:44:34Oh, wow! Hand-done.
0:44:34 > 0:44:39'The most important step comes next as the point is shaped.
0:44:43 > 0:44:46'Then the insole is pasted in.'
0:44:46 > 0:44:48And now we are finishing it.
0:44:48 > 0:44:49- More bashing.- More bashing.
0:44:49 > 0:44:53It is brilliant that the most useful tool is a hammer.
0:44:53 > 0:44:54Hammer, oh, yes.
0:44:54 > 0:44:56The way you do this is unique to you.
0:44:56 > 0:44:58Unique to me, yes.
0:44:58 > 0:45:01It's the moment of truth now.
0:45:01 > 0:45:05Oh, wow! And it must make you really proud.
0:45:05 > 0:45:08It does, it does make me proud knowing that someone,
0:45:08 > 0:45:11somewhere in the world is wearing our shoes.
0:45:11 > 0:45:14'From here, the shoe is baked in an oven
0:45:14 > 0:45:19'at 70 degrees Celsius for eight hours to make the block go hard
0:45:19 > 0:45:24'before a final stitching and a meticulous quality control.
0:45:24 > 0:45:27'All in all, it's a 16-hour process.
0:45:29 > 0:45:34'I've been granted privileged access backstage at the Royal Ballet
0:45:34 > 0:45:37'where they get through 13,000 pairs of shoes a year
0:45:37 > 0:45:41'at a cost of £250,000.
0:45:41 > 0:45:43'And yet these new ballet shoes
0:45:43 > 0:45:46'are not yet considered performance-ready,
0:45:46 > 0:45:50'as each dancer will customise their own shoe.
0:45:50 > 0:45:53'I am meeting acclaimed principal dancer Lauren Cuthbertson
0:45:53 > 0:45:57'to find out how she prepares her shoes for the big night.'
0:45:57 > 0:45:59So, these look brand-new.
0:45:59 > 0:46:02Can you just put these on and dance in them tonight?
0:46:02 > 0:46:05Well, they would need to be broken in.
0:46:07 > 0:46:11'An unbroken shoe isn't flexible and does not support the foot en pointe.
0:46:11 > 0:46:14'All ballerinas have their own unique way
0:46:14 > 0:46:17'of customising to improve performance.'
0:46:18 > 0:46:22- This is how I do it.- Whoa!
0:46:22 > 0:46:25So I am just making it more malleable in the sock.
0:46:25 > 0:46:27- Oh, my goodness! - The top part of the shoe,
0:46:27 > 0:46:31- you can feel it sort of starts to melt in your hands.- Yes.
0:46:31 > 0:46:36'This manipulation gets the shoe to hug the foot perfectly.'
0:46:36 > 0:46:41- How do they feel? - It feels like home.- Really?- Yeah!
0:46:41 > 0:46:44I literally couldn't imagine wearing anything else.
0:46:44 > 0:46:47'Lauren also likes to add a few vital wool stitches
0:46:47 > 0:46:51'to the point of her shoes for added traction.'
0:46:52 > 0:46:55It just makes me feel less vulnerable
0:46:55 > 0:46:57next to the surface of the floor.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00Sometimes I feel like I might slip and slide around
0:47:00 > 0:47:05and I don't want to feel like that. It defines the edge of the shoe.
0:47:05 > 0:47:07For a performance, I would then scrape off the satin
0:47:07 > 0:47:08at the end of the shoe.
0:47:09 > 0:47:12'There is one last trick to soften the block
0:47:12 > 0:47:15'that allows Lauren to perform at her best.'
0:47:15 > 0:47:18I would do it on the concrete tiles of the bathroom
0:47:18 > 0:47:20and I would go...
0:47:24 > 0:47:26..like that quite a few times to take the noise out.
0:47:26 > 0:47:31So, is having the right fit vital to your career?
0:47:31 > 0:47:33Yeah. It is absolutely vital.
0:47:35 > 0:47:39I had absolutely no idea that the quality of the shoe is critical.
0:47:39 > 0:47:41It's not just a shoe.
0:47:41 > 0:47:44It is a tool and it can make or break the performance.
0:47:58 > 0:48:00At the trainer factory in Cumbria,
0:48:00 > 0:48:02I have been making my shoes for just 30 minutes
0:48:02 > 0:48:05and I already have something resembling a trainer.
0:48:05 > 0:48:07It's just lacking SOLE.
0:48:09 > 0:48:12Fortunately, the next stop on the production line is Sole Fitting.
0:48:14 > 0:48:17Right, I have heated, I've stretched front and back,
0:48:17 > 0:48:20I've got a bit of an innard in there.
0:48:20 > 0:48:24- Now what?- Now we are going to rough in the bottom of the sole.
0:48:24 > 0:48:25How do we rough it up?
0:48:25 > 0:48:29- Put it on another buffer?- We have a machine, a robot roughing machine.
0:48:29 > 0:48:31A robot roughing machine!
0:48:31 > 0:48:34Yes. You take the right foot onto that peg
0:48:34 > 0:48:36and then you press the blue button.
0:48:36 > 0:48:37Stick it on here, Jim.
0:48:37 > 0:48:39- Yeah.- Like that?- Like that.
0:48:39 > 0:48:42- Onto there.- Ready?- Ready.
0:48:50 > 0:48:54'This robot rougher was installed at the factory ten years ago
0:48:54 > 0:48:57'and cost £120,000.
0:48:57 > 0:49:00'I can see that it is roughing the shoe with precision accuracy,
0:49:00 > 0:49:04'but it is leaving the leather in a right old state.'
0:49:04 > 0:49:05That is your roughing almost complete.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11That robot has just ruined my shoe.
0:49:11 > 0:49:13- No, it hasn't.- He's ruined it, look.
0:49:13 > 0:49:16I am going to turn it round now and show you the back.
0:49:16 > 0:49:19That has roughened the area where we are going to apply the glue
0:49:19 > 0:49:23so the sole we put on this bonds to it correctly.
0:49:23 > 0:49:24Theresa!
0:49:25 > 0:49:30'Theresa Tyson's job is to apply the glue that will stick on the soles,
0:49:30 > 0:49:32'but first we need to apply some primer.'
0:49:32 > 0:49:34You hold your shoe like that.
0:49:37 > 0:49:38A little bit on your brush.
0:49:39 > 0:49:44You do the toe and the four-part to them marks there.
0:49:45 > 0:49:47How's that?
0:49:48 > 0:49:50Could be a bit quicker!
0:49:50 > 0:49:53That doesn't really matter if I get it on the sole, does it?
0:49:53 > 0:49:54No, it doesn't matter,
0:49:54 > 0:49:58- but you have to keep within the marks of the line.- Yeah, I get that.
0:49:58 > 0:50:00Ooh, Theresa, look what you did.
0:50:00 > 0:50:02It's all right, I've got your back.
0:50:02 > 0:50:04Just take it all the way around the shoe.
0:50:06 > 0:50:09Next, the sole and the glued shoe pass through a machine
0:50:09 > 0:50:11called a cement drier,
0:50:11 > 0:50:14where an infrared light raises the temperature
0:50:14 > 0:50:16to over 120 degrees Celsius.
0:50:16 > 0:50:19This activates the special glue,
0:50:19 > 0:50:22making them ready to stick together.
0:50:24 > 0:50:26While I wait for that to happen,
0:50:26 > 0:50:28Cherry has been learning that choosing the right footwear
0:50:28 > 0:50:31is critical because get it wrong
0:50:31 > 0:50:34and your feet could be in big trouble.
0:50:34 > 0:50:37Three-quarters of us will experience foot problems at some stage
0:50:37 > 0:50:40and she is finding out why.
0:50:42 > 0:50:46As a nation, we are struggling to choose the best shoes
0:50:46 > 0:50:48to keep our feet healthy.
0:50:48 > 0:50:5390% of women, for instance, are wearing shoes too small for them.
0:50:53 > 0:50:56Podiatrist Matthew Fitzpatrick believes
0:50:56 > 0:50:59that some very common ailments can be sorted
0:50:59 > 0:51:01by simply wearing the right footwear.
0:51:01 > 0:51:05We have come to a bowling alley to check out people's feet.
0:51:06 > 0:51:07First up is Annetta.
0:51:09 > 0:51:11Shall we have a look at this foot of yours?
0:51:11 > 0:51:14- Yes.- OK, pop it up, let's have a look.
0:51:14 > 0:51:17- Bunions.- Uncomfortable?
0:51:17 > 0:51:20- It's very painful. - What is a bunion?
0:51:20 > 0:51:25A bunion is a deformity that is around the big toe joint
0:51:25 > 0:51:27so what causes it is both hereditary
0:51:27 > 0:51:29so it can run in the family,
0:51:29 > 0:51:32but tight-fitting footwear can lead to stress and strain
0:51:32 > 0:51:37around the soft tissues and so this area here
0:51:37 > 0:51:38becomes more prone to rubbing,
0:51:38 > 0:51:41that rubbing becomes irritated and red and inflamed
0:51:41 > 0:51:42and that becomes painful.
0:51:42 > 0:51:47So, what can Annetta do to relieve the discomfort?
0:51:47 > 0:51:52So, a lot of the discomfort can be managed by the right shoes.
0:51:52 > 0:51:55Because when you are wearing tighter fitting shoes, it is going to rub
0:51:55 > 0:51:58and that rubbing can cause redness, swelling and pain.
0:52:01 > 0:52:03Women are more susceptible to bunions than men
0:52:03 > 0:52:07because high heels and pointy-toed shoes make the condition worse.
0:52:07 > 0:52:08Next up is Hitesh,
0:52:08 > 0:52:12who thinks he may be struggling with athletes' foot,
0:52:12 > 0:52:13a fungal infection.
0:52:13 > 0:52:16So, where is the bit that you think is causing the most problems?
0:52:16 > 0:52:18In between the toes here.
0:52:18 > 0:52:20In between the two toes there. OK.
0:52:20 > 0:52:24It gets really annoying because at some points you are itching so much.
0:52:24 > 0:52:27So, when a fungal element has developed,
0:52:27 > 0:52:29what does it like? Warm, dark and damp.
0:52:29 > 0:52:31- A shoe is a perfect place to do that.- Yeah.
0:52:31 > 0:52:35So, what you want to do is make that an inhospitable environment.
0:52:35 > 0:52:37Shoes get damp so what you shouldn't do
0:52:37 > 0:52:39is wear the same pair of shoes two days running
0:52:39 > 0:52:42- cos shoes need time to dry out. - Oh, I see.
0:52:44 > 0:52:49We all sweat around half a pint of fluid from our feet every day.
0:52:49 > 0:52:52So, wearing shoes made of a breathable material
0:52:52 > 0:52:53like leather also helps.
0:52:54 > 0:52:58One problem we all face is getting our shoe size wrong.
0:52:58 > 0:53:03Luke Scott believes he takes a size ten bowling shoe.
0:53:03 > 0:53:06Luke tells me he is ready to go for a bowl.
0:53:06 > 0:53:07Size ten shoes.
0:53:07 > 0:53:10- Shall we see?- Is that right?
0:53:10 > 0:53:15Luke is actually a UK 11 and not a UK ten.
0:53:15 > 0:53:17So, Luke, why have you been wearing a ten?
0:53:17 > 0:53:19I wear a ten in trainers and I wear 11 in shoes.
0:53:19 > 0:53:22Aha, so that's a really good point
0:53:22 > 0:53:24cos what we're finding now
0:53:24 > 0:53:27is manufacturers' sizes are specific to the manufacturer,
0:53:27 > 0:53:30not generically across all so don't buy the shoe size
0:53:30 > 0:53:34that you think you are - buy the shoe that fits.
0:53:34 > 0:53:36But also it is about when you get your shoes measured
0:53:36 > 0:53:39and what we always advise is do it at the end of the day,
0:53:39 > 0:53:41in the afternoon,
0:53:41 > 0:53:43because throughout the day, our feet will slightly swell
0:53:43 > 0:53:46so if you measure your feet first thing in the morning,
0:53:46 > 0:53:48you might get one size, you'll buy a perfect shoe that fits,
0:53:48 > 0:53:51but if you wear them all day, they'll get tight.
0:53:51 > 0:53:56So, next time you are buying a pair of shoes or even going bowling,
0:53:56 > 0:54:00remember to take the time to find the shoe that fits.
0:54:10 > 0:54:13At the New Balance factory on the edge of the Lake District,
0:54:13 > 0:54:17I have been making my very own pair of trainers.
0:54:17 > 0:54:19Having joined the team in Cutting,
0:54:19 > 0:54:21I have now made it all the way round the production line
0:54:21 > 0:54:23to Sole Fitting.
0:54:23 > 0:54:26My trainer and sole have had glue pasted on
0:54:26 > 0:54:29and put through a cement drier to activate.
0:54:29 > 0:54:32Now it is time to stick them together.
0:54:32 > 0:54:35And that is Carl Dryden's job with his sole press machine.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38No, no, no, let me do it! Like that?
0:54:38 > 0:54:41- No.- Tell me.- Like that.
0:54:41 > 0:54:44And you get the sole like that
0:54:44 > 0:54:47- and you put it on like that. - I see, I see, I see.
0:54:47 > 0:54:51So, hold it, bend the toe towards it,
0:54:51 > 0:54:55get that in there, line it up and get this in there.
0:54:56 > 0:55:00- You turn it upside down. - Heel first, upside down.
0:55:01 > 0:55:04- And then press that button.- Whoa!
0:55:04 > 0:55:08Whoa! Goodbye, shoe!
0:55:08 > 0:55:10'The compression machine fills with air,
0:55:10 > 0:55:13'forcing the glued sole to the upper
0:55:13 > 0:55:15'with a pressure that is like the weight of a rhino
0:55:15 > 0:55:17'pressing down on it.'
0:55:17 > 0:55:19That's my shoe. That's my shoe.
0:55:21 > 0:55:23- And then just...- Yeah.
0:55:27 > 0:55:30Ha-ha!
0:55:30 > 0:55:33INDISTINCT I made this shoe.
0:55:34 > 0:55:36I made this shoe right from the very beginning.
0:55:38 > 0:55:43My shoes are complete, 34 minutes after I began making them.
0:55:43 > 0:55:45But they need one last inspection
0:55:45 > 0:55:47and that's done by Kerry Hoskins.
0:55:47 > 0:55:51Kerry, my shoes are behind there, why are in that little machine?
0:55:51 > 0:55:53It's a metal detector.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56- Is that right?- Yeah. - What would be in them?
0:55:56 > 0:55:59Needles from the machine, wire off the rougher.
0:55:59 > 0:56:01- Can we do mine next?- Yeah.
0:56:04 > 0:56:07These are mine, what are we looking for?
0:56:08 > 0:56:10You've got to check all your stitching.
0:56:10 > 0:56:11Make sure there's none broken.
0:56:11 > 0:56:15Make sure your back height is right, the shoes aren't twisted.
0:56:15 > 0:56:18- They are pretty good, aren't they? - Yeah, lovely.
0:56:18 > 0:56:21- Now what are you doing?- Tag.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24I am ridiculously proud of these shoes
0:56:24 > 0:56:27and I never imagined so much work went into them.
0:56:27 > 0:56:31I think these are a thing of beauty, don't you?
0:56:31 > 0:56:32Yeah.
0:56:37 > 0:56:38Careful!
0:56:38 > 0:56:40They are Gregg Wallace ones, they are!
0:56:40 > 0:56:44# I'm a soul man
0:56:44 > 0:56:47# I'm a soul man... #
0:56:47 > 0:56:49To make my one pair of shoes,
0:56:49 > 0:56:55it has taken 8,900 stitches and used 65 metres of cotton.
0:56:56 > 0:56:58I took 35 minutes to complete them
0:56:58 > 0:57:01which may sound quick, but at this rate,
0:57:01 > 0:57:04I would only make 17 pairs a day.
0:57:05 > 0:57:06Working at full steam,
0:57:06 > 0:57:12the six teams here can pump out a pair of shoes every nine seconds.
0:57:12 > 0:57:14The finished trainers, including mine,
0:57:14 > 0:57:18are boxed up and taken across to the distribution warehouse.
0:57:19 > 0:57:23Pallets for delivery are wrapped up before being loaded into lorries.
0:57:27 > 0:57:33At the end of the day, the factory has made 3,626 pairs of shoes
0:57:33 > 0:57:37with a total retail value of over £250,000.
0:57:37 > 0:57:40Not bad for a day's work!
0:57:40 > 0:57:43What's impressed me about making trainers on this scale
0:57:43 > 0:57:46isn't just the speed and the volume that they make,
0:57:46 > 0:57:50it is actually the people - from the ladies stitching by hand
0:57:50 > 0:57:52to the guys cutting out material.
0:57:54 > 0:57:56These trainers are sent to shops across the country.
0:57:56 > 0:58:00People in Scotland buy more shoes than anyone else in the UK,
0:58:00 > 0:58:04but 80% of the factory's output is exported -
0:58:04 > 0:58:08even to shoemaking hot spots like America and China.
0:58:10 > 0:58:12I am very proud of the shoes I made
0:58:12 > 0:58:15and I like to think that someone, somewhere in the world,
0:58:15 > 0:58:19is soon going to be the proud owner of those blue trainers.