Film
Heritage Steps | TOAST & Solovair
To celebrate the latest collaboration in the longstanding partnership between TOAST and Solovair, we visit the footwear factory in Northamptonshire to see the making of our Autumn Winter 2025 loafers. Drawn together by a mutual appreciation for traditional manufacturing 8 years ago, we have continued to include the brand's signature footwear in our collections ever since.
Production of Solovair shoes began in 1881. Originally a cooperative, it followed a long line of local shoemakers in an industry dating back to the thirteenth-century. Known then as the Northamptonshire Productive Society (NPS), it opened its own purpose-built factory in 1889. Although the business has evolved to improve working conditions and efficiency, many of the original techniques remain intact today.