Needles x Clarks Originals
Drawing inspiration from unique handmade moccasins originated from New England, USA, the Needles x Clarks Originals Wallabee features a buckled strap across the vamp, adorned with a metallic peace symbol - representing the brand’s unique visual identity, while Needles’ signature butterfly emblem graces the heel. The shoes boast premium suede in black or maple, paired with a matching Vibram sole for enhanced durability and style. A double-layered, co-branded leather tag further underscores this exclusive collaboration, forming the Walla Low, Boot and Hi model.
The belted rendition of the English shoemaker’s Wallabee Monk was inspired by a moccasin called the “Grasshopper”, originally released in the '70s and manufactured in Kilkenny, Ireland. At the time, the British found the shoe to be too radical, as the crepe-soled, lace-up moccasin was vastly different from the pointed or rounded shoes that dominated the market in England.
However, the alternative foot-shaped Wallabee became successful quite quickly in the free-thinking America of the 1960s. To celebrate the launch of this future icon, Clarks erected the largest billboard North America had ever seen. Measuring an enormous 185 by 45 feet, the billboard declared Clarks Wallabees as “Tough’n’Trendy” alongside a large image of the new shoe.
The arrival and promotion of the Wallabee in North America came at the perfect time, as the shoe’s comfortable and uncluttered design became the shoe of choice for the era’s revolutionaries, free thinkers and counterculture icons. The Wallabee was immensely successful, and ultimately led to Clarks being presented an Outstanding Export Achievement award by the Irish government in 1968.
