It’s a privilege to be able to be myself and to make a living doing something I care about this deeply.
Shoe making is in my blood. Some of my first memories are of being in my dad’s factory aged about six or seven, surrounded by noise and machines and the smell of leather. Back then, mass production was the norm in Northampton. These days, most of it has moved elsewhere. But the bones of it remain. And what bones they are. Eight centuries of shoemaking heritage still echo in this town if you know where to listen.
All the knowledge is still here. All the skill. You just have to care enough to make it matter again. That’s what led to the Ernest. This town. Our factory. And the Woodford genes I was lucky enough to inherit.
I’m not very "modern world", and I quite like it that way. So when someone challenged me to make the best sneaker in the world, I didn’t go searching for trends or gimmicks. I looked backwards first, to the skills and methods of five generations ago, before machines took over. We lent on the hand-making techniques of our sister company, E.Woodford & Sons, and somehow found a way to bring those into something more contemporary. A sneaker that wears like a classic, but carries the soul of traditional British shoemaking.
Of course, "best" is subjective. But to me, the best sneaker should fit beautifully, feel supportive, last a lifetime, and carry the heritage of where it was made. I want it to make the town proud. And just as importantly, I want to teach others how to do it so this craft continues on and on.
Making Craft That Matters
If we were going to make a sneaker this way, we had to do it properly. No shortcuts. No compromises. That was clear from the start.
Many of our shoemakers in the E.Woodford workshop were trained by Len Robinson, a Northampton master craftsman with over 60 years of bespoke experience. That depth of skill takes years to build, and generations to preserve. It’s rare now and we don’t take it for granted.
Having the skill was one thing. Having the right mindset was what made it work. We give our team the space to test, to experiment, to keep learning. The challenge here was to take the centuries-old construction method of traditional hand welting and find a way to apply it to something more contemporary. We didn’t want a dress shoe disguised as a sneaker. We wanted something that stood on its own terms.
Will, trained by master craftsman, Len Robinson, brings his 60 years of bespoke experience to the next generation.
It took months of trial and error. Ideas tested, shelved, revisited. Leathers changed. Prototypes made, worn, rejected. A lot of staring at things until they made sense.
Eventually, they did.
We developed a new construction method we’ve come to call the double welt which delivers the look of a cup sole, with traditional hand-welting hidden beneath. It takes over 40 hours to make each pair. But that’s where the care lives.
We then named it The Ernest, after my great-grandfather - the ‘son’ in E.Woodford & Sons - and a shoemaker known for his skill with wholecuts. It felt right to carry his name forward on something that draws from everything he believed in. You can read more about that part of the story here.
We went through many trials, tests and prototypes before settling on what made sense.
The double welt - a new construction method that delivers the look of a cup sole but with traditional hand-welting hidden underneath.
Form, Function and a Few Surprises
We knew we wanted to use a wholecut pattern. One piece of leather. No back seam. A shape that’s always demanded precision and care. Shoemakers used to enter competitions with it, as a way to prove what they could do. For us, it felt like the right canvas; clean, confident, and technically unforgiving.
Once we’d solved the construction with our version of the double welt the rest of the design found its way. The lines settled naturally. The proportions balanced. The result feels grounded and assured. Like Ernest himself.
One of the final touches was the join in the pattern, worked out by Will one of our amazingly talented and intuitive shoemakers. It follows the flex of the foot, guiding the lacing in a way that’s both functional and distinctive. A small detail, but the kind we like most.
Functional and distinctive asymmetrical lacing pattern. A small, but clever detail.
Materials That Hold Meaning
English Calf Leather. Some materials just feel like home.
We’ve worked with J. & F.J. Baker for years now, the last oak bark tannery in Britain, still doing things the old way in Devon, where they’ve been tanning on the same site for over five centuries.
There’s something about the smell of that leather when it first arrives in the workshop, deep, earthy, slightly sweet. You can smell where it’s been and sense how long it’s taken to get here. It connects us to something older than ourselves. Just like the name we gave this shoe.
For the Ernest, it felt like the only choice. A shoe built to honour the past needed a material that’s stood the test of time and still carries that history in every pair. It’s definitely not the quickest or cheapest route. But it’s the kind of leather that only gets better with time and it deserves to be shaped into something with the same lasting intention.
Read more about the Ernest’s materials and where they sit on the shoe
Oak bark tanned English calf from J. & F.J. Baker. Leather that only gets better with time and deserves to be shaped into something with the same intention.
A Shoemaker’s Inheritance
So here we are today, with a new sneaker that draws on everything that came before it. The Ernest is the most involved, most time-intensive shoe we’ve ever made. A project I felt compelled to take on, even knowing how much it would demand from us. It’s not quick to make, it’s not for everyone, and it’s not inexpensive but for the hours, materials, and skill that go into each pair, we believe it offers real value. In a retail store, it would cost twice the price. Here, it comes straight from us to you.
And yet, the value isn’t just in the making. It’s in the meaning.
When my great-great-grandfather was learning the trade 130 years ago, I doubt he imagined his grandchildren’s children would be making shoes in Northampton. But when I think about him and what connects each generation that’s come after it feels very real.
We share the same instinct: to make something of ourselves, to create something with care, and to give something back to our community.
When I look at his photo, I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to choose my own path and that path has led me here, because I’m a Woodford.
There’s a phrase: death happens twice, once when the body gives out, and again when the name is said for the last time.
So thank you. To this industry, this town, our customers, and the amazing staff who’ve made this possible. It’s just a shoe but for me, it’s a little more than that.
Here’s to Ernest, it’s been lovely collaborating with you.
How to Order Your Ernests
As with all our footwear, the Ernest is made to order.
It’s built on the same foundation as our Hand Stitch Collection, with a touch more arch support. That extra structure comes from the way we set the wooden last into the insole during making — a subtle change, but one you’ll feel underfoot.
If you already own a pair from that collection, the fit will be familiar. If not, our in-factory customer care team is here to guide you. We’ll work from your measurements, send a sample pair in the first two weeks, and arrange a video call to talk through any adjustments if needed.
To get your place in the production queue, browse the Hand Welted Collection and place your order online.
