TIMBERLAND AND SLAM JAM REWORK THE 6-INCH BOOT

Timberland/Slam Jam

Summary:

• Timberland and Slam Jam rework the Heritage 6-Inch Waterproof Boot.
• The project draws on Luca Benini’s early 1990s contact with New York and its subcultures.
• The boot has engraved logos, a silver chain with a leather tag and two sets of laces.

Timberland and Slam Jam have started a collaboration on the Heritage 6-Inch Waterproof Boot, one of the best-known models in streetwear. Timberland’s own history dates its first fully waterproof leather boot to 1973. The Abington Shoe Company launched the 8-inch model under the name The Timberland, then released the 6-inch version three years later. The company adopted the Timberland name in 1978. Both boots began as work footwear. Over the years, New York and its subcultures turned the 6-inch boot into a symbol of urban culture.

The project starts from this link between the boot and the city. In the early 1990s, Luca Benini, the founder of Slam Jam, came into contact with the energy of New York. Hip-hop, workwear, graffiti and other urban subcultures were building the city’s aesthetic language at the time. The communities who lived there kept adding to this language. In this setting, Timberland footwear held a different meaning than in Italy.

This history led to the partnership. Slam Jam is an Italian retailer and Timberland is a US brand. The aim is to keep working on products whose meaning goes beyond design.

Timberland keeps the original silhouette and revises the boot with a few details taken from Slam Jam’s aesthetic. The changes sit in the details rather than in the shape. The logos are engraved on the side of the upper. A silver chain holds a leather tag with the retailer’s distinctive upside-down A. The boot also includes two sets of laces. One set is black and the other is smoked pearl. You choose which pair to wear.

Timberland/Slam Jam

Timberland/Slam Jam