Kiwi shoe polish

Fewer Britons are shining their boots as casual footwear reigns, but a local cobbler says the tradition of shoe polishing is alive and well in NZ.

He said the tradition of polishing was as strong as ever. [Keith Dunstan, in his book](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/93059812/ignore-the-kiwi-on-the-tin-worldfamous-kiwi-shoe-polish-is-100-per-cent-australian) [ Kiwi: The Australian Brand That Brought a Shine to the World](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/93059812/ignore-the-kiwi-on-the-tin-worldfamous-kiwi-shoe-polish-is-100-per-cent-australian), wrote that Kiwi was “probably the most successful manufacturer in Australian corporate history”. By the early It was only named ‘Kiwi’ for the founder’s New Zealand-born wife. [Scarpa’s Shoes in the heart of Stratford](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/prosper/128658556/the-cobbler-at-the-heart-and-sole-of-the-taranaki-town-of-stratford) for more than 20 years. [1980s, the company ](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/93059812/ignore-the-kiwi-on-the-tin-worldfamous-kiwi-shoe-polish-is-100-per-cent-australian) [sold 250 million tins annually](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/93059812/ignore-the-kiwi-on-the-tin-worldfamous-kiwi-shoe-polish-is-100-per-cent-australian) across 183 countries. [spokesperson for the business previously told the Daily Mail](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11589255/Kiwi-stop-selling-shoe-care-products-UK-WFH-culture-sees-trainers-footwear-choice.html) that fewer Britons polishing their shoes, as well as a “rise in casual shoes that don’t require formal polishing”, meant the company no longer saw Britain as a priority. [Dr Martens, the anti-establishment brand of utilitarian boots, is coming to New Zealand](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/117531193/dr-martens-the-antiestablishment-brand-of-utilitarian-boots-is-coming-to-new-zealand?rm=a) The publication questioned whether the end of Kiwi shoe polish in Britain signalled a grim fall in “sartorial standards, signalling a wider malaise in the process”. [Jacinda Ardern flies Allbirds across the ditch as pressie to Aussie counterpart](https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/101927382/jacinda-ardern-flies-allbirds-across-the-ditch-as-pressie-to-aussie-counterpart?rm=a) [known for having a Kiwi on the tin and being favoured by the army and businessmen](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/93059812/ignore-the-kiwi-on-the-tin-worldfamous-kiwi-shoe-polish-is-100-per-cent-australian), is actually Australian. [Get your kicks: The best sustainable sneaker brands you need to know about](https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/fashion/124493651/get-your-kicks-the-best-sustainable-sneaker-brands-you-need-to-know-about?rm=a)

Shoe polish giant Kiwi is pulling its products from Britain to focus on countries where shoe shining "remains relevant", with a shoe repair businessman ...

Covid accelerated that with more working from home, but a trend was in place before then. We now renovate sneakers – repair and paint them." While shoes are dying, trainers are alive. David James, whose family have run a shoe repair business for 100 years in central London, said it is a "sign of the times". It adds that the change is thanks to a "rise in casual shoes that don't require formal polishing". But the issue is much wider than that and in part due to people's preference for trainers these days - a footwear that doesn't require shining.

For decades, Kiwi shoe polish has helped Britain keep its footwear shiny.However, the company is now withdrawing from the UK because of a “rise in casual ...

Kiwi Boot Polish was launched in the state of Victoria. For years, the company’s UK base was in a factory in Ealing in west London, which opened Kiwi has grown to become a global giant of shoe polish manufacturers since it began as a family business in Australia in 1906.

It comes as shoes are said to be 'dying' and trainers are being worn 'more and more'

It was bought by Sara Lee Corporation in 1984, then in 2011 sold to S. Kiwi has said it will stop selling its products in the UK due to the rise of working from home and casual footwear. Kiwi was created in 1906 by Australian William Ramsay. Kiwi is sold in over 180 countries and is responsible for more than 50% of the world's polish. [MailOnline](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11589255/Kiwi-stop-selling-shoe-care-products-UK-WFH-culture-sees-trainers-footwear-choice.html) : "In part this is because people wear suits and smart shoes much less. We now renovate sneakers – repair and paint them."

POLISH brand Kiwi will stop selling its products in the UK as the rise of working from home and casual footwear kills off Brits' appetite for shiny sh.

We want to give that confidence." Johnson which is looking to focus on other items. We now renovate sneakers – repair and paint them." [Australian](https://www.thesun.co.uk/where/australia/) founder William Ramsay who dubbed the brand Kiwi after his wife who was from [New Zealand](https://www.thesun.co.uk/where/new-zealand/). [Covid](https://www.thesun.co.uk/topic/coronavirus/) accelerated that with more working from home, but a trend was in place before then. [UK](https://www.thesun.co.uk/where/uk/) market has dwindled.

The glitzy brand 'Kiwi' will cease operations in the UK due to the growing popularity of casual footwear and working from home.

[Financial Times](/topic/financial-times)stated that British consumers were having trouble locating Kiwi brand shoe polish and were then stockpiling whatever they could find. [Shoe](/topic/shoe)polish brand – 'Kiwi' has decided to discontinue selling its polish in the UK. However, media outlets in the David's family has worked in the sector for the previous 100 years, and he calls Kiwi's departure "a sign of the times." The business was selling 250 million tins every year in 183 nations by the early 1980s. [Kiwi](/topic/kiwi)is not a New Zealand-owned company, however, Kiwi – a brand of shoe polish, made this name popular worldwide.

The firm has confirmed that it will continue to sell its shine elsewhere across the globe. Casual footwear on the rise. The habit of polishing shoes has ...

Two years later, Ramsey exported the product to Europe. Many office workers and members of the armed forces still embrace a shiny shoe. Others compared the military and everyday use of Kiwi shoe polish. David James, 62, whose family owns a London shoe repair and cleaning service attributed the loss to “a sign of the times.” He said the firm has seen a fall in the number of Britons polishing their shoes due to a “rise in casual shoes that don’t require formal polishing.” The great tradition of shining your shoes will soon be a thing of the past, as the established Kiwi shoe polish is set to take their product off the UK market.

Although it first sounded like a New Zealand product, Kiwi boot polish was actually an Australian one that was started in a two-room Melbourne factory.

The shoe polish quickly established itself as a staple in cities all over the world thanks to its distinctive name and Kiwi bird logo. According to Te Ara Encyclopedia, the company's founder William Ramsay gave the name Kiwi in honour of his wife Annie, who was born in New Zealand. Check why Kiwi is packing up and leaving from UK

The manufacturer, which has been in business for more than 100 years, will continue to sell its products in other countries.

The military is also a major consumer of Kiwi polish for use in cleaning and shining boots. “Trainers are being worn more and more – even to work. Head of marketing Natasha Seal-Jones, said: “There’s always a place for a shine in your step. We want to give that confidence.” A spokesperson for Kiwi said “a rise in casual shoes that don’t require formal polishing and an overall decrease in consumers polishing their shoes in the UK” had prompted them to withdraw from the UK market. [Covid-19](https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/coronavirus), as well as a rise in preference for more casual footwear such as trainers, has been suggested as the cause for the company’s move out of the UK.

Wandsworth Times: However, David James, 62, who runs a shoe repair and cleaning firm, said the company's decision to stop selling in the UK was a “sign of the ...

In 2011 it was sold by Sara Lee Corporation to S. Kiwi was founded in 1906 by Australian William Ramsay. Covid accelerated that with more working from home, but a trend was in place before then.

However, David James, 62, who runs a shoe repair and cleaning firm, said the company's decision to stop selling in the UK was a “sign of the times”.

In 2011 it was sold by Sara Lee Corporation to S. Kiwi was founded in 1906 by Australian William Ramsay. Covid accelerated that with more working from home, but a trend was in place before then.