Bison and elk leather for limited edition boots
18/12/2007
Canadian boot brand Sorel has used high-quality leather to produce a new, limited edition of one of its most popular winter boots, the Caribou.
Sorel, founded by Kaufman Footwear in Kitchener, Ontario in 1959, suffered difficult times at the end of the last century owing to milder winters. The owners sold the brand to Columbia Sportswear in 1999 before declaring bankruptcy the following year.
Nevertheless, thanks to products like the Caribou, the Sorel brand has survived and this year Columbia decided it deserved some special attention.
Coinciding with one of the snowiest and coldest starts to the North American winter in many years, the company launched the Sorel Caribou Reserve. The new boot has a brown leather upper and a brown and white rubber toe, just like the original Caribou. However, the manufacturers in this case have used bison leather for the upper in the men's boot and elk leather in the women's. Also, in place of a polypropylene lining, the Reserve has sheepskin.
The makers claim the boots will keep the wearer's feet warm even in temperatures as low as minus-40 degrees Celsius.
Sorel has made only 1,500 pairs of the men's Reserve and 1,250 pairs of the women's boots. Each pair comes in a special pine box with a leather handle and will cost around $500.
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