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Cutting a Retirement Pattern
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SOLEMAN . . . Retiring pattern cutter Dave Martin
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Dave Martin has gone through thousands of pairs of shoes in his 39 years service to Northamptonshire shoe firm Totectors.
But he was designing footwear rather than wearing it out — Mr Martin, who retires on Friday, has held the post of pattern cutter at the Rushden company.
Mr Martin, 64, of Portland Road, Rushden, joined the town's safety footwear and clothing makers as pattern cutter in 1952, when he was paid the princely sum of £10 a week.
"The pay has improved slightly since then," he said.
While he has worked for Totectors, Mr Martin has helped design and cut patterns for the many styles of shoes the company has produced.
He had to produce cardboard patterns or "forms" which were put together around a last to create the shoe upper.
Standard designs generally require about six forms per shoe, but more complicated ones sometimes need more than 15 separate pattern shapes.
He started off in the shoe trade as a clicker.
"You always tend to think you're never fully appreciated and that they never give you enough money, but I've enjoyed my time here, and got a lot of job satisfaction out of it," he said.
Now he plans to use his retirement to indulge his hobbies, which include listening to classical music, wine-making, walking and travelling.
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