The Clarks ‘Jamaica Pack’ is Filled with Caribbean Cool
may have been founded in Somerset, England, but the brand has a second spiritual home in the tropics of Jamaica. The Caribbean island has an to crepe-soled classics like the Desert Boot, and – so much so that entire books have been devoted to the topic. As such, Clarks have prepared an extensive capsule of Jamaican hits paying tribute to the people that have made them so popular.
The nods to Jamaica are purposely overt by way of flag-adorned pull tabs, printed swing tags, and patriotic stitching. Two editions of the Wallabee Boot are proud and loud, with one in black suede and Jamaican flag trims on the ankle collar and heel strip, while the other is a mellow yellow number finished with dark green leather edges. Dark crepe soles not only look good, they also stay much cleaner than the usual natural rubber finish.
The duo of Desert Boots similarly follows a similar execution to the Wallabees, but the stitchdown construction allows for extra accents to pop through. In the case of the black suede pair, parallel stitch lines of yellow and green match up to the stripes crossing the upper. A massive ‘Trek Man’ is screenprinted onto the medial side for an overbranded expression of Clarks’ major significance in Jamaica.
Finally, the single Desert Trek might be the dark horse of the pack – not only for its near all-black finish. It features the same yellow and green detailing as the Desert Boot, but it adds an extra detail in mismatched aglets, while the other pairs simply have bead embellishments. The centre seam is also a defining design cue of the Desert Trek, and is particularly favoured over in Jamaica.
The Clarks ‘Jamaica Pack’ is available now directly from Clarks internationally.