COLLECTION

The foundation of the Shoe Quarter's collection was laid by Anthony Hendriks. Besides being a shoemaker and teacher of shoemaking, he was a passionate collector of shoes. During the SLEM (Shoes, Leather and Fashion) exhibition held in Waalwijk in 1953, Hendriks presented his collection. His collection, which included footwear from all over the world, historical footwear and shoemaking tools, attracted a lot of attention. This also did not escape a number of shoe manufacturers from the region, who then took the initiative to establish a shoe museum. In this way, Hendriks' collection could be permanently displayed to the public.

Since then, the Shoe Quarter's collection has expanded considerably. At present, the collection numbers over 20,000 objects. These are not only shoes, although with just under 13,000 pieces they make up the largest sub-collection, but also machines and tools used in leather tanning and shoemaking, small leather accessories and advertising material from shoe manufacturers.