00:00Just outside of Adelaide, in a quiet industrial pocket, is a workshop that's been doing things
00:04the authentic way for decades.
00:05No fanfare, no bluster, just a steady hum of craftsmanship that refuses to compromise.
00:10Come with us as we take a look inside.
00:17Here at RM Williams, boots aren't mass-produced, they're handmade, slowly, precisely, because
00:23for the people in this workshop, the process is every bit as important as the final product.
00:28It begins in the clicking room.
00:29Thick hides of leather are laid out, assessed and cut using templates, by hand, one shape
00:34at a time.
00:35And for those who work with the leather every day, the value of a well-made boot is clear.
00:40It's the longevity of the product.
00:42There's no seams rubbing, there's no tearing or things like that, so it might be a lot of
00:47money to start with, but you don't buy another pair for 10, 15 years.
00:53I'm working clicking, and I do some quality control.
00:56So we cut out the leather, so we work on half a metre per pair.
01:00How many boots would you guys cut out in a day?
01:03We cut out about 1,200 pairs.
01:10Every upper enters the line as just a piece of leather, numbered, ticketed and passed on.
01:15But this is where the real transformation begins, gluing, stitching, shaping, turning.
01:19It's not fast, it's deliberate.
01:23The leather is obviously such high quality.
01:26It goes through a clicking department, people are watching it, they're looking for any abnormalities.
01:31It's getting inspected all the way through.
01:32It goes through our closing department, where every pair is individually stitched and modified
01:39and hand-glued.
01:40It goes through the making line, which is the big process of the boot, where, once again,
01:44it's all hand-operated on these machines.
01:47This isn't automated, it's orchestrated, guided by memory, feel and experience.
01:52So the back seam is the most integral, one of the most integral parts, because that's
01:56when the boot starts to become closed, so that's what we call closing.
02:00From there, each upper is flipped and shaped, ready to take its final steps, and throughout
02:05the process, each pair is lovingly passed from one worker to the next.
02:11Over 80 pairs of hand have touched that one pair of boot, polished it up, and there's
02:15so many people in this company that are so proud, it's just amazing.
02:20The boots made here aren't just something to be worn, they mean more than that, to the
02:24wearer and to the people who make them.
02:27You've got that pride, you've got that craftsmanship, so much effort goes into it.
02:32That kind of pride doesn't happen overnight, it's built year by year, and passed on, even
02:37through families.
02:39You've been here for how long?
02:41It'll be 18, 19 years.
02:4218, 19 years, incredible.
02:44My son works here, when he first applied for his job, no one knew he was my son, so I
02:49thought
02:49that was pretty cool, because when he got the job, he did it on his own merit.
02:53I was so proud of him.
02:55Nice.
02:55Sorry.
02:56No, he doesn't.
02:56That was great.
02:57That's lovely.
03:02There's not too many footwear factories left in Australia.
03:05The company's such an iconic brand, it really means a lot to me.
03:09I try to reinforce that, and my team's being proud to make our own Williams boots.
03:12Some of the tools used here date back almost a century.
03:15Rebuilt to last as long as the boots themselves.
03:17We had an old-style blocking machine, and that's what makes the one-piece.
03:21Without that, we wouldn't have a one-piece leather product.
03:26And here we are today, producing what was produced 100 years, well not quite 100 years, 90 years
03:31ago.
03:31We were produced today on the same similar machines, but in a much safer, more efficient
03:35and quicker way.
03:36And we're the only ones in the world that have got this particular machine.
03:39The Craftsman isn't just a boot.
03:41It's a symbol of place, of pride, of time well spent.
03:46It's the boot that represents so many different things, from the farmland right to the city
03:51man who wants to dress that next level up.
03:53In time, it's become more than a boot.
03:55It's a symbol of Australian identity, worn by icons across the world.
04:00Hugh Jackman was a big highlight.
04:02Getting to meet Hugh Jackman.
04:03Phoebe Tonkins, I think she came through.
04:05Great to meet her, and she was wearing the boot.
04:07My most favourite was Casey Stoner.
04:09He was coming through and I was like, oh my gosh.
04:12And everyone's like, are you okay?
04:13I said, I have to go and say hello.
04:15So I went up and said hello to him.
04:16I said, my husband is going to die.
04:19Kevin Bacon.
04:20Okay, your big Kevin Bacon fan.
04:21Not really.
04:22I just saw it and thought, he looks really good in those.
04:24Yep.
04:25It might be easy to feel enamoured with the stars who wear them.
04:28But after spending a day in the workshop, it's clear that the people who make these boots
04:32are the reason they've stood the test of time.
04:35We didn't just come here for Iron Williams' iconic Craftsman boots.
04:38We wanted to discover the process that made them so.
04:41The time where everything's moving faster, this place reminds us that not everything should.
04:46Some things deserve to take their time.
04:47This his independence.
04:57If that happens.
