Thrifted Dr. martens (first ever production outside of the UK) for 20 bucks (NZD) - 1461’s, Made in New Zealand between ‘89 - mid ‘90s
These are hands down my favourite pair of Docs I own and I just wanted to share this.
Picked these up while thrifting for literally 20 NZD and I honestly couldn’t believe what I was looking at when I noticed the made in NZ stamp inside. At first I just thought they were a cool vintage brown pair of 1461s, but after doing a heap of digging online I realised they’re actually a pretty unique part of Dr. Martens history.
These are Dr. Martens “College by Accent” 1461s, produced sometime between ‘80s to mid ‘90s (not 100% sure on the exact year). What makes them special is that they were the first Dr. Martens ever manufactured outside of the UK.
The crazy part to me is that they were made in New Zealand, specifically in Dunedin - my hometown.
From what I could find, the Accent Group obtained the rights from Dr. Martens to manufacture them locally out of Dunedin during the late ‘80s to mid ‘90s. They’re still genuine licensed Docs and seem to have become pretty impossible to find (at least online where I’ve looked. I’ve read that the NZ-made pairs are rated really highly because of the leather quality and overall construction.
Honestly, finding out these came from my own hometown made me appreciate them way more. Dunedin’s got a pretty strong history with manufacturing and old-school craftsmanship (but young to the rest of the world lol), so it’s cool knowing a small piece of Dr. Martens history happened in NZ of all places.
The leather on these is insanely nice too. They’ve got that worn-in look without being trashed, and they feel super solid compared to a lot of newer leather shoes I have. I took them to a cobbler and the soles still have heaps of life left in them and even the original markings are still visible underneath. I love all the little details like the old “College by Accent” branding and the translucent brown sole.
I also just think the colour is unreal. You don’t really see many vintage Docs in this shade of brown, especially not 1461s with this sort of shape and age. They look even better in person than in photos.
I’m definitely keeping these forever. Even if they aren’t worth anything, the combination of the history behind them and being made in my hometown makes them one of the coolest thrift finds I’ve ever had.
Also still can’t get over the fact these were sitting in a thrift store for 20 bucks lol.