Ready for the bush, the workshop, or a night out!
The Wait-a-Bits are named after the Ziziphus mucronata, or Buffalo Thorn tree. The thorns are difficult to untangle from because one points forward and the other backwards – causing you to have to 'wait-a-bit' while you untangle. We thought it’d be a perfect name for these boots as we wanted to riff on a classic design while making sure we kept it distinctly Jim Green and distinctly South African.
The Wait-a-Bits are an evolution of the Vellie or the Veldskoen (Afrikaans for field shoe), but with a twist. The style that many know today as the 'chukka' is most commonly an iteration of the South African Vellie. Note: The word 'chukka' has a slightly different history and may have been inspired by a different boot entirely, but over the decades, this style has come to be known as a chukka. This style of boot became a global icon in the 1950s after an English bootmaker discovered a lightweight boot that excelled in warmer weather while serving in the Second World War. The bootmaker simplified the design but kept all the core characteristics of the Vellie: durable, easy to repair, quick to make, and affordable. The boot was so successful that it needs no introduction these days – almost every footwear brand has its own iteration, and it has remained one of the greatest boot silhouettes ever designed.
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The Wait-a-Bits are an answer to a question Michael and Gareth had when discussing a collaboration: 'What would this style of boot look like if it came back to South Africa for one more round of revisions? Specifically, if this English boot landed at Jim Green Headquarters, what would have to be done to have our stamp of approval?'
Jim Green constructs boots for folks who are working through the harshest conditions. African Rangers who are in the bush all day, guides, construction workers, engineers, conservationists, and anyone who needs a pair of boots to last and survive. So, the Wait-a-Bits had to be built…
Description from Jim Green.
Shops in South Africa.
