Startas: a sneaker success story

Head of Sheriff & Cherry, Mauro Massarotto is behind the revival of retro training shoe Startas. S&C shelves are now lined with Startas models, also available in London and Milan.

The trainer has been the fashion item over the last two decades, spawning its own subculture fed by style magazines, coffee-table books, limited-edition colourways and high-fashion collaborations. Croatia has its own sneaker success story about to go global: Startas.

Some three decades on, Startas has been revamped and revitalised by Rovinj-born Mauro Massarotto, a passionate globe-trotting fashion consultant and owner of Croatia’s best fashion boutiques Sheriff & Cherry, with its showcase branch in Zagreb. Where once this store was filled with limited-edition adidas and foreign brands, its shop window is now awash with Startas.

The award of the Croatian Design Oscar in 2008 to the Startas shoe proved a fitting acknowledgement of a remarkable comeback. The shoe now provides authentic retro presence to the shelves of Harvey Nichols in London and Biffi Milano in Italy. The shoe is also available at 30 Borovo branches across Croatia, named after the original factory in Vukovar.

From 1976 in communist Yugoslavia to today’s soon-to-be EU Croatia, Startas sneakers have been hand-made using the original 1970s techniques – canvas uppers are hand-sewn and dyed, logos hand-stitched, sole moulds hand cut and glued. The final product, in its own way each unique, is hand-boxed ready for sale.

Startas adorned the feet of Yugoslavia’s athletics heroes and schoolchildren for PE. The signature design was indeed more like a school pump: simple and minimal, lace-up canvas with a rubber sole. Startas sneakers are light, functional and affordable – a true Communist fashion ideal – though the new line also features deluxe suede, denim and satin versions.

What gives this story real heart is the location of the Borovo factory: Vukovar, the most decimated of Croatian cities in the war of the early 1990s. The factory that at one time employed over 22,000 staff to craft more than 22 million pairs (along with car tyres and various other rubber products) was virtually destroyed, with many staff losing not just their livelihood but their lives. Despite the obvious difficulties, Startas production, although slowed, never ceased. Such continuity become a source of pride, the psychological importance of clinging to a normal life. The success of Startas has been a boon to the local economy.

Mauro plans to launch limited-edition styles each season and stay true to the brand’s affordability, with a retail price of around 30 euros. Customers can select several favourites throughout the year.

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