We welcome this year’s World Cup soccer season with the unveiling of a new kind of soccer boot. This month, innovative clothing brand Isso Mali will launch its presence internationally with the Football Fanatics collection, a tribute to the Johannesburg World Cup – which commences this June.
The collection was designed by South Australian, Des Siopoulos, a 70-year-old veteran of leather craftsmanship. Des is fondly referred to as South Australia’s skin-man and is one of the founders of the ugg boot we know today.
The Isso Mali brand was founded by Michael Bois, owner of men’s clothing store Swarvie Saint, in collaboration with creative director, George Sezenias.
Only a handful of people have been able to preview the range, which has been a well kept secret for over a year. The colour splashed suede boots are all hand cut and sewn and have the softest wool cushioning – they’re sure to keep your tootsies toasty warm this winter.
Later this year, Isso Mali will be unveiling a unique collection of kangaroo leather uggs along with some other uniquely Australian kangaroo leather apparel. The South Australian business has received a Government Grant from RIRDC (Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation) for its work with kangaroo leather and will use this money to explore new ways to introduce the leather into fashion markets.
Michael Bois said about the Isso Mali team, “We love our leather, and kangaroo leather in particular is an amazing material. We are really excited to be working with it. It’s one of the most durable leathers known to man and is also a more eco-friendly leather. The shift towards using materials with a lower carbon footprint will create opportunities for this leather here in Australia and internationally. At the moment, George and I are learning a great deal from Des’s 50-plus years of experience in the leather trade. It’s such a steep learning curve.”
We’ve been told the Football Fanatics collection will only be available in some stores throughout South Africa and Europe but the brand is now on the hunt for an Australian stockist. In the meantime, the only way to get yourself a pair of Football Fanatics is to place your order online at www.issomali.com – there are styles for nineteen different countries!
For all enquiries please email info@issomali.com or visit
www.issomali.com.
From the team at Isso Mali
