CREATIVES

If the shoe fits, wear it - or so the saying goes. GLENIS GREEN introduces June Reilly who finds that if the shoe fits, it simply has to be decorated.

Atalented artist with a lifelong background of self-taught painting and sculpting, a normally gregarious June Reilly found herself at a loose end when the Covid-19 lockdowns began last year.

Not one to admit defeat, June scouted about for something to keep her artistic hands occupied and soon saw a blank canvas – literally – in white sneakers.

Inspiration and several pots of textile and acrylic paint later and June’s “Happy Shoes” were born – hand painted with big, bright original designs.

She was tempted to call her venture “Happy Feet” but felt it would conjure up images of penguins from the popular children’s movie.

Her creations were immediately popular and she has found herself with plenty of customers.

June was the owner of a pottery studio at Glastonbury near Gympie called Australiana, which she ran for many years.

Now a youthful 80, June became well known for her Australian-themed pottery works which included a range of larrikin characters and animals involved in various activities.

She still has one of her own detailed works portraying The Man From Ironbark and the mischievous barber.

“I have done art all my life,” June says. “I just enjoy it … I wasn’t taught. I got a lot of inspiration from the countryside.”

June said her Happy Shoes usually started out as basic white sneakers from somewhere like Big W. She usually spends about four hours painting them with different designs which she gleans from her own experiences and sometimes inspiration from the internet.

She usually sells them for about $35 to $50, or a bit less for children’s shoes which, with cute bumblebee and ladybird designs, are very popular.

She also decorates more expensive shoes such as Nikes with sparkles and pretty trims and these have become especially popular among friends who like line dancing.

When not painting shoes June turns her hand to portraits of people – and pets – on commission.

One day she became tired of looking at the blank blinds on her kitchen window and painted them with shoals of bright fish which now swim across the view to her lush garden.

She has kept a few pottery works at her home from her Australiana days and still does others on commission – usually with an Australian theme, from shearers to kookaburras and possums, which are popular.

Finding an outlet for her Happy Shoes hasn’t been easy with lockdowns and restrictions affecting a range of local markets where they would usually sell, but word of mouth helps.

June said that now, rather than buying and decorating a range of shoes in many different sizes, she prefers people to buy their own shoes and bring them in for “happy” treatment.

A keen traveller and lover of June in the days when she owned the Australiana pottery studio near Gympie. cruising, June is looking forward to once again hitting the high seas with friends.

Trivia and table tennis also factor on her calendar but not line dancing.

“I’m not coordinated enough,” June says, adding that osteoarthritis is also an issue after having broken both her wrists at various times.

But mostly these days she spreads the happiness around with her colourful shoes – quite a “feat” in itself.

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“It was a labour intensive operation but it was an exciting time exporting scoured wool and leather. Even at such an early stage of the business we were selling to global markets.”

“In 2021 we have transformed to be a very sophisticated and modernised business that delivers high performance leathers to a worldwide market using state-of-the-art technology and being committed to a minimal environmental footprint.”

There have been some significant milestones in Packer Leather’s story including the wool scour closing in 1965 due to market conditions and the tannery became the main source of income and in 1967 the government resumed 14 acres of the factory’s land which saw a relocation to Narangba.

“When we left Chermside there were seven other larger tanneries and Packer Leather was the smallest but today we are the only one left in Queensland,” Lindsay said.

Fourth generation family member and Lindsay’s brother, Graham Packer joined the company in 1974 as International Marketing Director and was responsible for developing the leather export markets.

“We worked hard building credibility for our brand with companies in Japan, Germany, South Korea and the United States and soon all were enamoured with uniqueness of Kangaroo leathers providing one of the strongest and yet lightest natural leathers available,” Graham said.

“Packer Leather’s point of difference

World-class performance leather business celebrating 130 years

Over the past 18 months, businesses have reinvented themselves to tackle the adversity of a global pandemic but Packer Leather, one of the oldest and most respected family businesses in the Moreton Bay Region, has just celebrated 130 years of operation and acknowledges that ‘digging deep’ is nothing new.

World Wars, the Great Depression, the Global Financial Crisis, a factory relocation and new technologies and processes to match an overseas market have built resilience and fostered an open-minded approach with the six generations of family leading the Packer Leather business based in Narangba.

Packer Leather’s Chairman of the Board and fourth generation family member, Lindsay Packer has taken time to reflect this week on his 60 years with the company and recently shared some of the pivotal moments with his 115 strong staff when they gathered to celebrate this important milestone.

“When Packer Leather started in 1891 we were essentially two export businesses in one – wool scouring and a tannery. We were using horse-drawn carriages to move sheepskins and wool to market and we were even laying wool out on the grass to dry as we had no driers at that stage,” Lindsay said. Packer Leather - the early years. Packer Leather team in 2021. is not just our delivery of high-quality leathers, but we have built an amazing reputation for a business that could be trusted and a committed to the very best environmental practices.”

Lindsay and Graham are excited about the future and know that while it will bring a whole new set of challenges, Packer Leather has been built on resilience, experience and determination and they feel confident in the team going forward to take Packer Leather to the next stage of development.

The core team ready to take on this next stage includes David Packer – Managing Director, Andrew Luke – General Manager and Technical Director, Susan Packer – Logistics and Sales Manager, Mark Packer – Planning Manager.

For more information visit www.packerleather.com.au. If you would like to purchase our Australian-made leather you can go online at www. packerdirect.com.au or visit the Leather Shop onsite at Packer Leather, 101 Boundary Road, Narangba.