PUMA Clyde (Made in Yugoslavia)

  • MODEL: PUMA CLYDE
  • MADE IN: YUGOSLAVIA
  • ART.NO: 9681

Not much can be known for certain on PUMA’s ‘Made in Yugoslavia’ Clyde but the elusive silhouette is one of the most sought after models. As PUMA never released much information on the shoe the specifics are constantly under debate. What was the original year of release? How many were made? And why did PUMA choose to produce in Yugoslavia?

It’s widely believed that this Clyde was produced circa 1973 with Suedes, Baskets, and Colibris all also being produced in Yugoslavia around the years of the Clyde’s release. It’s still completely unknown why PUMA chose Yugoslavia to produce their footwear, one theory claims Puma manufactured there, as the price of production was cheaper. However many pairs of these Clydes have been seen to have minor differences implying they could be handmade. Differences such as the signature ‘Clyde’ imprint on the side of the shoe, present on some, but not on others. The inscriptions on the tongues of the shoe have also been found to differ between older and younger pairs.

Another theory behind the ‘Made in Yugoslavia’ Clyde claims that PUMA moved production every so often to imprint a different cultural identity on their lines. Apart from Yugoslavia PUMA also manufactured their footwear in Taiwan, Vietnam, China, Japan, and Italy.

On first glance it’s hard to single out the ‘Made in Yugoslavia’ PUMA Clyde; made from the same materials we’re used to seeing on Clydes and Suedes. However the shoe discretely sports its production location on the tongue and a distinctively different PUMA cat on its tongue tab.

written by Sam Arojo

photography by errol

shoes contributed by Ollie Teeba

  • Eraz

    My dad had a pair of Yugoslav Clydes in green from 1974 with the distinctive Clyde signature and came in the aqua coloured box similar to the one in the photo but without the Clyde’s photo. I wound up with a pair of Puma Fit because I was in my high school track team and these were based on track shoe lasts. These shoes were sourced Stateside and wound up in Manila. The only thing I can think of why Puma outsourced to Yugoslavia is that at that time, many European countries were investing in Yugoslavia – think of the Yugo car :) btw Puma also had a factory in the Philippines in the 1980s and I think Clydes were produced (if my memory serves me right)

  • Swamp Yankee

    Around 1974 I had a pair of Puma Baskets made in Yugoslavia that were a cross breed between the Baskets and the Suede. The main body of the sneakers was high polished white leather with a high polished black leather stripe but the tongue was a light gray suede leather. I wish I still had those, but I was a 14 year old kid that wore them ’til they rotted off my feet. Then I bought a pair of Adidas Superstars (Shell tops), those were made in France, then I wore those ’til they rotted off my feet. Oh the memories. Most European countries have a long history of being quality boot/shoe makers, and Puma making them in Yugoslavia was like the first stepping stone of lowering costs before finally ending up in Asia like most of the rest. Take for example the Swiss boot maker Raichle, they started spreading their boot making around the ‘poorer’ European countries, Hungary for one, before taking a lot of production to Asia, and now that the Swiss company Mammut has bought them out, they’ve brought some of it back to Europe, and some of their boots are now made in Romania. Some of the best boots in the world are still made in Europe, but you’re gonna pay for them.