EMU Australia: sheepskin boots and slippers from Geelong – new at SportFits

Some shoes you put on after a day on the slopes because they are warm and because you don't want to deal with laces any more. That is exactly what EMU Australia is known for: boots and slippers made from Australian sheepskin, now also available at SportFits, mainly for women.

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The story doesn't begin with shoes but with hides: with Jackson's Tannery, which started out on the coast of Victoria in 1948. It was one of the first businesses to make sheepskin boots on a larger scale and, from the 1970s, also supplied the surf scene. Among Australian surfers, sheepskin boots have long been common: slip them on quickly after leaving the water, warm, no socks needed. EMU Australia later grew out of the tannery, named after the emu, the flightless bird. Today the brand is based in Geelong, south-west of Melbourne, where it designs its shoes and makes some of them itself.

The Stinger is the shape most people associate with EMU first: a simple boot without laces made from double-face sheepskin, suede on the outside, wool directly against your foot on the inside. The wool keeps you warm and absorbs moisture before it starts to feel clammy, which is why many people wear sheepskin boots without socks. Most models are water-repellent: snowflakes and a short shower bead off, but they are not made for slush.

The Stinger Micro reaches just above the ankle, the Stinger Mini has a higher shaft, and the Stinger Micro Flatform 2.0 sits on a higher platform sole. The boots feel tight at first and stretch as you wear them.

With the Platinum line, EMU puts production in Australia front and centre: the models are cut and sewn by hand in Geelong, passing through the hands of more than 15 people. The Platinum Stinger Mini looks like the regular Stinger Mini, but has a removable sheepskin-covered footbed. You can take it out to air, which helps if you wear the boots every day. The Platinum line at SportFits also includes the Stinger Lo, Mintaro and Slim Darling.

You can recognise the Sharky family by its sole: the rubber is serrated along the sides like a shark's teeth, hence the name. The sole is also thicker than on the Stinger and keeps more distance from the cold ground. The Sharky Mini is the basic boot on this sole, the Sharky Mini Town Flatform has a smoother leather surface and a pull tab, and the Elise gets lacing all the way round.

The Blurred also sits on the Sharky sole and has a side zip and a waterproof rubber rand at the bottom. That makes it the model best suited to a wet pavement; SportFits also carries it as the Blurred Micro and Blurred Teddy. The Blurred Teddy WN comes from the autumn/winter 2026 collaboration with We Norwegians: teddy sheepskin at the front, suede at the back, plus the Norwegian brand's badge.

Alongside the boots, EMU makes slippers that sit somewhere between house shoe and shoe: with their rubber sole you can also wear them to the letterbox or out on the terrace. The Sharky Scuff is an open slipper with a lambswool lining on the Sharky sole, and the Sharky Adventure Scuff adds embroidery on the suede. The Starley is fully enclosed with a fluffy teddy upper, and the Mckay is a light slipper with a memory foam midsole.

After a day in ski boots, slippers like these are a real relief, in a hotel or a holiday flat, and they take up hardly any space in your travel bag. They are not made for long distances.

EMU suits you if you want warm feet in autumn and winter and are mostly in town, out and about or relaxing after skiing. For winter hikes, ice or long walks through slush, a winter boot with a membrane is the better choice, because most EMU models are water-repellent but not waterproof.

Sheepskin does not go in the washing machine: dab stains with cold water and a little wool detergent. Let wet boots dry at room temperature, never on a radiator or in the sun, because heat makes sheepskin shrink and harden. EMU's Care Kit has cleaners for sheepskin and suede.