Cobbler makes size-75 shoes to stamp out Covid-19

Grigore Lup [Photo: Raul Stef]

A Romanian cobbler who made giant shoes to help keep people apart during the first wave of Covid-19 has come up with a new line of huge winter boots to stamp out the second onslaught of the disease. Grigore Lup said the shoes he launched in May in a European size 75 had sold across the world and helped keep his store afloat in the Transylvanian city of Cluj.

He started making them when he noticed people were standing too close together and ignoring social distancing rules. Two people facing each other in his elongated footwear would be forced to stand just under two metres apart. On top of regular orders, he said he also got calls from performers - including a Belgian dance group and a U.S. rock band - and a number of people who just had very big feet.