The design is based on the “Aurland moccasin,” created by Norwegian shoemaker Nils Tveranger in the 1930s. After the design gained popularity in Europe, the Spaulding family in New Hampshire began manufacturing a similar slip-on shoe called “The Loafer”.
The shoe became popular being worn from Hollywood actors to politicians and punks.
The name “penny loafer” stuck because students and young people, particularly in the 1950s, put a penny in the cutout for a phone call or as a good luck charm.
