Dr. Martens is a brand of shoe, often known as "Doc Martens", "Docs", or "DM's". They have a characteristic air-cushioned sole developed by Dr. Klaus Maertens (note the different spelling).

Klaus Maertens was a doctor in the German army during World War II. While on leave in 1945, he injured his ankle while skiing in the Bavarian Alps. He found that the standard issue army boots were too uncomfortable on the injured foot. While recuperating he designed improvements to the boots. He designed a shoe that was made of soft leather, and softer, air-padded soles. When the war ended and the Germans commenced panicked looting of valuables from their cities, Dr. Maertens took something truly valuable: leather from a cobbler's shop. He made himself a pair of boots with the now-famous air-cushioned soles.

He didn't have much luck selling his shoes until he met up with an old university friend, Dr. Herbert Funck, in Munich in 1947. Funck was intrigued by the new shoe design, and the two went into business that year in Seeshaupt, Germany, using some discarded rubber from Luftwaffe airfields. The comfortable and durable soles were a big hit - with housewives; 80% of their sales during the first decade were to women over 40.

Sales had grown so much by 1952 that they opened a factory in Munich. In 1959, the company had grown large enough that Drs. Maertens and Funck started looking to market internationally. Almost immediately, British shoe manufacturer R. Griggs Ltd. bought patent rights in order to manufacture the shoes in the UK. Griggs anglicised the name, slightly re-shaped the heel to make them fit better, added the trademark yellow stitching, and trademarked the soles AirWair.