Blundstone Footwear ( ) is an Australian footwear brand, based in

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, with most manufacturing being done overseas since 2007. The company's best-known product is its line of laceless, elastic-sided, ankle-length boots.

History

The Blundstone company originated from companies set up by several free settlers who emigrated from England to

. John and Eliza Blundstone arrived in

from

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

, England on 14 October 1855. John Blundstone worked as a coachbuilder until 1870, when he began importing footwear from England later manufacturing boots in Hobart's Liverpool Street. By 1892, Blundstone's eldest son, Sylvanus, had joined him in business, and the pair formed J. Blundstone & Son, manufacturing boots in two outlets on Collins Street, later buying a purpose-built two-storey factory on Campbell Street. The company's importation arm was run by John's other son, William, as W.H. Blundstone & Co. Both companies initially prospered, but at the turn of the century, they found themselves in financial difficulty. J. Blundstone & Son was bought in 1901 by the Cane family of ironmongers, and W.H. Blundstone & Co. went bankrupt in 1909. The Canes ran the company until the

Great Depression in Australia Australia was affected badly during the period of the Great Depression of the 1930s. The Depression began with the Wall Street crash of 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. As in other nations, Australia had years of high unemployment, poverty, ...

caused a downturn in profits, which once again saw the company sold. The buyers were two brothers: James T.J. and Thomas Cuthbertson, who purchased the business in 1932. They were grandsons of James Cuthbertson an English settler who set out for

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in 1853, but were apparently blown off course by the

Roaring Forties The Roaring Forties are strong westerlies, westerly winds that occur in the Southern Hemisphere, generally between the latitudes of 40th parallel south, 40° and 50th parallel south, 50° south. The strong eastward air currents are caused by ...

and landed in Hobart instead, where he had also set up a shoemaking and importing business. The Cuthbertson brothers set about amalgamating their companies' manufacturing operations, retaining the Blundstone name for the company's tannery in

South Hobart South Hobart is one of Hobart's inner suburbs. It is bound by Dynnyrne, Fern Tree, West Hobart and the Hobart City Centre. Landmarks South Hobart is home to many of the most beautiful homes in Hobart, including the classical Georgian residenc ...

, and the factory and current headquarters in Moonah. It was owned by Sir Harold Cuthbertson until his death, and was passed onto his heirs and daughters, Anne Routley and Helen Dickinson, who run it to this day. Its company directors are Helen Dickinson, Anne Routley, Stephen Gunn and

Damian Bugg Damian John Bugg (born 11 October 1946) is an Australian barrister who served as the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions between 1999 and 2007. Prior to this appointment, he was the Tasmanian Director of Public Prosecutions from July ...

. The tannery closed in 2009.

Factory closure

In January 2007, Blundstone Australia announced that, due to increased costs, it would shift production and manufacturing activities from Hobart and New Zealand to

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

and India within the year, resulting in 360 job losses in Australia. However, Blundstone planned to continue to make 200,000 pairs of footwear at the Tasmanian factory each year, most likely gumboots. Australian's construction union, the

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) is Australia's largest Trade union, union in the construction, forestry, wikt:maritime, maritime, Textile manufacturing, textile, Clothing industry, clothing and Shoemaking, footw ...

, announced that it would boycott the company if it moved its operations overseas. The last two Australian-manufactured pairs of the Blundstone 803 are pictured here, unworn: Image:AustralianElasticSidedBoots2.jpg Image:AustralianElasticSidedBoots3.jpg

References

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External links

Blundstone Footwear Web Site AusBlundstone Footwear Web Site USABlundstone Footwear Web Site UK
Manufacturing companies established in 1870 Shoe companies of Australia Companies based in Hobart Clothing brands of Australia Australian companies established in 1870 Workwear

History

Factory closure

See also

References

External links