Blundstone
Blundstone: footwear brand born in Tasmania
It was born in Tasmania in 1870 on the initiative of John Blundstone. He wanted to make shoes that could withstand any weather and any rough terrain. The brand has been worn by Australian soldiers, policemen and explorers up to being one of the brands of leather, nubuck and suede boots with the unmistakable colored elastic, best known in the world. The headquarters is in Moonah, in Tasmania, and produces about 400,000 pairs a year, but there are offices in Australia and New Zealand. Attentive to sustainable development, it also owns the John Bull brand.
At the end of the 19th century the companies began to have financial problems.
At the end of the 19th century the companies began to have financial problems. J. Blundstone & Son was bought by the Cane family in 1901, and W.H. Blundstone & Co. went bankrupt in 1909. The Canes led the company up to the Great Depression in Australia and the company was sold. The buyers were: James T.J. and Thomas Cuthbertson, in 1932.
The Cuthbertson brothers continued the business with successive mergers under the Blundstone brand, in South Hobart, and with the headquarters in Moonah. In 2000 the Blundstone company bought the John Bull shoe brand, founded in 1934 in New Zealand.
The tannery was closed in 2009.
In January 2007, Blundstone Australia announced that due to the financial crisis the product would no longer be produced in Australia and New Zealand but in Thailand, India and Vietnam. However Blundstone also planned that at least 200,000 pairs of shoes would still come out of the Tasmanian factory each year.
The brand is now distributed exclusively for Italy by WP lavori in corso.
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