SEBAGO
SEBAGO
Sebago is an american footwear brand. The Penny Loafer and the Docksides are the Sebago’s more known products.
The Beginnings
Sebago has been founded in 1946 in Westbrook, Maine, by Daniel J. Wellehan. Wellehanwas a five shoes stores owner and decided to open his shoe factory. He started a partnership with other two shoe factory businessmen, William Beaudoin and Joseph Cordeau.
The brand name came from the Sebago lake, the lake was some kilometers far from Westbrook. In the Indians Abenaki language Sebago means “water basin from the lengthened form”.
The first produced shoe was the Penny Loafer. It was produced in according to the Abenaki traditional sewing.
The first boat shoes were produced in 1948, but the license was sold to the Uniroyal.
The brand developing
The original name was Sebago–Moc‘sCompany.
In 1950 the Sebago – Moc‘s reached the million dollars and in 1952 the daily production arrived at 2.000 pairs of shoes.
In 1963 the Sebago–Moc‘s constructed a new factory only for woman shoes. In 1964 it began to sell in Europe thanks to a collaboration with the entrepreneur Francisco Gaudier.
The Docksides were created in 1970, and become one of the most known in the world. For the occasion, the company decided to simplify the name and it become Sebago.
In 1978 Ted Turner modeled for the Sebago’s poster. Robert Edward“Ted” Turner III is an American businessman. He is famous because he’s the CNN founder and he has married Jane Fonda.
In the ‘80 Docksides became a must-have in the Ivy League Schools in the United States and were mentioned in the book: The Official Preppy Handbook by Jonathan Roberts.
In 1981 they launched Campides, a new line for outdoor and free time.
Sebago was the first american brand to sponsor a boat in the O-Star Race,in the 1984. This important sponsorship followed others, like the Celebrity Regatta, the Liberty Cup,the Americas Cup and the Young America team for the Louis Vuitton Cup 96/97.
New waterproof shoes,the Drysides, was launch in the 1994. At the end of the ‘90 the brand crossed a crisis. In 2003 Dan Wellehan Junior,son of the founder, sealed Sebago to Wolverine World Wide.
Wolverine World Wide
Wolverine World Wide Company controls many footwear brands.
From 2015 to 2017 Wolverine World Wide has seen to drop its returns. The sale of Sebago has been part of “Wolverine Way Forward”. A strategic plan in order to optimize the business pocketbook.
BasicNet
The 31 July 2017 Sebago enters in the BasicNet pocketbook.
The italian group was founded by Marco Boglionein 1995.
The Turinese BasicNet S.p.A has undersigned a contract from 14,25 million dollars for the Sebago acquisition and has immediately integrated Sebago in own business model.
Today
Sebago is currently distributed in 90 countries worldwide.
The BasicNet group, after integrating the new brand in its own marketplace –like successfully happened with Kappa, Robe di Kappa, Jesus Jeans, Superga, K–Way, Sabelt and Briko – in June 2018 introduces the first Sebago collection, completely designed in Turin, Italy, at Pitti.