Blundstone Footwear
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Footwear |
| Founded | 1870 in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia |
| Founder | John Blundstone |
| Headquarters | Hobart , Australia |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Anne Routley, Helen Dickinson, Stephen Gunn, Damian Bugg (board of directors) |
| Products | Footwear (notably laceless, elastic-sided ankle boots) |
Number of employees | 360 (jobs cut in 2007 due to factory closure) |
| Website | www |
Blundstone Footwear () is a footwear brand originating from Australia, headquartered in Hobart, Tasmania. Since 2007, the majority of its production has been relocated abroad. The company's signature item is a laceless, elastic-sided ankle boot designed primarily for work purposes.
History
The roots of Blundstone trace back to English settlers in Tasmania. John and Eliza Blundstone arrived in Hobart in 1855. Initially, John was employed as a coachbuilder before he began importing boots and eventually manufacturing them on Liverpool Street.
By 1892, John's son Sylvanus partnered with him to establish J. Blundstone & Son, which operated factories located on Collins and Campbell Streets. Simultaneously, John's other son William supervised the import operations under the name W.H. Blundstone & Co.
While both businesses thrived initially, they encountered financial difficulties by the early 20th century. In 1901, the Cane family acquired J. Blundstone & Son, whereas W.H. Blundstone & Co. declared bankruptcy in 1909. The Cane family managed the company until the economic pressures of the Great Depression led to its sale in 1932 to brothers James T.J. and Thomas Cuthbertson, descendants of James Cuthbertson, an English settler who had founded a shoemaking enterprise in Hobart.
The Cuthbertsons unified manufacturing activities under the Blundstone brand, retaining the tannery located in South Hobart and situating factory headquarters in Moonah.
Ownership later transferred to Sir Harold Cuthbertson and subsequently to his heirs Anne Routley and Helen Dickinson, who presently oversee company operations. The board of directors includes Dickinson, Routley, Stephen Gunn, and Damian Bugg.
The tannery ceased operations in 2009.
Factory closure
In January 2007, Blundstone Australia declared plans to relocate production from facilities in Hobart and New Zealand to factories in Thailand and India due to escalating expenses. This decision resulted in the elimination of 360 jobs within Australia. Despite this shift, the company intended to maintain an annual output of 200,000 pairs at its Tasmanian factory, focusing mainly on gumboots.
The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union responded by threatening a boycott should manufacturing be outsourced overseas.
The final two Australian-produced pairs of the Blundstone 803 model remain unused: