The Scottish company behind footwear favoured by royals, celebrities and festival-goers has filed for administration.
Hunter Boot, famed for its wellington boots, blamed climate change, the pandemic, global supply chain issues and the cost-of-living crisis for debts of more than £100m.
Headquartered in Edinburgh, the origins of the brand date back to 1856 when it was known as the North British Rubber Company. Production was boosted when the War Office asked the company to construct a sturdy boot for the troops in World War One's flooded trenches.
In more recent times, Hunter was awarded the Royal Warrant by the Duke of Edinburgh in 1976 and made gold wellies for Team GB gold medal winners at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
But from 2020, problems started compounding, from prolonged dry weather to Covid-19 lockdowns, followed by soaring costs and inflation.
The company, which has 121 employees in the UK, stated that it has faced “significant challenges since late 2019“ due to a combination of reduced demand, the pandemic, and more recently, supply chain disruption.
“Supply chain challenges remained throughout 2022, with ongoing pandemic disruption creating a shortage of capacity in the shipping industry, which led to increased costs and missed deliveries.
“Inflation has also had a negative impact on the business, with increasing material and overhead costs reducing gross margins. In addition, ongoing cost of living and inflationary pressures dampened consumer demand.”
The document filed to Companies House stated that “unsesasonal weather in the US“, the group’s largest market, led to “a significant decline in revenues“, while global Covid restrictions including store closures and event cancellations hammered profit margins ever further.
Hunter's intellectual property has been bought by Authentic Brands Group, which recently also acquired Ted Baker.
Its founder, chairman and chief executive Jamie Salter, said: “We are excited to finalise the acquisition of Hunter, an original footwear and outerwear pioneer.
“At the intersection of fashion and outdoor, Hunter introduces another elevated global brand to Authentic’s diverse lifestyle portfolio - we will look forward to working with them and our greater partner network to continue growing the Hunter brand.”
Apart from its Edinburgh headquarters, Hunter also had a presence in England, the Netherlands, Japan, China and the United States.
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