A Calgary company known for its cowboy boots is stepping into a new era, said its chief executive officer.
“I think when we acquired the business just about a year ago, one of the things that we did was we really took a different lens on what’s happening here,” said Eytan Broder of Alberta Boot Co.
“We saw this beautiful story and beautiful tradition of what’s happening as a business and locally made product…. But I think what we realized is that just people don’t know about it outside of our city, so we decided to strategize and think about how we can take this story to the world.”
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As a company founded in Calgary in 1978 by the late Clem Gerwing, who was a Spitfire pilot in the Second World War, Alberta Boot is something of an institution in the city, said Broder. It has provided handcrafted cowboy boots to everyone from local celebrities to royalty, as well as supplying boots for the RCMP and other police forces across North America.
The company was purchased last year by a group of local investors, sparking plans for a multimillion-dollar expansion under a new management group, Broder said. It includes revamping the firm’s line of cowboy boots to make them more functional for producers, he added.
Besides recently announcing it will be making the official cowboy boot of the Calgary Stampede, the company unveiled plans for what it called a brand experience centre that will open in early to mid-June. The 30,000-sq.-foot facility is planned for near the Stampede grounds in the city’s downtown Beltline area, which is where the company was originally located.
Alberta Boot plans to turn the centre into a tourist attraction that showcases how its products are made, and host things such as corporate events, said Broder.
“It’ll have educational experiences, immersive tours, things like a boot shine station, and it’ll really become sort of this intersection of entertainment, education, shopping, and also a gathering venue — a place where we can hold events and really tell the Calgary story.”
As many as 47 workers could be hired by the company in the next two years, said Broder. Employees make boots by hand using traditional methods such as Goodyear welting.
“So, we’re talking about handcrafted products, we’re talking about authenticity, we’re talking about quality inputs, locally made products. These are all wonderful things that I think we all cherish, and that’s what the company was founded on, and it was also founded on a commitment to western heritage.”
However, Alberta Boot will be combining old-fashioned skills and tools with new technologies such as laser-guided feeding tools for the leather, he said.
Besides moving into urban products such as Chelsea boots to attract younger customers, the firm is also changing its line of cowboy boots, said Broder.
“We’re looking very closely at expanding the range, so historically, ranchers and farmers did find our boots quite dressy and not appropriate for working. We’ve taken that to heart.”
The company recently launched its Nanton work boot, which contains features such as an anti-slip rubberized sole, square toe and a roper heel, he said.
“And we’re looking at launching a series of other boots in that vein. We’re going to wait and see if our rural customers like what we’ve done and listen to them….”
The firm also plans to offer apparel such as Alberta Boot hats, turning the company into more of a lifestyle brand, he said. As part of its expansion plans, it has opened stores in Banff and Lake Louise and is considering locations in other cities in Alberta, he added.
The company currently gets its leather from suppliers in countries such as United States, Spain and Italy. Tanneries can be difficult to establish in Western Canada because they use plenty of water, potentially sparking environmental challenges, said Broder.
“It’s something that we are looking to in the future — could we partner up and have a tannery in Alberta? It would be a really interesting supply chain move for us. It’s something that we certainly are going to be looking at down the road.”
