Brand Profile: The Story of XTRATUF Footwear Built for Work and Adventure.
XTRATUF has been making dependable boots for over 75 years. The brand began in Alaska, where fishermen trusted its rugged design to face the toughest seas. Today, XTRATUF continues to grow, creating footwear built for both work and adventure.
How has the brand changed since it first started?
XTRATUF started over 75 years ago in the USA. Our iconic ‘Legacy’ brown boot (affectionately dubbed the ‘Alaskan sneaker’) was adopted by Alaskan fishermen as their ‘go-to’ boot to wear onboard commercial fishing boats, braving the world’s deadliest seas.
As the tale goes, fishermen would travel from across the USA for the fishing season, the Legacy became somewhat of a badge of honour for those fishermen and, once the season was over, they took the boots back home with them – spreading XTRATUF across all 50 states and opening opportunities for the brand beyond commercial fishing.
With that, our range has expanded, and we now have a clear distinction between our ‘Commercial’ and our ‘Explorer’ (lifestyle) ranges. Explorer ranges are suitable for exactly that, whether that be adventures on land, sea or snow – included within this category are our Ankle Deck Boot (ADB) ranges (Sport, Ice, Cold Weather), as well as special releases, such as our Camp Collection and OOTO ranges for FW25.
New for FW26 is the Legacy Elevate which bridges the Gap between our Commercial and Explorer range, offering the best of both worlds: heavy duty triple dipped shell and sneaker-like comfort.
Who are the Distributors for the brand in Europe?
We recently partnered with Good Question Supplies who will be distributing the brand in mainland Europe through their sales network.
Footsure continues to distribute XTRATUF in the UK.
How does the brand come up with new designs and collections?
XTRATUF has always been strongly led by our community, we create functional footwear that people need. Our priority is and always will be functionality. Take the Camp Collection for example – we saw people using our classic ADB for muddy trails, so we created a new, outdoor outsole that was more suited to that terrain.
We also work closely with brand partners who align with our brand values, but also who truly live the XTRATUF lifestyle. We have collaborated with the Salmon Sisters for many years, creating their own range of Legacy and ADB’s – the Alaskan-born sisters, Emma and Claire, are passionate about product quality, their brand is a celebration of coastal heritage, wild places, ocean stewardship and what it means to be Alaskan.
How does XTRATUF approach sustainability?
Our US based Product Development team are constantly striving for ways to utilise more sustainable, environmentally friendly materials into our products. Within the current range and upcoming product, we have added:
· BIOLITE Foam, a brand developed, high performance, durable, biodegradable foam sourced from bio-based carbon. BIOLITE is used in the ADB Sport footbed and outsole, the ADB & Camp Collection footbeds and in the kids TUFs, Apres Fish slide, Riptide sandal.
· YULEX has replaced neoprene in a range of products for SS26
· Recycled Yarn is being incorporated into pull tabs on ADB ranges
· Bioprene, our bio-based neoprene is in our new ADB and ADB Sport ranges.
· Our packaging (boxes, tissues and hangers) are 100% recyclable.
How important is the kids market to the brand?
As previously discussed, functionality is key when designing our product, and we feel that shouldn’t just apply to our adult range of boots. Kids’ feet are developing, and we utilise the same technology in our kids’ ranges as we do our adults, setting us apart from the competition, who simply make smaller, cheaper versions of their boots.
Our kids’ range now includes the Legacy, classic ADB, ‘TUFS’, Riptide sandal and we will be introducing a kids version of the best-selling ADB Ice.
What has been your favourite project or moment from this past year?
We launched our first event collab boot with a member of our Pro Team, Andrew ‘Cotty’ Cotton in April this year. The Cotty boot is an adaptation of our ‘Wheelhouse’ range, working with Cotty and partners, Fishbird, we created a limited-edition boot, designed for those who push the limits.
We shot the launch campaign in Devon, UK and Nazare, Portugal – teasing the boot on social, we hosted a launch event at Lost Shore Surf Resort in Scotland, inviting some of the UK’s best surfers to come down and surf with Cotty and meet the XTRATUF team.
www.xtratuf.com
