Stetson; A History
Stetson; A History
Posted by Kevin Neilson on 12/19/2011
In 1865, John Stetson started his own hat making business, in Philidelphia, with a small rented room and some hand tools. Initially, he had $10 of fur to work with (which, back then, was certainly worth more than it is now, but still not a tremendous amount).
A truly skilled hat maker, Stetson developed the “Boss of the Plains” hat, also known as the “Hat of the West,” a year after opening. These Stetson hats became famous for their quality, craftsmanship, durability, and aesthetic appeal.
Part of Stetson’s marketing strategy, when he first started selling his hats, was to send letters to merchants throughout the Southwest, asking for minimum orders of 12 hats per store. He got so many orders, he soon had to use a factory to produce enough hats to meet demand.
Quality was a primary focus, for Stetson, as he sought to infuse exceptional quality into every hat he made. This brought a tremendous following and a growing popularity that led the Stetson business to become, in 1886, the largest hat company in the world. Today, it remains one of the oldest, most successful and still one of the largest hat companies in the world.
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