Why Sloanes gave Hunter Wellies the boot after production moved to China

Not many brands can lay claim to dressing Kate Moss, Princess Diana and the Kardashians.

Hunter, the creators of the Wellington boots long loved by aristocrats and festival-goers alike, can.

But despite this unique accolade, the Edinburgh-based company announced a few days ago that they had entered receivership with debts in excess of £100 million.

Herein lies a cautionary tale for many a British heritage brand.

When The Official Sloane Ranger Handbook was published in 1980, it identified Hunter boots as the country footwear de rigueur for any self-respecting Sloane.

Sex and the City star Sarah Jessica Parker is seen in her Hunter boots on the set of And Just Like That in New York

British pop star Ellie Goulding weathered the mud at Glastonbury Festival in 2016 in her Hunter Wellies

Princess Diana confirmed this when she chose to be photographed in a pair for her pre-engagement photos in Balmoral.

Her choice was hardly a surprise; long before 1981, the Hunter boot was the go-to of both ranchers chasing wayward cattle and pearl-wearing grannies stomping around from point to point.

Indeed, Prince Philip awarded Hunter a royal warrant in 1976.

Their appeal? They were ambitious yet accessible – and their durability made them worth the triple-figure price tag.

The company started in 1856 as the North British Rubber Company. The longevity of the boots was ensured by a unique rubber dipping process, which kept the inner rubberized sock leak-proof even after many years of wear.

These weren’t just boots for tofs – they were too practical to be just a cliché. Tenant and landlord, kennelman and hunt master – they all wore hunters.

King Charles was photographed as a couple in 2014 and Queen Camilla in 2008.

And after Kate Moss so memorably wore them with a cardigan and hot pants at Glastonbury in 2005, the fashion public was desperate to get involved.

Queen Camilla wears her Hunter boots when she is walking in Sandringham

Kendall Jenner (right) wore black Hunter boots to watch Taylor Swift perform at Hyde Park

King Charles III chose Hunter boots when he visited flood-stricken communities in Somerset in February 2014

But a closer look at Charles and Camilla’s Hunters says it all. They don’t carry the classic Hunter that was so popular in the eighties. They wear Hunter Argylls – the brand’s sturdier boot, made from heavier rubber, designed with work needs in mind.

Because in 2008, the brand chose to move production from Scotland to China – with many devotees claiming that the quality of their boots subsequently plummeted.

While Hunter’s website states that the boots are made using many of the original techniques, crucially, one technique not included in those “many” is the aforementioned rubber dipping process.

The result? Boots that are seen by many as little different – aside from that ‘Hunter’ label – from anything you could find in your local Shoe Zone.

Just google “Hunter boots quality” to find forum after forum full of dissatisfied customers sharing photos of cracked boot toes and peeling rubber.

These are not the Hunters of yesteryear. And as a result, many farmers, landowners and grandmothers would not be seen dead in it.

Princess Diana was also a Hunter fan, choosing green rain boots on her honeymoon with Prince Charles in 1981

Sloanes now giggle at those wearing Hunters, finding it rather amusing that ignorant townspeople think wearing them means successfully impersonating a countryman.

Instead, modern Sloane has replaced their own Hunters with Le Chameau, Dubarry and Penelope Chilvers. Le Chameaus is Prince William’s go-to, while Kate has been seen in boots from all three brands.

Why wasn’t the fashion market enough to keep Hunter afloat? Well, even supermodels expect a certain amount of durability when spending money on wellies.

While it is critical that traditional brands keep up with the times and attract new customers, the only way to do this is by refusing to compromise on quality.

So, if you’re looking for a new brand of wellies to show off your country’s credentials, do as the late Queen always did. A pair of plain non-branded rubber boots will do the trick, thank you.