Dubarry of Ireland is an Irish-owned company with a collection of premium performance footwear, clothing, leather goods and accessories. Established in 1937, Dubarry markets a range of sailing and country footwear and clothing for both women and men. This includes waterproof,
Gore-Tex
Gore-Tex is a waterproof, breathable fabric membrane and registered trademark of W. L. Gore & Associates. Invented in 1969, Gore-Tex can repel liquid water while allowing water vapor to pass through and is designed to be a lightweight, waterpr ...
-lined performance sailing boots and leather deck shoes. In addition to its range of country lifestyle boots, Dubarry also has an extensive range of outerwear, knits and shirting in a wide variety of materials from tweed to Alpaca wool. The headquarters of the company is at
Ballinasloe
Ballinasloe ( ; ) is a town in the easternmost part of County Galway in Connacht. Located at an ancient crossing point on the River Suck, evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of Bronze Age sites. Built around a 12th-ce ...
,
County Galway, Ireland. Over the years Dubarry has expanded its international sourcing network and now works closely with a select group of specialised production partners worldwide.
History
Dubarry of Ireland was established in 1937 by the Cullen Family Trust, to provide local employment. Dubarry began trade by manufacturing quality shoes and named itself after
Madame du Barry, a famous French courtesan to differentiate the brand from its Irish counterparts and give the brand a continental, European flavour. Information on the establishment of Dubarry by papers of the first Chairman and Managing Director of Dubarry submitted by H.L.Cullen.
In November 2004, Dubarry ceased its manufacturing facility in Ballinasloe, transferring operations to Portugal where it has contract manufacturing partners. Dubarry justified its decision to relocate its entire production line to Portugal on high labour costs in Ireland. The company headquarters, however, as well as its product development, marketing and distribution departments, remain in Ballinasloe.
Products
Sailing boots
Dubarry developed the first ever GORE-TEX® lined, waterproof, fully breathable yachting boot called Shamrock. The current flagship offshore sailing boot, Crosshaven, was developed in consultation with the
Volvo Ocean Race
The Ocean Race is a yacht race around the world, held every three or four years since 1973. Originally named the Whitbread Round the World Race after its initiating sponsor, British brewing company Whitbread, in 2001 it became the Volvo Ocean Ra ...
Irish entrant,
Green Dragon, during 2008/09 round the world race.
Country boots
Dubarry’s signature boot is the Galway boot which is popular and commonly worn by equestrian and other outdoor enthusiasts. The entire country boot range consists of GORE-TEX® lined leather boots.
Clothing
Dubarry launched their first clothing range in 2008 and it now includes waterproof and breathable GORE-TEX® jackets,
Primaloft filled gilets, tweeds and leather accessories.
Retail
Flagship stores
The first Dubarry of Ireland flagship store was opened at 35 College Green, Dublin on 25 October 2012. On 2 October 2013, the second Dubarry flagship store opened its doors at 34 Duke of York Square, Chelsea, London.
Independent retailers
Dubarry wholesale their country and coast collection of footwear, clothing and accessories to many department and speciality stores and also to individual retailers worldwide
including the high end stores such as
Harrods.{{citation needed, date=June 2020
Sponsorship
Dubarry sponsors the home stadium of
Buccaneers Rugby Football Club,
Dubarry Park, in
Athlone, Ireland.
Other
Dubarry's trademark deck shoe is part of the official uniform prescribed in several
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
schools and unofficially part of the allowed uniform in others. The shoe is infamously worn on a regular basis by the satirical fictional Irish character
Ross O'Carroll Kelly
Ross O'Carroll-Kelly is a satirical fictional Irish character, a wealthy South County Dublin rugby union jock created by journalist Paul Howard. The character first appeared in a January 1998 column in the ''Sunday Tribune'' newspaper and late ...
where he refers to the shoes as "Dubes".
References
External links
"Dubarry"official website
Ballinasloe
Retail companies of Ireland
Clothing companies of Ireland