EXCLUSIVE: Brunt Launches First Shoe Made in the USA

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Brunt Workwear is offering a new product for American trade workers who want to represent their country in a more hands-on way.

The work shoe startup this week launched the USA Marin Welted, its first boot to be constructed in the U.S., as opposed to in the brand’s factories in Cambodia, Bangladesh and China. The new work boot, built in a factory in San Antonio, Tex., is made with components from around the world including waterproof leather from American cattle. The boot looks similar to the brand’s heavy duty Marin Welted boot that launched earlier this year, but features slightly different design elements, including a woven American flag stitched on the side of the boot as well as a lace charm with a flag on it.

“Since the day we launched the business, we’ve heard from a subset of customers that only want to buy and wear ‘Made in the USA products,” said Brunt founder and chief executive officer Eric Girouard in an interview with FN. “It’s always been something we wanted to do.”

Brunt Workwear has offered a variety of boots and apparel for a broad swath of people in construction and trades since its inception in 2020 . But Girouard said he held out on domestic manufacturing until finding the right partners that could maintain the brand’s standard of quality in the U.S.

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The USA Marin Welted launches on Brunt’s website in a classic dark brown colorway with additional colorways to follow. Brunt also plans to launch the product with its wholesale partners after it gets feedback from consumers on the initial launch. Brunt will also likely launch more Made in USA versions of its shoes in the future, depending on how the consumer responds to the USA Marin Welted.

Like the original Marin Welted, the USA version of the boot is made with Goodyear welted construction with a slip and oil-resistant outsole that is resistant to temperatures up to 572 degrees Fahrenheit. The shoe is named for Matt Marin, a superintendent at a drywall company and Girouard’s childhood friend.

The soft toe version of the USA Marin Welted will retail for $259 while the comp toe version will go for 269, compared to $169 and $179 for the regular welted versions of the boot. Despite the price increase, which is a result of higher labor and manufacturing costs in the U.S., Girouard is confident the new product will speak to a group of consumers that value products made in the U.S.

“There is a consumer subset that we already currently serve that will potentially adopt the style,” Girouard said. “There’s also a lot of customers that haven’t purchased from Brunt because we haven’t had this option yet, so we’ll also bring in a group of new customers.”

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