OUR STORY
Family owned for five generations
Back in 1850 in Goulburn, NSW there was only one way to make a decent boot and that was by hand. The tradition hasn’t changed much nor has the tough quality that Australian’s have come to expect from a handcrafted icon – Baxter Boots.
The Family tradition of creating handcrafted boots has been thriving in Goulburn, Australia ever since and continues to this day with Baxter Boot’s being the oldest family-owned boot making company in Australia. When technical skills are born not bought, Baxter passes to the fifth generation.
Helping to build Australia
Since 1850 the Baxter company have been making footwear worn on the feet of frontline workers – protecting, building and growing Australia. We work alongside our customers and live inside their communities. Our customers are faces rather than wallets and Baxter remains a part of the community. Their story is our story.
The Baxter family do not forget their heritage, having supplied boots to the Australian diggers in both World Wars and on the many feet of Australians on the beaches at Gallipoli. Baxter Boots are still a staple for the Defence Force and other Government agencies.
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
Rigorously tested and designed to last decades.
The tradition hasn’t changed much nor has the tough quality that Australians have come to expect from a handcrafted icon – Baxter Boots.
LEATHER
A handcrafted Baxter boot will tend to fit you like a glove and this is ensured from the start by a process of traditional examination of the hides.
All hides are examined for pleasing grain and texture and to feel if the leather is hard wearing. Hides that are too thick and inflexible are rejected.
CONSTRUCTION
From individually selected hides, uppers are carefully cut out and stretched under heat and pressure to form and shape the front of the boot.
Then the edges are trimmed and smoothed to create an even finish. Elastic sides and pull- on tags are then double-stitched into the leather upper to ensure longevity.
LAST
The lasts that Baxter use are designed for fit and comfort and this process has been in use for over a hundred years ensuring the best fit for our footwear.
FULLY WELTED
Selected Baxter boots are made with fully welted soles. The welted sole is something you should be aware of when considering a pair of boots because the laborious, yet crucial welting method ensures the uppers won’t start to separate from the soles, which can happen with cheaply made footwear.
In the welting process the leather upper is stitched on to a tough leather welting strip. The sole is then stitched on to the welting strip using heavy, specially waxed and toughened thread. The thread keeps the upper firmly attached to the sole for the life of the boot.
SOLE
All the leather soled boots are made with top grade leather. Between the inner sole and outer solen, under the toes and ball of your foot, a layer of cork filling is added. The cork layer starts off flat but as your foot gradually wears the boot in, the cork moulds to the shape of the ball of your foot and toes so that ultimately, the boot really does fit like a glove.
OUR FACTORY PARTNERS
Small footprint production and safe working conditions
We see our factory partners as an extension of the Baxter Family and look for shared values to create long and lasting relationships with our partners.
We work with family run businesses overseas that share our values of small footprint production and ensure safe and comfortable working conditions with the same ethics when it comes to employment practices.
The collaboration and teamwork between the expertise of the Baxter Family and the factory partners has created a high-quality product with the most up to date footwear manufacturing technology at affordable and honest prices.
CODE OF CONDUCT
We pride ourselves on positive employment practises through accountability for ourselves and those within our value chain of employment.
No worker should be discriminated on the basis of race, nationality, origin, ethnicity, religion, age, gender or health. We believe in diversity and inclusion. We hold ourselves to the highest possible standard as a responsible business
ANIMAL WELFARE
We believe that animals should never be subjected to harsh or cruel treatment and with the majority of our footwear made from leather we pay attention to the countries and sources our leather comes from.
OUR WORLD, OUR FUTURE
We care about the environment and the climate. We strive towards a more sustainable future for us all.
As a brand that creates products through offshore manufacturing, we recognise that we have a responsibility and a contribution to make to help environmental impacts.
We are commited to our communities and the people within them
OUR COMMUNITIES
Active contribution and participation
At Baxter we don’t just make boots, we make boot that support the ones who protect, build and grow Australia. We are in the business of communities who are united in purpose and therefore we actively participate and contribute where we can.
Dolly's Dream
For many years we have been supporting Dolly’s Dream, a charity committed to changing the culture of bullying by increasing the understanding of the impact of bullying, anxiety, depression and youth suicide. The charity is committed to supporting the wider community, particularly those in rural and regional areas by providing a free counselling service.
This ‘Do It For Dolly Day’ awareness and prevention of bullying has never been more important than it is today. #bekind #doitfordolly
GIVING BACK
Our Sponsorships
We take pride in our many sponsorships which include The Gippsland and Southern Campdrafting associations, Pony club events and sporting teams. We donate to charities such as ‘Impact for Women’ and ‘Riding for the Disabled’.
We also love to support local competitions such as in @thankafarmerforyournextmeal.
A HELPING HAND
In response to the devastating floods in Northern NSW we wanted to contribute and help in any way we could so we donated 500 pairs of Water proof / Snow boots to the community of Lismore with the hope that this may assist in the huge clear up process they all now faced.