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COMPANY PROFILE


Philip Marsh, Managing Director, Chatham Marine talks to Editor, Cheryl Taylor


Tell us about your company history. What’s the story behind the Chatham brand? Chatham was set up in 1989, producing marine inspired footwear and clothing and the brand was brought into the Stuart Marsh Group in 2007. We had the ideal contacts in sourcing and designing to produce fantastic high-quality and great looking deck shoes. Chatham sat really well within our portfolio of brands, along with our more formal and fashion footwear brands, Sterling & Hunt, Richleigh and Rainbow Club.


What’s your brand philosophy? Chatham epitomises the nautical spirit - the brand appeals to active sailors, weekend sailors and those simply aspiring to the nautical look. Our aim is to offer a combination of comfort and style – all our footwear and clothing combines very British styling and traditional craftsmanship with innovative design, all made in high quality and durable materials.


How did your shoe sales go last year? Our key men’s deck shoe styles, including Sloop and Schooner from the G2 collection, really flew off the shelves last year, far outselling our expectations. With deck shoes being really on trend and our increase in high-street based stockists, we saw great sales figures last year and we anticipate an even stronger performance this year.


What sets your company’s products apart from the rest? We pride ourselves on our success of combining comfort and style, not an easy feat, and we only ever use the best materials available. Of course our two year guarantee on the G2 collection is a first for the industry and a real brand differentiator.


Where are you based and where do you manufacture? Our head office is in Exeter, in the beautiful south west of England and we manufacture our products in the Far East.


How many people do you have working for you? Do you have a high turnover of staff? We have a solid team of 35 great people who are dedicated to producing fantastic footwear made to the highest quality. The Stuart Marsh Group as a whole has over 100 employees. We are exceptionally proud of our low turnover of staff, which we credit to creating a genuinely friendly place to work where each individual can really make a valuable contribution. We have recently expanded our clothing design team, who have been instrumental in designing our new, and arguably strongest ever, clothing collection to sit alongside our summer 2012 footwear portfolio. As a result of this investment we’re widening our footwear and clothing distribution in the UK and Europe and we’ve recently taken on new agents for the south west and south east of England, Scotland, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Germany and Holland.


26 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • SEPTEMBER 2011


Philip Marsh, Managing Director Chatham Marine


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How do you market your products? We invest heavily in marketing, last year we spent more than any other clothing and footwear company in the marine sector and it has really paid off. We use a combination of advertising, web based marketing, social media, PR, trade shows and consumer fairs. For the footwear market generally we have focused our advertising spend on the key trade titles, and we have targeted consumer magazines such as Good Housekeeping, Coast and The Times Magazine. We’re seeing year on year growth at 40+ per cent – great news for us and the retailer.


And, the next step? Any plans for the future, new lines etc? It’s a really exciting time for the brand, with new seasonal collections and major investments. The two year guarantee on our G2 products shows we really care about the quality of our footwear, and clothing, reflecting the confidence we have in them, and offering a real usp for the retailer. In footwear, we are leveraging the huge success of our two men’s deck shoe styles, Sloop and Schooner, and have developed a men’s sandal along similar lines. We’re confident we can keep achieving our fantastic growth rate and expand our European business.


How do we contact you? For trade orders please call 0845 2700 217 or email: orders@chatham-marine.co.uk. Don’t forget to check out our website at www.chatham-marine.co.uk, follow us on Twitter @ChathamMarine and like us on Facebook.


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