Dubarry sticks the boot in

MARINE apparel group Storm Performance has announced details of an aggressive expansion plan aimed at positioning its Dubarry label as the sector's leading footwear brand.

The group, which acquired the Australasian licence for the brand earlier this year, will draw on the label's strong Irish heritage with plans to quadruple the amount of product available across Australia and New Zealand.

The multi-tiered plan will also see the introduction of a men's apparel range in 2010 with women's and country clothing and footwear collections likely to follow.

Storm Performance managing director Duncan Curnow said there was a clear gap in the market for high quality, high performing marine footwear.

"It has been made abundantly clear that Dubarry had been missed from the Australasian market as we have already fielded a number of requests for the brand. Its versatility, comfort and style means a significant number of Sydney to Hobart sailors have chosen Dubarry as their footwear of choice," Curnow said.

Established in 1937, Dubarry first entered the marine deck shoe market in the 1980s. The Shamrock boot became the signature product of Dubarry's marine footwear collection, representing all of the key criteria required to become an iconic piece of marine kit.

Dubarry rapidly became respected throughout Europe as a marine footwear brand and was the world's first marine footwear brand licensed to use Gore-Tex. Today it is sold across more than a dozen countries globally including Canada, the US, Russia, Greece, Denmark, Japan and Italy.