Business has reportedly been booming for American Hat Company – a Texas-based cowboy hat manufacturer – since the 2018 launch of the hit Western TV series “Yellowstone.”
Founded in 1915 and headquartered in Bowie, Texas, the company specializes in handmade felt and straw cowboy hats offered in a range of trims, colors and shapes. Demand has soared so high that the business is now years out on orders, according to company president Keith Mundee.
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“People were clamoring for something that was truly American or kind of going back to their roots,” Mundee told FOX Business. “… The Western lifestyle became very popular.”
The company follows an approximately 18-step process to transform raw materials like straw and fur into even a basic cowboy hat, he said.
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While the business does source some of its materials from locations outside the country, its hats are majority American-made. They “live up to the standard of style, quality and durability” that can be expected from a product made in the U.S., according to the company’s website.
“It just doesn’t make sense to import any finished goods,” Mundee said. “… We will import raw material, but it’s not something anybody could wear or use.”
American Hat Company sells its cowboy hats to retailers across the nation like Cavender’s, National Roper’s Supply and The Best Hat Store. Its products can also be found in stores in Canada, Australia and Germany, according to the company’s website.
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The retail manufacturer’s most popular cowboy hat is called the 40X. Made from 40% beaver and 60% hare, the 40X comes in 14 different colors, and has a self-band and buckle set as its trim. However, the “best” hat the company makes, Mundee said, is called 1,000X. It’s made from the underfur of a beaver blended with mink, comes in four different colors, and its trim is also a self-band and buckle set.
“That [1,000X] hat in a silver belly color is going to retail for about $4,800,” Mundee said.
While American Hat Company’s primary focus is creating quality products using traditional crafting methods, what drives its staff is its commitment to patriotism, faith, honoring the military, and upholding the “spirit of the American West,” according to its website. Each hat also dons an American flag regardless of its trim.
“I’m really not selling cowboy hats as much as I’m selling the national anthem, the opening prayer, respect for our military, respect for first responders,” Mundee said. ” … It’s important to bring up the younger generation and have them have a reverence for our country, our flag.”
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