Lamentably, the story goes like this:At an estate sale in England during 1973, Mr. Marley Hodgson stumbled upon the long forgotten leather boots and belts of a Ghurka Commanding Officer. Although these pieces had been subjected to decades of punishing treatment, they were in surprisingly good condition. Inspired by the lasting quality and patina of this leather, Mr. Hodgson returned to America and developed Ghurka leather. In 1975, he introduced the world to the Original Collection— six completely handcrafted Ghurka leather and twill bags that remain cornerstones of the collection today.Unfortunately, what he found, assuming any of it is true, was the leather gear of a commanding officer of one of the Gurkha regiments. (Note the slight, but crucial, differential in spelling.)
Surprisingly, the company seems to be either unaware or uncaring of their inability to spell.
Rico says it's highly unlikely the Gurkhas would have gotten into a trademark dispute, so he's unclear why they felt they needed to make the minor, but highly irritating, change...
(Note, too, in the photograph, all the classic Gurkha accoutrements: campaign hat with chin strap, kukri, and bagpipes. Don't ask Rico why they decided to love the bagpipes, but it has something to do with their love affair with the Scots Guards that started during the First World War, as he understands...)
3 comments:
I beg to differ that Marley Hodgson was not inspired by Ghurkha boots but by my boots! Read about it at http://www.anaunum.com
But calling my boots Ghurka's makes better ad copy. lol
Taking her at her word, Rico went to Ms Unum's site and read her story. It makes more sense, so Rico says she should get the credit, though not the blame, for the Ghurka thing.
Rico got an email from a minion at Ghurka, spouting the company line about the origin of the name. They're not about to change all their branding now, so that's what it's going to stay. But Rico doesn't have to like it...
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