Stetson’s Brand Tome Depicts How Its Famous Hats Won Popular Culture

An image of John Wayne in the new Stetson book.

Photo Courtesy of Stetson

Stetson couldn’t have picked a better time to celebrate its 160^th anniversary. A a time when Western cowboy aesthetics are infiltrating culture—TV shows such as “Yellowstone”, musical artists such as Beyoncé, Harry Styles, Taylor Swift and Shaboozey and fashion’s “Cowboy Core” trend all embrace Western styling—the traditional American hatmaker is celebrating its founding by John B. Stetson who crafted a hat to protect from the elements on the range in 1865.

To mark the milestone, the brand has penned its first book from its perspective, documenting the hat’s genesis, its popularity, and how the piece of headgear has defined the American aesthetic. Leading the charge is current CEO Robert Dundon, who reflected on the impact of the company’s icon status, anniversary celebration plans, and current business status.

“We’ve never put out a chronicled version of our story about the founder. It’s also capturing that story through the current ambassadors for the brand, as it wouldn’t be interesting just to write a historical book. We have a rich archive that has been linked to film, music, art, celebrity, and fashion, and we are well-known for our craftsmanship,” Dundon said in a Zoom interview.

With Stetson’s Vice President of Marketing Tyler Thoreson leading the charge, the brand commissioned essays penned by guest authors such Douglas Brinkley, who told the story of John B. Stetson and the many hat styles he created from the brand’s Philadelphia headquarters; Jay Fielden, who chronicles the craftsmanship involved in the making of a Stetson; Lyle Lovett, who wrote about Stetson in songs; and Laird Borrelli-Persson, who wrote the book’s forward.

The book’s rich and elevated design is thanks to Sam Shahid and Matthew Kraus of Shahid/Kraus & Company who gave it a rich and elevated design.

Pablo Picasso, Georgia O’Keeffe, Louis Armstrong, Andy Warhol, James Dean, and, of course, John Wayne are among popular culture icons featured donning Stetsons. Other key cinema moments include John Travolta and Debra Winger in “Urban Cowboy,” Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in “Barbie,” and Steve McQueen in “The Magnificent Seven,” among others. Key styles, such as the Boos of the Plains and Tom Mix, are also celebrated.

“Think about the Western aesthetic in Europe, it doesn’t really exist. To see somebody like a Spanish artist to take on a sort of a western point of view is really interesting,” Dundon said of Picasso. He likes to point out another fact that surprises people. “People will find it very interesting that the founder is from New Jersey,” he added.

Today’s music world is equally enamored of the brand, as witnessed in Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” tour, on Post Malone, or via Bruno Mars, who has also collaborated with the brand on the Ricky Regal collection and will release new offerings for Spring 2026 as part of the partnership.

“We’ve got a performer for our celebration event. She’s a young, up-and-coming Western artist named Carter Faith,” Dundon said adding, “The question for me is whether today’s artists are interested in Stetson’s? We’re the true OG in the space doing what we do very well, making incredibly thoughtful, iconic products, and we got three big artists this year.”

Dundon is continually graced with anecdotal Stetson stories from fans of the brand. “Some tell me it was handed down to them; they have an heirloom collectible quality about them,” he said.

The book will launch in four cities over the course of two weeks, starting with New York, followed by Austin, Berlin, and Tokyo; the tour itself is a reflection of the book’s global appeal and the interpretation of the brand in each location. The Austin event is taking place in a recently renovated historical hotel built in 1860. The Berlin event will take place at a Steson store. The last stop will be in Tokyo at the store there. Another way the anniversary has been marked is via a product launch.

The brand has several stores in Europe. Besides Berlin, there are locations in London, Amsterdam, Portugal, Hamburg, and Frankfurt. Notably missing are free-standing stores in the US, but Dundon has assured that those are in the works as well.

“Over the next two to three years, we would love to see store openings happen inside the US as well,” Dundon noted, adding, “We’ve been successful in cultivating a direct-to-consumer relationship through Stetson.com. The business has grown exponentially over the last several years, and it’s now a true digital flagship experience, where you can experience the full lifestyle of Stetson across all categories, content, and blog in one place. I would love to translate that experience into free-standing stores.” One of the fastest-expanding categories is women’s footwear.

Another collaboration on the horizon marks a venture into a brand adjacency, with the Stetson premium bourbon launch set to launch in mid-2026. “For more than 160 years, Stetson has built a reputation as a leading Western brand and has been woven into the fabric of American culture. It isn’t just another whiskey—it’s a way to celebrate the spirit of the West in a new form. Crafted with the same commitment to quality, character, and authenticity that define our brand, it’s a bourbon worthy of carrying the Stetson name,” Dundon said in a follow-up email.

He is also busy consolidating a Longview, TX facility into the leading manufacturing site located in Garland, TX. Dundon reflected on the values of John B. Stetson regarding his staff. This tradition remains alive and well in Texas, where employees have often worked for the brand for decades, and in some cases, even across multiple generations.

“As an industrialist during the Gilded Age, he uniquely cared about not only craft but also the company employees. At a time when it was rare, he offered healthcare, training, apprenticeships, a library, and even a baseball field where employees could blow off steam. He invested in his workforce where other industry titans like him did not,” Dundon said, pointing to Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” as an example.

Like the founder who navigated the McKinley Tariffs of 1890, Dundon has had to navigate President Trump’s tariffs. While the products are made in the USA as much as possible, many raw materials and their processing occur outside the US, as they are not available here.

The CEO stated that recent price adjustments, combined with building the supply chain and manufacturing with long-term partners globally, have left them uniquely poised to handle the new tariffs without passing them on to consumers.

“We did a couple of price changes in the last two years in relation to materials, so we’ve been able to hold firm on prices this year despite the tariffs. There’s an art and science in all that. The key to our business has been demand, which has exceeded supply for the last several years,” he noted.

Part of that demand is an uptick in desire for footwear and expanded clothing offerings. “For a male-dominated brand, we have really seen a lot of women interested in the brand, particularly for Western footwear,” he continued.

The new additions also expand Stetson’s reach to younger audiences, according to Dundon. “Nobody else has the staying power in history and credentials as Stetson. We’d love to engage the next generation with something great for them as well. Once you start digging into this brand, you find a rich history, and the book does a great job of telling that story, showing that it’s not just a dusty old brand. It’s a great brand that is having a renaissance, aiming to blend modernity without sacrificing Americana and the quality of history. Our job is just to balance those things.”