There's a 90% Chance You're Wearing Fake UGGs

FTF - From The Feed

The dupe of the century? Or the smartest marketing move ever?

There have been numerous videos posted on social media about the drastic decline in UGG® quality, but the story behind the brands (yes plural) goes much deeper than that.

Not only have there been changes in material quality and construction from the American brand known as UGG®, they aren’t even the OG brand.

The original UGG brand is actually UGG Since 1974™, an Australian brand that can only be purchased online at their website. They are not even available to purchase in US stores or on US websites.

So if you purchased UGGs from anywhere other than https://www.uggsince1974.com.au/ sorry to break it to you sis, but you most likely have “fake UGGs”. We know this is a lot to take in, and we’re sure you have questions so let’s start from the top.

What is UGG Since 1974™?

In the 50s “UGGs” were a common term used in Australia used to describe sheepskin boots. If you can believe it, “UGGs” were actually a common footwear choice among surfers on their way to their morning surf.

The founders of the brand, Arthur Springthorpe and Faye Sprinthorpe saw this rise in popularity of sheepskin boots and worked to build their brand UGG Since 1974™. While there are other “UGG” brands based in Australia, UGG Since 1974™ is considered the OG brand for this iconic boot style.

They take pride in the fact they are still family owned and maintain a small team of 40 people all working locally in Australia. Maintaining the quality of craftsmanship is important to the brand, and keeping the team local allows them to keep that a main focus.

If you want to get a pair of OG UGGs, you won’t be wearing them until 2025. There is currently a 4 month waitlist to get your hands on a pair of their boots. In an effort to maintain sustainable and ethical product production, all boots are made to order, hence the lengthy wait time.

Pro-Tip: If you leave your Instagram in your order notes they will send you video updates of your boots being made which is a pretty cool way to involve customers in the process and make you feel like your boots are special - cause they are.

What is UGG®

UGG® is an American brand now owned by Deckers Outdoor Corporation. The American UGG® was originally founded by Brian Smith in 1978, just 4 short years after UGG Since 1974™.

Brian Smith saw an opportunity in the US market after seeing the rise in popularity of UGG Since 1974™. He imported the brands boots to use as samples, created a similar boot style and then trademarked UGG®. UGG® is now trademarked everywhere except Australia and New Zealand, preventing UGG Since 1974™ from selling their product anywhere else.

In an interview with Forbes, Smith described his brand building process as “Importing six pairs of boots as samples, I registered UGG as the trademark and settled down to be an instant millionaire.”

Interestingly enough, this part of their origin story is not shared on the “Our Story” page of their website.

 What is the Difference Between the Brands?

Despite the logos and boots looking identical, the two companies could not be more different.

UGG Since 1974™ is a family owned business focused on connecting with their customer and making quality products built to last. Their boots can only be purchased from their website and are not sold anywhere in the US.

UGG® is a multi-billion dollar publicly traded company that mass produces their boots overseas and continues to cut corners when it comes to product quality. They are the only brand of UGGs sold in retail stores in the US. Back in the 2000s - the UGGs we all remember - they used similar materials to UGG Since 1974™ but that is no longer the case.

What’s Up With The Quality Of The American UGG® Brand?