Australian bootmaker R.M.Williams is targeting more stores across the United Kingdom, starting with the launch of its London flagship store along Jermyn Street near Piccadilly Circus.
By mid-April this year, the brand’s UK retail footprint will grow to eight stores with UK turnover expected to exceed £15 million in 2026, or around $28.1 million in AUD.
According to the bootmaker, this follows three consecutive years of double-digit growth in the market, buoyed by a retail rollout.
The London flagship at 108 Jermyn Street, in one of the capital’s most established menswear districts, will stock 73 boot options – the largest R.M.Williams range anywhere in the world.
The store is due to open in late March and will include specialist fitting and craftsmanship across the store.
R.M.Williams currently operates six stores in the UK. The London flagship follows new stores in Bath (November 2025) and Edinburgh (January 2026), with Guildford – southwest of London City – to open in early April - marking four new store openings within a 12-month period.
Overall, R.M.Williams’ retail store portfolio will sit just shy of 70, which currently includes 55 stores in Australia and six in New Zealand. The brand also has a mobile boot-repair service called “The Hut” and travelling pop-up vehicle called “The Drover”.
All this comes six years after Australian investment group Tattarang acquired the business in 2020, under the direction of Dr Andrew Forrest AO and Nicola Forrest AO and the Tattarang team.
Dr Andrew Forrest said he was trying to buy R.M.Williams for nearly 20 years and was very grateful when the opportunity arose. Prior to Tattarang, the brand was owned by L Catterton, a private equity firm backed by LVMH, the company behind Louis Vuitton.
“Our international expansion isn’t just about selling more boots; it’s about taking a piece of Australia to the world,” Dr Forrest said. “Every new market we enter is another opportunity to share Australian values – fairness, resilience, and mateship.
“I don’t see myself as the owner of R.M.Williams but as a custodian of something that Australians are genuinely proud of.
“After nearly a century of success, I believe the best is still ahead of us.”
The move to expand R.M.Williams in the United Kingdom also comes as it its digital business continues to grow. Global online sales for the brand were up by more than 30 per cent year-on-year and the United States emerged as the brand’s second largest digital market.
All R.M.Williams boots continue to be crafted in Adelaide, South Australia, with each pair passing through 88 pairs of hands. All styles include a one-piece leather upper and Goodyear-welt construction.
In October 2025, R.M.Williams opened a second workshop in Adelaide, South Australia, increasing production capacity by approximately 90 per cent. The brand achieved B Corp certification in 2024 and introduced publicly bookable tours of its Adelaide workshops in mid-2025.
“As RMs grows internationally, it is important to me that we protect what makes it special – the quality of the product, the pride of the people who make it and the character that has defined the brand for nearly a century,” Nicola Forrest said.
“Growth for R.M.Williams is about expanding deliberately, not changing who we are. Opening the new flagship on Jermyn Street, and continuing to expand across the UK, is about introducing the brand to new customers while staying true to the standards and values people expect from R.M.Williams.”
R.M.Williams CEO Paul Grosmann added that building a long-standing connection with the UK is incredibly important for this next chapter.
“Our way of deepening our connection to the UK centres around the understanding of our story and building on our learnings,” Grosmann said.
"Each new store allows us to share the craftsmanship, heritage and authenticity that define our brand with communities that value quality and tradition. We're excited to continue growing in a market that feels like a natural home for R.M.Williams."