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Swazi Hunting Clothing Range

Swazi Hunting Clothing Range

Davey Hughes look sharp avey Hughes, founder of Swazi Outdoor Clothing of New Zealand, has become a well-known figure in the hunting world, thanks to a combination of his larger-than-life personality and a deep passion for hunting and conservation.

“Being well-known definitely has positives and, thankfully, not too many negatives,” says Davey. “The biggest thing is that it allows me to be an advocate for hunting and the outdoors, both socially and politically and to try and improve public perception and knowledge around hunting. The past year, primarily due to social media, was a pretty bleak one for the image of hunting thanks to the Cecil debacle and its worldwide ramifications. If trophy hunting is banned, for example, then it’s one step on the road to banning it all, which would be a disaster for conservation. Look at Kenya, which has lost around 85% of its wildlife since hunting was banned.”

Davey explains that from the earliest days of Swazi, which he set up in 1994, he has seen the company as a tool that can make a difference to hunters and wildlife. Today he has not only written a book entitled ‘Untamed’, as well as starring in a TV series of the same name, but Swazi is involved in conservation projects in the Russian Far East, providing 4WD vehicles to tiger biologists in the field, in two conservation projects in Africa for rhino and elephant and in much other work with conservation groups around the globe. “Swazi’s involvement is important because it shows the public that hunters are also avid conservationists.”

Cut Of Your Cloth

Being a hunting personality also has a positive impact on Swazi as a company. “It would be misleading if I said being wellknown didn’t help with brand recognition,” Davey says. “We’ve always stated that Swazi stands for authenticity and integrity and I’m a firm believer business has to be about more than just making profit. So what helps the brand also helps our sport. At the end of the day we all want to be able to look back and say, yes, we made a difference.”

Today, Davey’s role is Design Team Manager, which incorporates designing fabrics, garments and accessories and testing them in the field both in New Zealand and around the world. “The great thing about my job is that it gets me into some of the most amazing backcountry on the planet but I also meet hunters from all over the world, which is crucial from a design perspective.”

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Based in Levin on New Zealand’s North Island, Swazi now employs some 60 people and prides itself that all of its products are made in New Zealand. “We really do have a true New Zealand heritage and our clothing is designed by people who hunt and know what hunters and outdoor folk really want,” explains Davey. “So we make gear that is functional, practical and as durable as possible so people know it will last for years and become an old favourite.”

Some Welly

Scottish-born Davey’s own hunting career started when he was a young child after his parents emigrated to Wainuiomata in the Wellington region of the North Island where he grew up playing in the bush. “Most of my heroes were hunters and lots of people in my village went hunting so it was normal to see a vehicle with a hunted animal in the back and my earliest memories are of hunting. I travel and hunt as much as I can. I also spent three weeks in Kenya in 2015 working on the Swazi-backed black rhino and elephant conservation projects which was a tremendous privilege.”

Davey’s wanderlust started when he left New Zealand at the age of 18 for the Highlands of Scotland where he worked in forestry, building deer fences and soon noticed that there was a paucity of good practical outdoor clothing. “All there was on offer was kit from army surplus shops which wasn’t suitable and that gave me the idea for Swazi,” he laughs.

Following his Scottish sojourn, Davey travelled around the world for six years: “Because New Zealand is pretty remote, when we go away we tend to stay away for a while and I spent a chunk of that time in Africa. I walked from Cairo to Durban, which took about 16 months. I loved Africa because I could see animals in their wild state and I knew I just had to go back there hunting but during this time the clothing idea was always in the back of my mind.”

Next was a return to New Zealand where Davey became a trapper, living alone in the mountains for up five months at a time. It was while doing this job that he realised that there wasn’t much decent outdoor gear available in New Zealand either. “After a few years the skins market crashed and I knew that the only thing I had experience of was being wet and cold, so the clothing idea came to the fore and that was what lead to me setting up Swazi.”

Often Imitated

Today, business is brisk with the majority of sales made direct from Swazi’s website. “As well as our home-market we have a good name in Europe where feedback has been incredibly positive and in the UK we’re now selling in a few stores such as Farlows of Pall Mall in London and Swillington Hunting Supplies in Yorkshire. What is nice is that Swazi is not a commodity brand; we’re a small company and we can only make so many garments a year and it’s the kind of cult brand that appeals to people who are in the know and want something that bit different from the norm.”

But Davey isn’t one to rest on his laurels. “Yes, things are going well but we have to stay on our toes. We’re constantly being copied for example by companies who set-up an office in New Zealand, stamp ‘of New Zealand’ on their labels and then make copies of what we do in China which does make me angry. However, this really motivates me to design better garments and ensure we stay several steps ahead – something Swazi is good at doing and will continue to do in the future.”

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  • Swazi Hunting Clothing Range - image {image:count}

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  • Swazi Hunting Clothing Range - image {image:count}

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  • Swazi Hunting Clothing Range - image {image:count}

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  • Swazi Hunting Clothing Range - image {image:count}

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  • Swazi Hunting Clothing Range - image {image:count}

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