Akubra hats /əˈkuːbrə/ is an Australian hat manufacture with the use of beautiful material and clothes.
In 1919 the company moved from its existing cramped and poorly located factory to new bigger premises at Bourke Street, Sydney.
By the 1920s the company had hundreds of employees. Since then, it has been using Akubra as a brand name.
Those employees who enlisted had their normal civilian wages preserved by the company to augment their military pay.
When Stephen Keir retired in 1952 he was succeeded as Managing Director by his eldest son, Herbert. His second son, Stephen Keir II, served as General Manager and succeeded his brother as Managing Director in 1972. His son, Stephen Keir III, became Managing Director in 1980. Following the retirement of Stephen Keir III in 2007, his son Stephen Keir IV became Managing Director. The company is still a family concern.
In 1874 Benjamin Dunkerley (1840 – 20 February 1918) who came from a family of cotton weavers and who had experience working as hatter in Stockport, England immigrated to Australia. Once established he sent scottish hats for his wife Harriet and six children.
In 1876 Dunkerley and David Glenhill established the Kensington Hat Mills in Glenorchy, near Hobart in Tasmania. The business rapidly expanded and was soon employing 30 workers and producing 750 hats per week