The History of Ugg Boots

The Ugg brand was founded in 1978 by Australian surfer Brian Smith and quickly gained a following within SoCal surf subculture. After years of sales at local surf shops, the Ugg boot brand was purchased by Deckers Brands in 1995. Then in 2000, the boots appeared on Oprah’s Favorite Things and began to gain mainstream traction. Celebrities like Kate Moss and Beyoncé started wearing them and a fashion trend was born. Suddenly, the boots were everywhere and everyone was wearing them, from off-duty movie stars sporting the comfy shoes between takes to teenagers hanging out at the mall. The trend reached a crescendo in the 2000s, but a few years after reaching peak popularity, it became apparent that Uggs (and Ugg-like boots designed to resemble them) had saturated the market and consequently, they fell out of fashion favor. In fact, Ugg boots were even featured on various lists detailing fashion trends that had outstayed their welcome in the early 2010s! However, celebrities like Bella Hadid, Emily Ratajkowski, and Gigi Hadid began wearing redesigned versions of Ugg boots in the first few years of the 2020s, reinvigorating the trend once more. Today, Uggs are continuing their return to fashion prominence, in no small part due to their comfort, association with Y2K fashion (which is currently trending), and a host of high-profile celebrity fans.