Budgy Smuggler, Australian for Swimwear.
Why do you make swimwear in Australia?
We ask Chief Smuggler, Linny,
"Since we started, nearly 20 years ago… every pair of Budgy Smuggler swimwear has been proudly made in Sydney, Australia.
It's made in the same factory of some great Australian brands before us like Jets, Zimmerman and of course Speedo itself. Most or all of those brands have shipped offshore chasing higher margins, lower environmental standards and leaving our home industry behind.
People often ask why we also don't move to a cheaper manufacturing base...they ask if you can save $5-$10 a pair and you make half a million garments...couldn't you make $5M more? In our minds, that's not how it works.
There's two things that are crucial in our minds at Budgy Smuggler. The first, quality and the second is the feeling you get when you put on a pair of Smugglers."
For almost 20 years, every pair of Budgy Smuggler swimwear has been proudly made in Sydney, Australia.
"On the quality front, it's hard to beat being able to track your production through every step. We want it to be quality you can be proud of and that people in our home country, Australia, are proud of.
The second is the feeling that you have when you put on a pair of Smugglers. We want you to literally feel like you're putting on a piece of Australia, to a brand that cares about its home country, about its manufacturing eco-system and that doesn't want to mass produce like pretty much everyone else.
It's also the right call for the environment.
While it's true we could save $5-$10 a pair if we made overseas, nearly 1/3 of what's made overseas ends up in land fill or discounted to below cost...so what's the true cost?
And lastly, there's something we really love about seeing our swimwear being crafted. Our factory is still run by the Master Maker Arnold who is almost 90 years old. He and his wife Mila package the vast bulk of smugglers to this day.
He's got no plans of stopping any time soon and neither do we."
Chief Smuggler Adam Linforth with Master Maker Arnold Makhlin and his beautiful wife and partner in Smuggling, Mila.
4 comments
Hi budgies
while I love your swimsuits, I have a question about the custom made ones. I have 3 pairs in size 14 and all are different in width. Other people who I know (I’m a bold & beautiful swimmer so there are quite a few of us) say the same thing. Why this lack of consistency?
Budgy Crew,
Don’t ever change! Myself and my partner being an absolute Budgy Smuggler addicts, myself owning about 200 to 250 pairs of Budgy Smugglers and my partner since being with me his collection is getting up there also of about 100 or so pairs and growing. We absolutely love and prefer supporting our fello aussies when we buy our DTs. Love the felling knowing that when ever we are out and about exploring pretty much everywhere we go bush walking, hiking, hitting the pool or beach that we are proudly strutting in our 100% Aussie Owned and Aussie Made DT’s and not some cheap foreign over seas made rubbish. Keep up the great work. You’se have us pretty much totally addicted,we’re always keeping an eye on your website checking what new DTs you guys are putting out, and almost every occasion we just have to order them to have them on our bums.
Love you guys lots!
Brendan and Hayden. 😉
I recently bought 3 swim suits and 2 running shorts in your store in Bondi. I bought a pink dinosaur (ladies) suit which fit perfectly. I also bought a donut swimsuit, which fit fine, but the stitching is really rough and causes chafing. The same goes with the running shorts I bought. The cut and fit are perfect, but the inner stitching is very scratchy and hurts my skin. There seems to be a difference in the softness of the thread for the stitching from one suit to another.
Can the stitching be made softer or better yet, seal the stitching with another layer of fabric. Like many who buy your suits, I wear these suits to swim practice in the pool and the sea. Any rubbing that causes chaffing causes pain that cuts into my overall performance and will make me less likely to re-purchase another suit. Can you also make thinner strap suits for ladies?
been a smuggler 12 + years, have more than i should have and I’m ok with that. They’re FUN. Keep up the good work.