Musto

Musto's story begins at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, where Keith Musto arrived as an unlikely member of the British sailing team, considered too light and too short for the heavyweight Flying Dutchman class. Determined to make up the difference, he and his crew trained every single day, Christmas included, an approach rivals dismissed as unsporting at the time. It paid off: the pair won silver, missing gold by the narrowest of margins, and helped usher in a new era in which sailors became true athletes.

Keith had also noticed a problem. For years, sailors had raced in Guernsey jumpers and old flannel trousers, simply accepting that they would get wet. Setting out to solve it, he started out in an old Second World War prisoner-of-war hut in Essex, first making sails before turning his attention to technical sailing clothing, teaching himself the basics of garment making as he went. In 1980 Musto was born, and it quickly became the name trusted by the world's most celebrated sailors.

Innovation has driven the brand ever since. Musto helped pioneer the now-universal three-layer clothing system and developed a drysuit that dramatically extended survival times in the world's coldest oceans. When Keith found himself the only dry spectator while watching his daughter ride, he realised his sailing fabrics could serve other pursuits too, and today Musto is the world's leading sailing brand and a British leader in shooting and equestrian clothing. Its durability is famous, with many garments backed by a lifetime guarantee.