The Story of BEST

The Saddle

Many years ago before moving to the Southern Riverina, we purchased a brand-new leather saddle, but there was one big problem: With so many products on the shelves, which product should we use?

After countless YouTube tutorials and conflicting advice on forums, a similar pattern started to emerge. Leather care was definitely not simple—and not just for saddlery, but for all leather. Most care products contained harsh chemicals and ingredients never intended to be put on leather.

Having started a new family, we were rightly obsessed with making sure our kids were also safe from these chemicals. We believed that there had to be a one-stop product that didn’t require buying more than one item to clean, condition, and protect. Until this point, there was nothing on the market that ticked all the boxes.

The Recipe

At the time, we were working in the wool industry, and it wasn't until a brumby runner from the High Country who specialised in whip making laid out a pre-WWI style of recipe that really got our attention. We had to dig deeper. Countless hours of research and development were spent through archives like Trove, seeking to replicate a traditional style of leather care that actually worked within one application.

We source all of our ingredients locally, from in and around the Riverina, supporting small Australian businesses where we can. The tallow is from Shepparton, the beeswax from Albury, and the essential oil is Australian eucalyptus from a NSW supplier.

When we removed the kerosene from the original recipe, we wanted a scent that honoured our Australian heritage, and we couldn’t think of a better fragrance than gum leaves and the Australian bush.

The Mission

Our mission is to make leather care simple again with one product that does it all and to become an Australian household name. It’s not that we named it "BEST" because we say it is; it’s because, "No matter what is going on in your life, you can always clean your boots, stand tall, and feel your BEST."