Company Profile

Musto started life in 1971. Then named Musto & Hyde Accessories, it was a subsidiary of a sailmaking company that was founded in a shed on an Essex trading estate with an unsecured loan of £1500. The man behind both organisations was Keith Musto, a highly competitive dinghy sailor who had won a Silver Medal in the Flying Dutchman Class at the 1964 Olympic Games. Keith formed Musto & Hyde Accessories to produce articles of ‘software’ – trapeze harnesses, carry-all bags, gloves and bosun’s chairs – for the sailing market. At first the product range was limited to the kind of clothing and accessories that a sail loft could make with its existing facilities. The company soon started to be successful in its own right, particularly when it began to produce a range of basic waterproof clothing. From that moment on, the Company’s goal was to produce the most technically comprehensive range of specialist clothing in the world.Musto will be clothing top sailors around the world during the next Millennium. The frenetic waters of Auckland during the America’s Cup was also full of Musto gear with the top teams wearing Musto’s HPX One Design foul weather gear. For the second time running Cup Defenders, Team New Zealand chose Musto along with challengers AmericaOne. Musto are the official clothing company for Pete Goss and Team Philips who will be entering, THE RACE on December 31 2000. Musto have committed £500,000 to the project - the biggest sponsorship ever undertaken by a marine company. Musto will be supplying clothing to several of the world’s top Olympic Teams for the Sydney 2000 and Sir Chay Blyth has selected Musto HPX yet again to clothe the crews of the Year 2000 BT Global Challenge. Musto are continuing their support of inspirational Yachtswoman of the Year, Ellen MacArthur and her Kingfisher Challenge 2000 for the Vendée Globe. Musto are the official clothing supplier to the Volvo Ocean Race, formally the Whitbread Round the World Race 2000-2001. Musto achieves its many accolades by paying meticulous and continuing attention to the different demands of the types of sailing activity. Musto clothing has always been made by sailors for sailors, using the highest levels of competition and the most gruelling conditions as the testbed for their performance-driven clothing. This has been recognised by the Design Council with Musto’s HPX Ocean Drysuit receiving Millennium Product Status. Musto have earnt their reputation as the Number One technical brand around the world and their clothing is now available in over 21 countries.