Steamboat Springs’ newest retail outlet, Lucchese Bootmaker, rode into town Wednesday and brought with it a reputation that stretches back to when Salvatore Lucchese and his brother founded the business in 1883.

Lucchese Bootmaker was based in San Antonio, Texas until 1986 when the company moved its headquarters to El Paso, Texas. Lucchese has 24 brick and mortar stores across the United States today, including stores at Union Station in Denver, as well as stores in Telluride and now Steamboat Springs.

“We pride ourselves on our quality and our craftsmanship,” said Jacob Dickey, a district manager with a territory that runs from Montana to New Mexico and includes Oklahoma City. “We made our name in Western wear and boots. Most recently, we started expanding into more apparel, bags and accessories and stuff like that.”

On Tuesday, Dickey and a handful of employees were hard at work setting up the new Steamboat Springs store at 822 Lincoln Ave. On Wednesday, the doors were open and customers were already inside checking out what Lucchese has to offer.

“When it comes to Western wear, we are going to try to carry it,” Dickey said.

The new store will feature the quality, handcrafted men’s and women’s cowboy boots that built Lucchese’s reputation, but visitors will also discover apparel, shoes, belts, small leather goods, cowboy hats, travel and handbags, boot care and accessories.

According to Lucchese, the company uses time-honored craftsmanship techniques to build handmade boots of unrivaled quality, fit, comfort and style. In virtually every step of the boot-making process, Lucchese relies on human hands to complete the centuries-old tasks.

This includes using both brass and Lemonwood pegs to attach the outsole to the rest of the boot, depending on the style, in a process called pegging. This maintains the integrity of the hand-lasted instep’s fit, but also it gives the ability to re-sole the boot when the soles wear out. The boots are also handstitched and crafted with several other processes that have helped secure the bootmaker’s place in Western culture.

The store will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

“We think that Steamboat is going be a great market for us,” Dickey said. “I think the clientele up here is going to really appreciate having us. We haven’t even opened the store yet, and the door probably gets pulled on 20 to 30 times a day.”