For more than half a century, Overland has stood as a quietly iconic expression of craftsmanship, rooted in the American West and refined for today’s discerning wearer. Beginning in Taos, New Mexico, in the 1970s with a single bale of sheepskins and a dream, Overland grew into a family-run brand celebrated for its superb outerwear, home accents, and carefully curated natural materials—from sheepskin and leather to wool.
Guided by heritage and an unwavering commitment to quality, Overland still operates from its headquarters in a three-storey log-cabin style building in Fairfield, Iowa—a home base that reflects its warmth, authenticity, and connection to place.
We spoke with Co-Owner Roger Leahy and his daughter, Amber Leahy (Executive Vice President, Product Development), to learn more about how the brand has evolved, how they keep craftsmanship at the forefront, and what’s next for their legacy.
Looking back to 1973 in Taos when the business began, what were the original aspirations for the brand—and how have those evolved (or remained unchanged) today?
Roger Leahy Co-Owner: My brother started this business when he was 19 with just the idea of moving from the Midwest to Taos and starting to make and sell sheepskin coats from bales of sheepskin he brought with him. He would sketch out coat ideas, show traveling visitors the concept, then hand-sew the coat and ship it to them.
So, it just started as a creative business enterprise in that true American tradition and grew organically from there. From sheepskin coats, it was natural to start offering other sheepskin products like hats, gloves, slippers, and rugs. And from sheepskin to also offer various leathers and wools. We’ve always loved natural materials for the way they feel and the way they wear.
Using natural fibers, crafting products destined to last, and providing exceptional service remain our foundational values and guiding principles. We’ve just grown from that small operation in Taos, cutting and sewing coats on-site to today with 23 stores across the US and working with skilled artisans around the world.
Overland is known for its use of sheepskin, leather, and wool. How do you source your materials now, and what standards do you apply to ensure longevity and quality in your products
Amber Leahy, Executive Vice President Product Development: We prioritize natural fibers and seek artisanal partners who pride themselves on quality and consistency. We look for partners who use the finest quality materials, celebrate the skill of their artisans, and have integrity in how they do business. I travel many times a year and meet with them in person to tour their workshops and review production.
All items undergo several rounds of quality control during production and before they ship to our headquarters in Fairfield, Iowa. We also have a dedicated quality control team in-house who checks all products to specs when they arrive. Lastly, we know that sometimes things happen with items designed to last for many years, so we introduced our own in-house repair service for sheepskin coats and leather jackets. Most repairs have been reattaching buttons and replacing a zipper; the sheepskin and leather themselves outlive these components and look better with the patina of age.
Being a family-run business is part of your identity. How does that ownership structure influence decision-making, brand culture, and customer experience compared to larger corporations?
Roger: Being a family-run business is a major part of who we are, and we also see our employees and customers as part of our extended family.
This changes the dynamic of business decisions. It allows us to think holistically for the long term instead of having to prioritize short-term quarterly results, to price products fairly instead of trying to maximize immediate returns, and to treat each person with dignity and respect as we’re in it together for a long time.
Thanks in large part to this family approach, we feel truly fortunate to have so many employees and customers be with us for decades.
How do you balance maintaining the brand’s heritage and signature aesthetic with evolving consumer tastes, sustainable practices, and new technologies?
Amber: When you’re designing products for the long term, the key is to mix the timeless with the current. Not chasing fads but incorporating modern trends into designs that will still be beautiful and relevant five, ten, or twenty years from now.
A great example of this is the Heritage Collection that we designed for our 50th anniversary. We selected iconic designs from our earlier years and gave them a modern twist. Improvements in tanning technology allow for softer, thinner, and more supple sheepskin pelts than ever before (sheepskin pelts in the ‘70s were thicker and limited in color), so even with classic designs, the newer sheepskin coats have a better drape and fit. The coats in the collection all have a timeless look but were crafted to wear today. Overall, it was a successful launch, and we have added coats to the collection every year since.
We’ve offered sheepskin coats from our inception and will always offer sheepskin; this is our signature aesthetic more than anything else. Each season, we challenge ourselves to consider new finishes, silhouettes, and specialty treatments. Even with this influx of newness, we continue to offer classic coat styles we’ve sold for many years, sometimes decades. Doing this shows that sheepskin coats are both of the moment and enduring.
Your catalogue, website, stores, and visual aesthetic emphasize the American West and craftsmanship. How do you view storytelling and brand experience as part of your competitive advantage?
Roger: The visuals are simply a representation of who we are. Overland is a genuine American brand that was founded and naturally lives in the American West. You can wear our coats anywhere, of course, but those landscapes reflect our business and stylistic roots and continue to represent us today.
The emphasis on superior craftsmanship comes from that mix of honest Midwestern values and the reality of American winters: the products must deliver! Sheepskin is one of nature’s most effective insulators, and while most outerwear designers need to decide whether to prioritize fashion or warmth, we’re able to effectively combine both.
It’s a great competitive advantage because we didn’t have to invent it. It’s who we are, and people resonate with that.
In an era where sustainability and ethical sourcing matter more than ever, how does Overland approach these issues, both in materials and in encouraging customers to ‘buy less, buy better’?
Roger: We’ve been using sustainable, natural materials for our products since the beginning, with our focus on sheepskin, leather, and other natural fibers. A quality sheepskin coat is made to last for years, looks better with time, and makes the perfect heirloom to pass down to the next generation. By offering classic designs and lifetime repairs, customers who buy a sheepskin coat are naturally investing in a better product that requires less replacement over time. Many of the coats I wear myself are decades old. Why buy new, when the coat you have has formed to fit your body and carries with it the patina and memories of a life well lived?
As you expand beyond coats into slippers, boots, and home décor, what’s your vision for the brand’s next decade? Are there new categories or markets you’re particularly excited about?
Roger: Continued sustainable growth while maintaining our product quality and consistent customer service is the top priority for me. I’m not sure we’ll expand into many more product categories, but we are always focused on refining our offering so that it’s even more natural, where possible.
We are always looking at potential new markets for stores. Lately, my wife and I have had more time to focus on where we’d like our newest and next stores and have been taking road trips to different locations. We like to spend extended time in each town, visiting local sites, having meals on main streets, and talking to locals to get a real feel for an area. My hope is to open three to four new stores in 2026 and several more after that.
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