Ram Kicks Up Deal With Lucchese Boots, Continuing To Broaden Brand

Ram is continuing its recent charge, which began with winning the J.D. Power vehicle-quality award this year, and now is showing up … in a boot.

The Stellantis pickup-truck brand is cooperating with Lucchese, the legendary Texas-based boot maker, to launch a premium line of boots that’s inspired by the interior of the Ram 1500 Limited Longhorn edition of the truck. The boots feature filigree, logo imprints and other marks that are meant to evoke the craftsmanship, fit and finish in the Ram truck that “is as luxurious as any vehicle out there,” said Jeff Summers, head of advertising for Ram.

Pickup-truck brands have been cooperating with apparel brands for decades to lend proprietary designs to the inside of vehicles, including Eddie Bauer editions of the Ford F-150. But the Ram-Lucchese hookup is an example of a more recent phenomenon in which the truck brand extends into the fashion world instead of vice-versa.

“Since Ram became a standalone brand in 2009, our goal has been to shape and carefully curate the brand to where it is today,” Summers told me. “And over the years, we’ve found ways to bring attention to Ram and our quality and luxury in unexpected ways.”

The line of Ram boots by Lucchese includes three styles for men and two for women, at prices ranging from $695 to $2,495. The launch followed by a few months Ram’s collaboration with Wolverine for a collection of Ram work boots at prices ranging from $229 to $400.

The tie-ups with the contrasting boot brands, Summers said, well illustrate the broadening strategy that Ram has been pursuing lately. “We see our brand as multi-dimensional,” he said. “It’s hard-working. But Ram also changes the way people think about trucks, with the luxury and premium [reputation] we’ve established.

“It’s not only boots by any means. We have a great licensing and branding group that allows us to find these relationships that are much more than our product, in music, apparel, lifestyle and so on. We have the ability to broaden the dynamic of the brand in a lot of interesting ways as we go forward.”

Ram’s recent run-up to product-quality champion has become a crucial part of the foundation of a brand with such aspirations. Ram and Dodge ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in the esteemed J.D. Power Initial Quality Study rankings for 2021, making Ram the only truck-exclusive brand ever to claim the top spot in the survey of thousands of customers about initial vehicle quality.

Ram’s achievement marked the culmination of a dramatic reversal in the perceived quality of Stellantis vehicles after decades in which the company’s offerings usually brought up the rear among major automakers. The accomplishment was dramatically highlighted for the first time last year, when Dodge tied Kia for the No. 1 spot. Ram finished tied for third place in Power’s 2020 rankings after placing 21st in 2019.