The Marley Hodgson Story

Founded in Connecticut in 1975 by luxury belt and brace designer Marley Hodgson, Ghurka has served as a symbol of superior American leather craftsmanship for over forty five years.

The origins of the Ghurka bags can be traced back to a fortuitous discovery at a British auction house in the early 1970s.  Marley Hodgson inspired by his love of history and leather craft, bid on campaign travel gear and leather boots formerly owned by a British Gurkha officer stationed in India at the turn of the 20th century.  He was very impressed by the quality of the nearly 100 year-old leather which was durable, yet supple in spite of its age. Marley did not win the auction but made friends with the gentleman who won the auction and later tracked down the lost tanning formula for these boots, and for other accoutrement carried by the legendary Gurkha regiments, and applied the manufacturing process to his new collection.

Marley’s Ghurka creations were always made in America and represented the pinnacle of craftsmanship and longevity. His bags really spell out the words elegant, character, and charisma. There are so many details that go into making a Ghurka leather bag. Selecting the special leather types that sometimes took months of processing and preparation, each Ghurka bag is stamped with the Ghurka crest, bag name and a unique registration number before being released for sale. As a result of this constant attention to quality and detail, it often took months to create each new Ghurka bag.