by Kristina Wrenn
The Cavender Family, and in turn Cavender’s Boot City stores, have a knack for being in the right place at the right time. Cavender’s started with three styles of Tony Lama boots, honoring founder James Cavender’s western roots. Throughout Cavender’s years of success some of those right places have been, buying (and reselling, of course) a cattle trailer load of boots from a manufacturer going out of business in the 1970s, riding the high of the Urban Cowboy craze in the 1980s, surviving—and in fact thriving—in its decline, and partnering with iconic Western brands such as Wrangler and Justin.
Everyone in Tyler (and for that matter all Cavender’s markets) has a Cavender’s Boot City story. From buying their first pair of boots with their parents, to hats shaped and personalized (either in store or at a Texas-styled event), to functional work wear for ranchers, to clothing and jewelry for the cowboy way of life. It is these personal stories that make Cavender’s, though now over one hundred stores strong, in fifteen states, a brand that not just endures, but has been the driver of western wear in the southwest for the last sixty years.
These personal stories extend beyond East Texas to millions of satisfied customers in numerous cities, and it is the heart and soul of the business remaining close to its roots. It is the nostalgic smell of rows upon rows of new boots. Cavender’s success is rooted in their 60-year commitment to providing its customers with quality products at affordable prices.
The Cavender way has always been propelled by the humble beginnings of founders Patricia “Pat” and James Cavender. Cavender’s focus on quality extends to the store being the top retailer of the prestigious western wear brands ranging from Lucchese, Old Gringo, Justin, and Tony Lama to Laredo, Nocona, Rocky Mountain, and Wrangler. Cavender’s has also been adept in creating their own internal brands as they have been on the front lines of the industry. Patriarch James Cavender was an icon, who never met a stranger. He loved his customers.
Customers know that shopping at Cavender’s Boot City is a mutual loyalty. It is a respect that is backed by actions, not just words. It is what America is at its best. Hardworking, humble, honest, and caring. In an age where everything is marketed, the family has kept the spirit of the West and the focus on being a trusted partner at the forefront of their business.
Cavender’s Boot City was built on a tradition of craftsmanship and supporting the hard work and integrity of ranchers and cowboys that have shaped the American identity and fueled what is great about this country. It is no accident that while the country has been in the upheaval of the last few years that western wear has exploded with new boutique boot brands and through fashion houses around the world. That popularity reflects people yearning for comfort, quality, livability, and the values that Cavender’s has always held dear.
The family has been hardworking across generations perpetuating the business. No job within the business was too small or beneath the family to extend its values and wares to its customers. It is a family company with entrepreneurial zeal and dexterity. While Cavender’s was becoming data driven and scaling the business from fourteen stores to over one hundred today, the company still headquartered in their flagship store on the loop in Tyler. The beloved Tyler store was the corporate home office for twenty-eight years. Being on site had its advantages for client interaction and real time feedback.
Wanting to redesign the flagship store to match new builds and enhance the shopping experience, the Cavender Family moved into their first stand-alone corporate offices in Tyler in 2020.
The three sons of Pat and James Cavender all hold significant leadership roles within the company that speak to their talents.
Joe Cavender, President, first became chief merchant at thirty-two, has an encyclopedic knowledge of the boot business (including brands and styles, price to manufacture and margins that translate into knowing exactly what people want, if Joe doesn’t feel it in his gut the mass appeal won’t be there) and he has always had a hand in all facets of the business. Joe is also passionate about managing Cavender Ranches and the breeding and seedstock part of the operation. Joe is boots on the ground in the ranching business and sees firsthand what his colleagues in agriculture wear to work. Joe is a classic cowboy much like his father and George Strait dressing as such.
Mike Cavender has a design flair, creating and wearing some of the most extraordinary custom boots (always with his jeans tucked in to show off the designs). His skills lie in the real estate acquisitions and store location planning as Vice President of Real Estate. He has served the family business in this capacity for over forty-three years. Splitting time between Houston and Tyler, you can run into Mike at the Houston Rodeo or in any number of Cavender’s stores on the road. His flair for boots sometimes extends to stepping onto the selling floor to sell a pair of boots like his father used to love doing as well.
Clay Cavender has a degree in merchandising and made some of his first deals before his 8 am classes at UNT. He had the traits of a successful retailer from the beginning. Clay is now Vice President of Retail Merchandising at Cavender’s and is responsible for the store build outs and customer experience. He also has a finger on the pulse of western wear from musical acts to rodeo cowboys and runs the in-house design of Cavender’s brands – Rafter C Menswear Shirts and Rockin’ C Women’s Wear, brands that are styled like cattle brands in their naming in a nod to the Cavender legacy. Clay is a modern cowboy, who cuts a regal swath in a black felt hat, who also never met a stranger.
James Cavender’s sons all have a little bit of him in them and also have brought new innovations to the business while keeping it tried and true. Cavender’s Boot City is a family affair and multiple generations of Cavenders have and will continue to have thoughts and suggestions on product offering and store experiences because it is how they have all been raised.
The Cavender family has been inducted into the Western Heritage Hall of Fame, both the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame and the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame and has been honored with the Texas Historical Foundation’s Star of Texas Award, presented by Governor Greg Abbott. This prestigious award celebrates an iconic Texan or Texas company which has made an important contribution to preserving and promoting Texas history or culture across the state.
At the 2019 induction to the Texas Cowboy Hall of fame, Clay Cavender said, “It’s just not us, standing here, being inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame tonight, it’s our associates, our long-term employees, our vendors, it’s all of y’all. And we’d just like to say thank you.” That is the theme that runs deep through the Cavender family, that their successes are shared with each other and the people they work with and serve.
Joe Cavender extends that sentiment by saying that, “Cavender’s honors the enduring values that bind us and sincerely thank each one of our customers for their loyalty.”
Cavender’s not only honors the loyalty of its customers in stores, but it gives back in its store communities in support of the Western Lifestyle through sponsoring rodeos, bull riding events, and ranching and agricultural educational events. It also sponsors a robust Team Cavender’s Youth Rodeo Team over twenty members strong. They also support organizations and events that work to eradicate cancer and assist those who are fighting the disease.
Some of the organizations supported over the years include Special Olympics, American Cancer Society, The Boot Campaign supporting veterans and military families, Majesty Outdoors, Future Farmers of
America, and the Ariat Texas Rattlers in the PBR Team Series.
In 2015, Jacqueline Cavender, Clay’s wife, published a full-color, coffee table cookbook, As the Spur Stirs. One hundred percent of the proceeds for the cookbook are designated for the American Cancer Society and Cystic Fibrosis Research. The cookbook showcases many Cavender family recipes and is a window inside family meals and holidays with the Cavenders.
Looking to the future and the next sixty years, Cavender’s remains true to who they are and what they stand for: the cowboy way of life. Because theirs is not just a western lifestyle or donning of western wear, it is how they live.