Samsonite Australia
After leaving Austria, Fred Dodge arrived in Australia in 1938. Together with his wife and parents, Fred started a luggage manufacturing and wholesaling business called Airport Luggage. At the time, it was based in Smith Street, Collingwood.
In 1970, his son Ron Dodge joined the business. With a vision to increase efficiencies and grow the business, Ron moved manufacturing off-shore and quickly acquired the distribution rights for Samsonite throughout Australia and New Zealand. Realising the potential in the new brand, Ron decided to enter into a joint venture with Samsonite in 2007, thereby acquiring the brand name. Since then the business has gone from strength to strength, growing exponentially and enjoying a dominant position in the market place. Ron is now the chairman of Samsonite Australia, and together with his management team, manages the business from their Melbourne head office.
