R. M. Williams learned his leather-working skills in the Flinders Ranges region of South Australia, from a stockman called Michael George Smith, commonly known as “Dollar Mick”, who was originally from Lyndhurst, a bit further north.

Dollar Mick, who was an Aboriginal man,[1] taught Williams how to make bridles, pack saddles and riding boots[2] and general leatherwork skills.

Dollar Mick and Williams together developed the distinctive design that is a variation on the chelsea boot, made out of one piece of leather, that became a cornerstone of the business.

[1] In 1932, with his son's illness and the expense of hospital treatment, Williams was in need of money and began selling his saddles to Sir Sidney Kidman, a wealthy pastoralist.

The Yura people had been making waterbags (yakutha) and clothing (valdha) from animal skins, sewn with bone needles, for a long time before European settlement.

The workers were expected to "uphold Christian teaching", and the boys were not allowed to undergo traditional initiation rites.

He departed the mission in April 1934, after Thelma had returned to Adelaide to have their baby son Ian's trachoma treated, and another missionary took over his post at Nepabunna.

Much later (1984), Williams said "had we been allowed to remain and develop the ideas which later were the foundation of our large industry, that alone could have transformed the lives of the people economically”.

In the 1950s, a small group of Nepabunna people went to see "old Reg" in Adelaide, but were disappointed by his lack of enthusiasm for meeting them, and did not get to see his wife.

There remains a feeling among the local Yura descendants of his workers that he did not properly acknowledge their contribution to his success, in particular Dollar Mick and a man called Rufus Wilton.

[1] Williams sold the business in 1988 to the long-established South Australian stock and station agents Bennett & Fisher.

Williams was then placed under the ownership of long-time friend Ken Cowley, who acted in partnership with Australian business mogul Kerry Stokes, and together with his family,[citation needed] presided over R.M.

[6] On 26 March 2013, the Cowley family released a statement which announced an intention to sell the company to a new owner for A$100 million.

The statement described the sale process as an assessment of "external commercial growth and expansion plans", and the list of potential buyers included Oroton Group, Premier Investments and LVMH.