In the 1960s, Gordon and Barbara Brown were building a new 40' Schooner, which was named The Rigby.  The family name goes back to Gordon's grandfather, Elmer Rigby, who was a boatbuilder in New Brunswick, Canada, in the 1920s.  Gord & Barb intended to race her, and that meant braided ropes for the running rigging.  They found there was no Canadian manufacturer of braided ropes.

Gordon had no background in textiles...just memories of a relative's textile mill in New England, as a child.  What he did have was extensive knowledge of mechanical design from his days as a race car driver, and a creative mind.

He partnered with a shoelace manufacturer who had braiders, and cut a deal with the owner: I'll design the rope, you manufacture it, and I'll sell it.  It worked well for years, until the owner retired.  When he did, Gordon set out on his own.  In 1973, he founded G.W.B. Rope & Twine, which within a decade was one of North America's leading braided rope manufacturers, with hundreds of machines and capacity for braids from 1/32" to 6".  Along the way, his son Sean worked in the factory, and could run every machine in the building before he was a teen.

In 1985 GWB expanded into net manufacturing, when Gordon redesigned bowrail netting for the all-new 1985 Ford Taurus.  That transformed the company.  Unfortunately, Gordon suffered a foot injury that disabled him, and he sold the company from a hospital bed.

In 1990, his son Sean Rigby Brown, now grown, entered the ropemaking business and founded several new rope companies in three countries.  Sean also became a leading rope designer in his own right, creating innovative new designs in marine, industrial, and mountain climbing.

In 1997, Redpoint Ropes was co-founded by Sean Brown.  The company specialized in braided ropes up to 3/4" and was immediately successful.  Years later, the company was sold, and Sean pursued further education and other business ventures in furniture manufacturing, private equity, and more.

In 2020, Sean re-acquired Redpoint Ropes, added some pieces, and rebranded it as RIGBY, operating in Toronto, Canada.  

In 2025, a new manufacturing location was established in Panama, in the PANAPARK Free Zone.