Finding a UK manufacturer doesn’t have to be a challenge! In this bonus episode, I share the recording of my recent webinar, where I break down the 5 essential steps to finding your perfect manufacturing partner. What You’ll Learn in […]
Welcome to episode 300! Celebrating the 300th episode of this podcast I look back at some of the amazing guests that I’ve had on this show from the world of UK fashion and textile manufacturing. Manufacturers that have shared their
Join me on a tour round a factory! In this episode I’m chatting with Simon Michelson, owner of Vagabond Bags, a sewing factory in Swindon that makes cosmetic bags, shower caps and hot water bottle covers. Meet some of the
I’m joined today by 3 amazing people that work tirelessly in the UK fashion and textile industry. You may have seen in the press recently that several high profile brands have been affected by the close of Matches, but did
The title says it all. Listen to find out what it is! HANDY LINKS British Brand Accelerator – Work closely with me to start or grow your UK-made brand. Newsletter – Subscribe for a weekly dose of inspiration and advice
Join me on a visit to KC Manufacturing (previously Kalopsia Collective) in Dumferline, Scotland to meet with husband and wife team Adam Robertson and Nina Falk. KC Manufacturing is a social enterprise specialising in small batch manufacturing. Discover: How Adam
Regular listeners to this podcast will know that I am all about encouraging brands to manufacture locally. But in some cases, it might not make good sense to do so. In this episode I explain the 4 reasons why you
One of the questions that came up on one of our recent British Brand Accelerator group coaching calls was so good, I thought I’d bring it to you on the podcast this week. The question was about whether a small
This week I’m bringing some very sad news – that the UK’s only cotton spinning mill, English Fine Cottons, which brought cotton spinning back to Greater Manchester in 2018, has very sadly gone into administration. In case you don’t know
Today’s guests are Andrea and David Courtney from Courtney & Co buttonmakers Back in 2012 I was contacted by someone who was trying to save the UK’s last remaining horn button maker – Grove & Sons. He was looking for
This episode celebrates 15 years since I registered the domain makeitbritish.co.uk and busts some of the myths about UK manufacturing. You’ll find out: Why I started Make it British and why I’m such a firm believer in UK manufacturing. The
Christopher Nieper OBE is the managing director of David Nieper, a womenswear business in Alfreton in Derbyshire. The firm was set up by Christopher’s parents sixty years ago and is now one of the most vertical textile operations in the UK.
In this episode of the Make it British podcast, Karen McCluckie, the director of Bealies Adaptive Wear, shares her inspiring journey of creating adaptive clothing for wheelchair users and disabled individuals. Motivated by her son’s disability and the lack of
This week I’ve been in the Midlands visiting factories, which is always one of my favourite things to do. I’d planned to take my podcast mic with me and get an episode to you today with an interview with one
Today’s episode is all about selling and sales, and how it’s closely linked to product development. A lot of creative business owners say that they aren’t any good at selling, so the natural tendency is to drop their prices or
Hear from 21 business founders as they give their tips on starting and growing a British-made brand. These snippets were taken from 21 different guest interviews on this podcast. If you want to listen to the full episodes you can
Catherine Bedford is the founder of Dashel Cycle Helmets which are all made in the UK.
Welcome to Episode no.284! Circularity is the buzzword on everyone’s lips right now. It’s no wonder, when you hear that 350,000 tonnes of clothing goes to landfill in the UK every year. Something needs to be done to stop the
Lydia Bolton is a slow fashion designer tackling textile waste by upcycling unwanted fabrics and garments and turning them into one-off pieces.
How to find fabrics, leathers and other raw materials for your brand, and avoid the most common mistake that many people make when sourcing fabric. FURTHER RESOURCES UK Fabric Mills on the Make it British website HANDY LINKS British Brand
Sampling with UK manufacturers can be quite a different ball game to sampling with manufacturers overseas. Here’s why you might not want to sample with lots of different factories. FURTHER RESOURCES Quiz: Are you ready to work with a UK
Tempted to skip this step? Find out why that might be a bad idea, and how having a tech pack can save you money in the long run. FURTHER RESOURCES Tech Pack Bundle Quiz: Are you ready to work with
A Non Disclosure Agreement is a legal document you might ask a manufacturer to sign in order to protect your designs. Find out what the pros and cons are of asking a manufacturer to sign an NDA, and what the
What are the secrets to getting a response from a manufacturer when you reach out to them? I explain how to word your approach and why you might not be getting a response. FURTHER RESOURCES How to get manufacturers to
What are the main costs that you will incur to start a brand, and how can you save money by making your product in the UK? FURTHER RESOURCES 25 Hidden Costs of Starting a Brand How Much Does it Cost
Discover the best ways to the ideal UK manufacturers for your brand, and how to ensure that they get back to you every time. FURTHER RESOURCES Make it British Manufacturer Directory 5 Steps to Finding a UK Manufacturer How to
You might think that having the factory source your fabric for you sounds like the easiest option, but that’s not always the case. In this episode I explain what your options are when it comes to fabric sourcing, and why
Find out how long on average it might take to launch a brand and what the main variables are that will affect it. FURTHER RESOURCES 5 Steps to Finding a UK Manufacturer How to Start a UK Made Brand HANDY
Discover the essential steps to turn your idea into a successful prototype. Get practical advice on how to bring your concept to life efficiently and cost-effectively and how to common pitfalls. FURTHER RESOURCES 5 Steps to Finding a UK Manufacturer
Welcome to Episode 272 of the Make it British Podcast Starting off the new year with something a bit different. This episode explains everything. Looking out for my special FAQ series, starting on Monday 7th January. HANDY LINKS British Brand
Hello and Welcome to Episode 271! As 2023 draws to a close, and for my last podcast episode of the year, I reflect back on the 3 biggest lessons that I’ve learnt this year. I also want to say a
Mark Shayler is a sustainability consultant and author of You Can’t Make Money From A Dead Planet
Hello and welcome to episode 269 of the Make it British podcast! At the time of recording this we are just a month away from the start of 2024, and that can only mean one thing – time to start
In this episode, I am joined by Laura Ward, founder of the luxury British tennis brand Exeat.
Exeat is the UK’s most exported luxury tennis apparel brand, and Laura herself is the winner of many awards, including Global Startup of the Year. She’s also one of the government’s UK export champions, and the brand has been feature in Vogue, Forbes, The Financial Times, and Vanity Fair.
In this episode, she’s going to give you tips on how to export your brand globally and how she’s managed to get such amazing press in such a short space of time.
Welcome to episode 267 of the Make It British Podcast! In this episode, I share my recent experiences at the All Party Parliamentary Group for ethics and sustainability in fashion at the Houses of Parliament, organised by Fashion Roundtable. You
Welcome to Episode 266 of the Make it British Podcast! In this episode I discuss how and why investing in your own personal development can dramatically transform your business. I share insights from my own personal development journey and provide
Welcome to Episode 265 of the Make it British Podcast! In this episode I’m chatting with Pip Chawner, who is the founder of womenswear brand Philippa London. Pip has got some fantastic tips to share about her experiences of setting
Welcome to Episode 264 of the Make it British Podcast! What are the red flags to watch out for when searching for a manufacturer, particularly if you’re starting your search on Google or another search engine? From misleading claims of
Welcome to Episode 263 of the Make it British Podcast! Today I’m chatting to Clare Winton from Grow Wild Outdoorwear, a new brand for women in pregnancy and the early stages of motherhood. Clare had the idea to develop her
Welcome to episode 262 of the Make it British Podcast! In this episode, l explore the factors that go into setting the perfect price, from understanding your customer and competitors to considering the cost of alternatives. Join me as we
Welcome to episode 261 of the Make It British Podcast! In this episode, you get the lowdown on why I ended up taking a 6 month break from podcasting. And why I’ve decided to make some big changes in my
Hello and welcome to Series 6 of the Make it British podcast. After a 6 month break the Make it British Podcast is coming back! The first episode will be released on Friday 6th October 2023. I have so much
In this episode I discuss some of the hidden costs of manufacturing, and offer tips on how to avoid them. Whether you’re starting a new brand, or growing an existing one, there’s typically five common areas where costs can spiral
In this episode I’m joined by Tamara Cincik, founder of think tank Fashion Roundtable to discuss the impact of Brexit on small UK textile businesses. We delve into the challenges of supporting and promoting heritage brands, the need for trade
We get a lot of people contacting us at Make it British asking if we can put them in touch with a sustainable or ethical factory to make their brand. So in this episode I define ways in which a factory might meet this criteria.
I also talk about the launch of Primark’s new circular denim collection, which has had mixed reviews in the media, with many thinking it is greenwashing and an insult to small brands that are genuinely doing the right thing.
24th April 2023 marks the ten year anniversary of the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh, which killed over 1,000 workers and injured 2,500 more. To mark the occasion, I look back on this episode of the podcast
Do you know what the no.1 reason is that product businesses fail? It’s not legal problems, it’s not finance problems, it’s not even marketing problems. In this episode, you’ll find out what it is, and how to avoid it. You’ll
Recently Bentley Motors announced their financial results for 2022, which revealed they’d had their year ever. This is a luxury car brand, made in the UK, having a phenomenal year during a cost of living crisis.
Join me on a factory tour of print-on-demand UK manufacturer Contrado and learn about the businesses backstory from co-founder Chris Childs.
When you run a UK-made brand you need to wear a lot of different hats! In this episode we explore all of the different jobs you need to do and the skills you need to have, on top of producing
On today’s episode I am chatting to Maxine Wells, who is the founder of Intimate Apparel Samples, a small lingerie studio in North West London. Getting lingerie made in the UK can be challenging. Whilst the UK once had thousands
Welcome to Series 5! After taking a couple of months hiatus to focus on writing my book, I’m back with a brand new series. I’ll be answering all of your most commonly asked questions about manufacturing, marketing and selling products
Hello and Welcome to Series 5 of the Make it British Podcast. The new series is coming very soon. The first episode will be released on Friday 3rd March. In the meantime, I wanted to tell you about a few
Having worked with hundreds of British brands over the last few years, and speaking to them about what is working for them right now, and what they see working in 2023, here are 11 ideas you can use for growing
Meet Siwan Oldham, the founder of ByBiology, a business that is giving to scientific research by creating the most beautiful luxury silk scarves. Siwan talks about how her business idea came about, the reason she decided to manufacturer in the
Sarah Turner is the founder of Little Beau Sheep, a brand that celebrates the best of British wool through a unique range of hand-made laundry and body care products. Flying the flag for British wool, the Yorkshire-based entrepreneur came up
How do you attract the right peoplt to your brand, and keep them coming back for more? In this excerpt from one of the sessions at the Make it British Virtual Forum, you’ll hear the ways in which three successful
There are around 4,000 manufacturers based in Greater London, making everything from bicycles, ballet shoes, military uniforms, neon signs, umbrellas, mannequins and paint. Photographer Carmel King and factory owner Mark Brearley have produced a stunning book showcasing 50 of the
When it comes to manufacturing a product, planning is critical! In this episode, I cover exactly what you need to have prepared before going ahead with your production. You’ll also find out what a critical path is, why you need
In this episode, I chat with Oscar Boatfield, who is one of the co-founders of bags and accessory brand BearMade who make all of their bags in the UK. If ever there was a great example of a business doing
This episode answers some of your most commonly asked questions about pricing. Discover: 02:12 What markup do retailers add? 08:19 Should you raise your prices if the cost of your fabric and manufacturing has increased? 13:06 Should you lower your
In this episode, I chat with childrenswear designer Dawn Clarke, who is a member of Make It British and a part of our British Brand Accelerator programme. Dawn tells us all about her journey going from making everything in-house and
How can you sell a UK-made product, or any high end product, at a time when people may be more cautious about spending their money due to rising inflation and rising bills? Firstly, don’t panic! I’ve got 5 tips to
UK-made goods have huge value both at home and abroad. Are you doing enough to shout about your own British-made brand? I’ll be sharing my 7 foolproof tips you can action right now to sell your UK-made goods. Discover: 03:01
Want to know how to create a loyal following and keep happy customers coming back for more? Kate Barker (Lime Tree Design), Sue Longmore (Maude and Fox) and Linda de Ruiter (The Slow Wardrobe) share the customer service secrets that
Is it possible to launch a brand with just a few hundred pounds? We surveyed our Make it British members and they gave us the insights into how much it cost them to start-up a brand that is made in
Joining me this week is Veronica Galbraith from fun, colourful homewares brand Republic of Happy. Originally from Colombia and now living permanently in Cornwall, Veronica is a graphic designer turned surface pattern designer. She tells me all about how she
Do you want to manufacture in the UK but factories keep giving your efforts the silent treatment? This one’s for you. In this episode, I share five actionable tips for things that you can do before you start to reach
Find out about an exciting recycled cashmere collaboration between three UK businesses. Dr. John Parkinson from iinouiio, Graham Holbrook from Turtle Doves, and Emma Mathews from Socko, share how the project came about, the importance of making in the UK
Summer is a time for holidays – not just for you, but also for your manufacturer and suppliers. The Factory Fortnight – a time when manufacturers traditionally shuttered their doors for a couple of weeks – may be less common
This episode is dedicated to those of you that put sending an email to your mailing list at the bottom of your to-do list! Discover: 02:25 Why email marketing is more important than social media marketing 04:24 How to make
When you get a product manufactured, most of the time everything will go as planned. But what about the odd occasion when it doesn’t? It’s always better to have thought about what could go wrong in advance, and make sure
We’re back! After a longer than planned hiatus, the Make it British Podcast has returned. And we’ll be back to our regular Friday episodes. This week I’m discussing what went wrong with the recent rebuild of the Make it British
We’re taking a break from new podcast episodes for a while. Back soon! Stay Connected: Subscribe to the Make it British Newsletter Follow on Instagram Connect with Kate on Linkedin British Brand Accelerator
In this episode, recorded as an Instagram Live on Made in UK Day, I chat to two British makers: Joseph Azagury, a high-end women’s footwear designer with his own atelier in Wimbledon, London Nelson and Jenny Were from leather goods
Linda De Ruiter is the founder of sustainable womenswear brand, The Slow Wardrobe. In this episode, we talk about Linda’s business, The Slow Wardrobe, how she dresses women to feel more confident, and why she’s chosen YouTube as the main
If you have a limited budget to spend on product development and stock, the worst thing you can do is pick the wrong manufacturing partner. Here’s how to make sure that you don’t. Discover: 06:00 The expensive mistakes brands make
In this episode, recorded as an Instagram Live on Made in UK Day, I chat to three UK manufacturers: Karen and Neville Clokey from NC Lancaster, who make cushions in Lancashire Steff McGrath from Something Wicked, a UK-made lingerie brand
Make sure that manufacturers are getting back to your emails by avoiding these four common errors. Discover: 03:08 The amount of emails that manufacturers are getting and why you need to stand out. 04:23 The four reasons why emails to
Register for the masterclass > makeitbritish.co.uk/5steps
In this episode, I chat with Paul Brown, founder of Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing, a UK-made brand based in Suffolk. Paul founded his clothing business back in 2012, knowing nothing about clothing manufacturing, butwent on to set up his own
Rosie Macpherson is the founder of Where’s Winnie, a luxury dog travel brand. Rosie came to me when she had an idea to develop an innovative new type of dog car seat. One where a small dog can travel in
Julie Deane CBE is the founder of The Cambridge Satchel Company, which manufactures all its bags in the UK. In this episode, recorded as an Instagram Live on Made in UK Day, I chat to Julie about why the Cambridge
Do you want to wholesale your UK-made brand, but don’t know where to start? Is this episode we look at some of the potential pitfalls, and I give you my top 8 tips for success when selling to retail buyers.
The results of our Made in UK survey are in! Find out what consumers really think about buying UK-made goods. Read the full survey results here: https://makeitbritish.co.uk/buying-british/madeinuk-survey-2022/ Stay in Touch British Brand Accelerator – Find out how you can work
There are generally 3 main reasons why sales might not be going as expected. But don’t panic! As well as discussing what those 3 reasons for a sales slump might be, in this episode I also give tips on what
In this episode, I’m chatting with Graham Holbrook from Turtle Doves, a company that recycles cashmere jumpers into brand new products, including their signature fingerless gloves, which sell over 200,000 pairs a year. Graham talks about how Turtle Doves manage
In this episode, I invite you to join us for our second Made in UK Day on 9th March 2022. Following the success of the inaugural Made in UK Day in 2021, the campaign is back this year to raise
The price of everything is going up at the moment – from fuel prices and taxes, to raw materials and shipping. But what does this mean for you if you have a business that makes in the UK? In this
Kitty Bruce-Gardyne is the founder of Scottish Textiles Showcase. Originally set up to give people special guided tours around the textile mills in Scotland, Scottish Textile Showcase is now a retail destination in Edinburgh. The shop represents some of Scotland’s
One of the biggest mistakes that I see people making when they want to get a product made in the UK is that they think the first step that they need to take is to contact a manufacturer. But this
In this episode, I chat with Chris Kyriacou, founder of activewear brand Soma Sportswear. Chris contacted me in 2019, looking for help to find manufacturers to make his very unique athleisurewear. In this episode, Chris talks through the process of
One of the biggest problems that many fashion firms face is how they can dispose of their deadstock fabric. At the same time, designers often have issues with sourcing materials in small quantities. In this episode, we meet Deborah Lyons
If you have a business making or selling products that are made in the UK, what are the biggest trends that will impact you in 2022? Whilst the last 2 years have shown us that it is almost impossible to
In this episode I reflect on how much things have changed over the past couple of years for us at Make it British, as I am sure they have for you. I also look at which of the 61 episodes
Shanna Bent is the founder of the conscious fashion brand Maison Bent. Having previously worked with Alexander McQueen, Roland Mouret, Agent Provocateur, in 2019 Shanna set up her own luxury label, with a determination to bust the myth that black
When you have a product-based business and you’re working with manufacturers, it’s important to have a plan in place. There’s no better time to do this than at the start of a new year. In this episode I give you
Charlotte Raffo is the founder of The Monkey Puzzle Tree, a homeware business that creates award-winning, artist designed fabrics and wallpapers with a twist and a conscience. Working with artists and designers to produce the most beautiful collection of products,
Of all the social media platforms that small businesses use to promote their business, Instagram seems to be the one that evokes the biggest love/hate reaction. Especially if you’re a creative person, or run a product-based business. You might be
Today we are going on a trip to Leicester to meet the family behind textile firm Shahtex. The guys at Shahtex are experts in circular knitting. Up until recently, they have been knitting fabrics for big online retailers. Shahtex have
