Blog

How much do you know about the wool industry and British wool? We bring you 10 amazing facts so you can find out more about this unique fibre. This week sees the official start of Wool Month (3rd-30th October), a campaign

Cheap clothing does not always work out cheaper in the long run. Save money on clothing by buying UK-made. We show you how.

Julie Deane CBE is the founder of The Cambridge Satchel Company, which manufactures all its bags in the UK. I chatted to Julie on Made in UK Day to talk about why the Cambridge Satchels are made in the UK, and

Menswear brand HebTroCo take a journey around the UK to document what’s ‘Made right here’ including manufacturers of their own products Since 2006, Brant and Ed of HebTroCo have been selling their popular jeans to people all over the world.

Thanks to everyone that supported the first-ever Made in UK Day on 9th March 2021. The hashtag #madeinukday trended at No.5 in the United Kingdom on Twitter. It also had a total reach of over 38.5 million people – 25% of which

Made in Great Britain and Made in UK are often used interchangeably. We’ve done it here at Make it British, but there is a difference between the phrases. You may not know what that difference is, so here’s an explanation

Leicester based knitwear manufacturer Mars Knitwear have utilised the power of video on social media to share their thoughts on why we should buy British, as well as giving us an insight into the vision of the UK knitwear manufacturer.

Laxtons is one of the UK’s leading specialist yarn manufacturers serving high end global brands. They are still very much a family business, founded by George Laxton and Gordon Holmes in 1907 and run today by the fourth generation, James

Luxury Scottish cashmere manufacturer, Johnstons of Elgin, is reinforcing its sustainable credentials through the launch of a new range using leftover yarn from its main collections. Maintaining the highest level of quality, the range will benefit the environment and last longer

Webinar Replay Wouldn’t it be great if the UK textile industry could create less waste, increase sales and become more profitable?  Local manufacturing is an increasing focus for brands and designers looking for a fast turnaround on products that don’t

More and more these days brands are setting up their own factories in order to take control of their own production. Make it British member Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing is one such brand. Founder Paul Brown tells us about his

Christopher Nieper, MD of David Nieper awarded OBE in Queen’s New Year Honours 💯 Congratulations to this man – Christopher Nieper, MD of clothing manufacturer David Nieper – who has been awarded an OBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours

The coronavirus is affecting many different industries, maybe none more so than manufacturing supply chains. In this report I did with the BBC we looked at the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak on UK textile manufacturers. Could this lead to

Derbyshire fashion firm David Nieper has commissioned an academic report into the environmental impact of offshore manufacturing. The report highlights 47% less emissions are created by manufacturing clothes in the UK. The report, commissioned by UK clothing manufacturer David Nieper, was

There’s barely any manufacturing left in the UK, everyone works in the service industry instead, right? Wrong! Due to the outdated way that the Government looks at statistics, we are all being led to believe that manufacturing contributes just a

Thousands of manufacturers, retailers, designers and academics gathered to showcase the creativity and diversity of UK manufacturing and to share their inspiring stories at Make it British Live! 2019 at The Business Design Centre, London. These are challenging but exciting

The UK Fashion and textiles industry employs 120,000 people and produces £9 billion of textiles every year.  This hugely important UK industry, with roots established before the industrial revolution, is experiencing unprecedented demand despite the uncertainty caused by Brexit. 2019

The northern business that started as a daft idea in the pub and began operations on referendum day has dashed past the £1m mark as Brexit looms. Make it British Members HebTroCo is a two-man menswear start-up which was launched

Trailblazer of UK reshoring and ethical manufacturing, Jenny Holloway gives a frank interview on how tough it was to set up a clothing factory.  Having previously come from a buying background, she shares the highs and lows it took to create

Brand Consultant, Andrea Freeman, joins us to discuss her work with heritage brands to keep them relevant for todays customer, and share how she is building one of her own – The Beehive Brand. The Beehive Brand is a heritage

British-made maternity wear: Why are there not more brands making in the UK? By Lauren Walker With my second baby due very soon, I wanted to take a look at British-made maternity wear brands and why there are surprisingly few

The variety of knitted fabrics available can be confusing, but understanding the different fabric types is essential when designing fashion. Your fabric choices can make or break your product when it goes into production.  We speak to Rajen Ved of

You’ve visited a trade show and made some great contacts, then what? How to you make the most of those contacts and take your discussions further? Read on for our tips, and sample email, on how to follow-up after a

Jenni Sutton discusses the importance of technical knowledge and production skills to designers and start-up fashion brands. Fashion Enter is a large, ethical factory in North London, with a mission to support designers and train the next generation of fashion professionals.

What makes a fabric ethical? What does zero waste mean? What are the benefits of sourcing sustainable materials?  Ethical textiles expert, Charlie Ross, talks us through the world of sustainable fabrics. With a Masters in menswear from the Royal College

Brand guru, Simon Middleton, shares his advice on how to gain investment for your start-up brand and the importance of professionalism. Simon Middleton is an entrepreneur and a brand expert. In this interview, which was done originally as a Facebook

We interview Patrick Morrison of Furious Goose to find out more about the brand that is disrupting the world of high-end accessories with a healthy streak of British eccentricity. Based in Brighton, Furious Goose products are designed using crisp vectors

Find out how Ruth Dent went from working in IT to becoming an artist and then turning that art into a printed scarf business Have you ever thought about having a career change because you wanted to follow your passion?

Do you need your product injection moulded but don’t know where to start?  We went to injection moulding experts, Rutland Plastics, to find out how. Make it British are receiving more and more enquiries from designers about how and where

Isabelle Ugochukwu, founder and creative director of Isabella Queen, shares her personal experience and expertise on launching a British-made handbag business. Coming from a corporate background, Isabelle took the plunge to start her own luxury handbag business combining authentic craftsmanship

We visit Tiffany London, founder of  British brands Tiffany Rose and Alie Street, to hear her advice on how you can build a successful relationship with a UK manufacturer How did you come up with the idea for Tiffany Rose’s

Martin Lowe shows us around his Nottinghamshire factory and discusses The SockMine’s aim to reshore their sock manufacturing Martin, thank you for showing me around your sock factory, can you tell me who started the business and why it’s called

After spotting an article in Country life in 2013 calling for help to save the last remaining UK horn button manufacturer, commodities broker David Courtney felt he needed to do something. So he set about bringing natural button manufacturing back

As Clarks announces plans for a factory to bring its shoe production back to the UK, we look at why and how other retailers and brands can follow suit Shoemakers Clarks have announced that they will shortly be resuming the

Clothing manufacturers, bag makers, fabric mills, knitwear factories, a wool room and an enterprise room specially for small businesses…find it all at ‘Meet the Manufacturer 2017’ One of the questions that I most often get asked is: ‘Where can I find

A recent survey has shown what we suspected all along, that the ‘made in UK’ label is one of the most highly prized amongst shoppers In a recent global survey carried out by Statista, the UK was the 3rd highest

Setting up a British menswear brand is not without challenges, but quality rules over quantity, says Anthony & Brown founder Paul Brown Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your background before Anthony & Brown was created? I have a

The Irish linen industry once employed over 40 percent of Northern Ireland’s working population, but sadly most of the mills have since closed down. I took a tour of Northern Ireland to visit some of the manufacturers still remaining in

Find out how wool is processed from fleece to fabric and why using British wool is important, as we chat to Laura Rosenzweig, the founder of Laura’s Loom. Laura, can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you

…and why Make it British is not affiliated with any other ‘made in Britain’ campaigns… I was recently contacted by a web developer, prospecting for some business. His pitch was that he’d been through the code on the Make it

Founder and creative director of Isabella Queen, Isabelle Ugochukwu, on how she launched her luxury British handbag brand, life after Brexit, and what her top tips are for others launching a similar business Isabelle, can you firstly give our readers a brief

Update 2024: Pantherella no longer manufacture their socks in England and have sadly closed their factory in Leicester.   Pantherella has always been on Hallaton Street, Leicester, since 1937. Pantherella are a world renowned brand manufacturing fine English socks and

Is Britain really going to be spinning cotton again? Yes it is! It all started at our Meet the Manufacturer conference, apparently. Brendan McCormack, Steve Shaugnessy, and Andy Ogden, joint owners and general manager respectively, of Culimeta-Saveguard, came to the event to

Coronation Festival’s ‘Best of British’ reveals that not all Royal Warrant holders make their products in the UK Yesterday I had the good fortune to be able to attend the Coronation Festival – an event held in the grounds of

Steve Lancefield’s stunning photos taken inside the Globe-Trotter factory in Hertfordshire depict the craftsmanship that goes into making each suitcase The Globe-Trotter suitcase company was established in Germany in 1897 by an Englishman named David Nelkin. He relocated the company

The unique collaboration between Timorous Beasties and Brintons Carpets was highlighted last week in a fascinating talk organised as part of the Clerkenwell Design Week festival. Founded in 1783, Kidderminster based Brintons Carpets, a worldwide market leader in the supply of

British button manufacturer James Grove & Sons went into administration in December 2012 – but now there is a new business rising from its ashes James Grove was the last horn button manufacturer in Britain, and when the business closed

One of the UK’s largest clothing manufacturing units is now under new ownership and ready to take on fresh challenges Last Friday I had the pleasure of being invited to the old Aquascutum factory in Corby, Northamptonshire; now open for

Survey reveals UK manufacturers less confident now than before the coalition came to power The results of a survey of 1000 manufacturers carried out by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers last month showed that the Government could be doing more

As National Apprenticeship Week approaches we look at why more British manufacturers need to invest in the next generation [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFTt8PYls0I] With UK manufacturing now showing signs of growth it is very depressing to read that it is a lack

Video of the last remaining Scottish lace producer shows the skill required to produce this delicate fabric [vimeo http://vimeo.com/38014104] MYB Textiles, based in Ayrshire in Scotland, specialise in producing lace for interiors, and are one of the few remaining lace

We look at why UK manufacturers might be saying ‘no’ to potential orders This week I had an email from a lady who was having trouble getting her new handbag range made in the UK. She had approached a small

Retail giant promotes new Made in Britain range with product made overseas This week British department store Debenhams announced that it was developing a new range for its stores that supported British manufacturing. Entitled ‘Made by Great Britons’, the range of

Eighteen months ago we set out to prove to people that there was still products made in Britain – and now there are more than ever As a nation, Britain has had a long and successful history of making things.

News feature by BBC makes depressing viewing as retail experts declare price sole driver of British buying decisions Last week the BBC News posed the question of how much of the clothing bought in the UK is actually made in this

The story of how British bag makers The Cambridge Satchel Company ended up receiving an undisclosed sum from rival bag firm Zatchels in an out of court settlement It goes something like this…The Cambridge Satchel Company was launched by Julie

Sharing the websites that we love to read about products made in Britain – the first of these is the Harris Tweed Authority blog What’s it all about? Harris Tweed is a fabric dyed and spun in the Scottish Outer

Designer supports British manufacturers with a map depicting location of British suppliers Margaret Howell has produced a stunning map, currently displayed in the window of eponymous London store, showing all of the British manufacturers that the company uses.

A little history lesson on the Lancashire cotton mills and a great video made by the British council in 1941 Did you know that Britain used to be the biggest cotton cloth producer in the world? The mechanised spinning and

Call for more fashion & textiles companies to stand up and be counted in nationwide search for innovation A while back I was invited to the launch of the Government’s Make it in Great Britain campaign and at the time I felt

Mary Portas launches Kinky Knickers made in her British factory – and they’re not pants at all (If you are looking for stockists of Kinky Knickers see the bottom of this page) I must admit that when I reported back

How Skillset is helping companies to place new recruits in the fashion & textiles sector The amount of skilled craftsman left in the clothing and textiles industry is one of the main concerns of many of the British brands and

Sir Alan Sugar is the latest high profile figure to call for more to be done to support British manufacturing. In his address to the House of Lords on the 8th December, Sir Alan Sugar, the business mogul best known

Last week I had the good fortune to be invited to Somerset to meet Deborah Meaden, best known for her appearances on TV show Dragon’s Den, and to hear all about how she is supporting a revival of the British

As I mentioned in one of my first posts, we are trying to find a handbag factory in the UK that we can work with to develop our new British handbag brand. A few phone calls to some of the

Where to start to find handbag factories in the UK? A cursory glance reveals around a dozen potential manufacturers of bags in Britain, but my previous experience tells me that not all factories are made equal. The type of bag