Alexander Manufacturing crafts formal wear for Paris 2024 Olympic athletes

UKFT member Alexander Manufacturing, a Scottish luxury garment manufacturer, has been appointed by Team GB to create bespoke formal wear for the 350 British athletes competing in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Scroll down to read more about Alexander Manufacturing’s work with Team GB and its recent collaboration with London College of Fashion.

Alexander Manufacturing operating out of Cumbernauld in North Lanarkshire, stands as a beacon of Scottish artisanal expertise and tradition within the high-end fashion industry. Known for seamlessly blending time-honoured techniques with contemporary sustainability practices, the company is committed to the circular economy.

Alexander Manufacturing’s commitment to sustainability extends across the entire product lifecycle. The company also partners with local mills and farms to minimise its carbon footprint and create a more sustainable supply chain. By investing in local infrastructure and fostering job opportunities, Alexander Manufacturing spearheads the revival of Scotland’s textile industry, promoting sustainable growth.

Alexander Manufacturing has announced its appointment by Team GB to create bespoke formal wear for up to 350 British athletes participating in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. As an official supplier, Alexander Manufacturing will outfit the athletes with bespoke men’s and women’s suits for formal events, showcasing the best of British craftsmanship and elegance on the global stage. Each hand-tailored suit is made using the finest British textiles, featuring McNaughton’s Perth cloth, and accompanied by Morjas Footwear.

Nadia Alexander, Founder of Alexander Manufacturing, said: “It’s a real honour to dress Team GB. Each stitch embodies our passion for design and our commitment to showcasing the heritage of Scottish textiles. We’re creating more than just formal wear; we like to think that we are weaving the spirit of Great Britain into every Team GB garment.“

Nadia chose to dress the athletes in 100% Scottish woven lightweight wool. The garments were meticulously assembled in Cumbernauld by the skilled hands of Alexander Manufacturing’s craftspeople.

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John Smedley’s Derbyshire factory opens for third-party knitwear manufacturing

Coinciding with the knitwear company’s 240th birthday, UKFT member John Smedley will reopen its production lines to brands for seasonal orders. Working in partnership with key industry bodies, this strategic initiative by John Smedley aims to encourage brands to bring knitwear manufacturing back to UK shores. By boosting the factory’s output, it will also futureproof the company and proudly support local jobs.

Based at Lea Mills in Derbyshire since 1784, John Smedley is the oldest, still-operational knitwear maker in the world. Awarded two Royal Warrants, the company, specialist in exquisite merino, sea island cotton and cashmere, is renowned globally for its craftsmanship and commitment to quality. Its production schedule will open to brands from April 2024, for the forthcoming Spring/Summer 25 season, for the first time in more than 40 years.

“John Smedley is spending upwards of £3m to install the newest and most advanced machinery in its factories – producing a generational change in its manufacturing capabilities – and this will enable us to serve not only our own needs, but those of the most progressive brands in the UK, Europe and the US. Brands can work with us as partners to take advantage of our skills and experience, honed over generations, as the best knitwear specialists in the world. We will also bring to the table our knowledge and ambition to make knitwear that is amongst the most sustainable garments in the market – good for brands, good for the world, good for everybody.”says Ian Maclean, MBE Managing Director of John Smedley.

In 2023, John Smedley invested £2 million in expanding and enhancing its manufacturing capabilities. New Shima Seiki machinery — among the most advanced, cutting-edge equipment in the industry — has been installed. Alongside new machinery that enhances the brand’s capabilities to include traditional fine gauge but also chunky textures, knitting with fibres finer than the human hair at 19 microns all the way to chunky fisherman style textures. Combined with John Smedley’s centuries-old heritage, the factory’s marriage of age-old craftsmanship techniques with modern technology gives the company a competitive edge in the market. It also offers third-party fashion brands the opportunity to benefit from John Smedley’s specialist manufacturing prowess and specialist, skilled workforce. Many of its craftsmen have been employed by the factory for decades, offering unrivalled expertise on British soil for third-party brands.

This year, a further £1.5 million will be invested by John Smedley to conclude renovations on its existing manufacturing site. This includes a large expansion of their design and new product development team particularly investing in new technology to program and develop designs. It also includes relocating and expanding their wash & dyehouse functions. Brands can choose from more than 70 fibre and colour combinations each season: its on-site and now unrivalled dyehouse offers unlimited possibilities in terms of colour development.  The team are also pioneering a new project in partnership with their Yorkshire based textile recycling partner Iinouiio, to complete the circularity loop by taking waste panels and yarns and knitting them into new bespoke yarns. These new fully recycled and recyclable fibres will launch first on the John Smedley channels from October 2024 and will be made available to external brands from the Autumn/Winter 25 season onwards.

This investment plus the brand’s renowned reputation in craftsmanship has already proven persuasive enough to bring fellow British brand Daks back to manufacturing within the UK, with their 12-piece Spring 25 knitwear collection being entirely produced by John Smedley under a collaborative label to mark this celebration of heritage meets innovation on British soil.

Speaking about the project Jo Smith, General Manager PR & Advertising, Daks stated “As part of our 130^thAnniversary, DAKS is committed to returning to UK manufacturing. Collaborating with John Smedley for our SS25 knitwear collections is an important part of this process. We were looking for a partnership with a like-minded brand who share our core values.  Both DAKS and John Smedley share a rich history, but most importantly one which has focused on innovation. The brands complement each other perfectly with a focus on tailoring and knitwear respectively.” 

By reopening its third-party production schedule, John Smedley hopes to inspire more brands to make goods closer to home. In the 1980s, prior to the manufacturing exodus that saw many companies’ offshore production to the Far East, it created knitwear for luxury labels including Prada, Burberry, Paul Smith and Vivienne Westwood.

John Smedley is committed to responsible production and sourcing. A fully transparent, traceable supply chain sees its merino & British wools sourced from farms in the UK — where fibres travel less than 300 miles from field to the Derbyshire factory — and New Zealand, which John Smedley has partnered with for more than 50 years and follows the highest ZQRX standards. John Smedley’s Sea Island Cotton and silk, which are offered as standalone fibres and cashmere blends, follow a similar sourcing pattern with cottons from California grown to a bespoke specification with the fibre being GOTS certified and grown to an extra-long staple with an average Micronaire of 2.9-3.5 and an average fibre length of 38mm -42mm. Cashmere is sourced from the Upper Alashan regions of inner Mongolia before being spun by specialists Zegna Baruffa whom John Smedley have been working closely with for over 25 years. All cashmere fibres are GRS (global recycle standard), SFA (sustainable fibre alliance) certified.

Aligning with the Fashion Industry Charter, and the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change, John Smedley is committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 30% within the next decade, achieving net-zero by 2050. All production runs for third-party brands will follow the same strict, sustainability protocols.

“When I think about the future of our business, I see us responding to challenges with the same enthusiasm, passion and faith in our craftspeople that we have had for the past 240 years and I fundamentally believe that we make the finest knitwear in the world, so my message to brands would be ‘If you can design it, we can make it; and if you want a quality product, that will stand the test of time, then you should be making it with us” Jess Mcguire-Dudley, Deputy Managing Director, John Smedley.

For brands wanting to explore the new manufacturing capability and an introduction to John Smedley, please contact info@ukft.org

VISIT THE JOHN SMEDLEY WEBSITE

Manufacturing Matchmaking for the UK fashion industry at 10 Downing Street

UKFT was pleased to be able to support the Government’s first ever Manufacturing Matchmaking event at No 10 Downing Street on 26 March 2024.

The event was the brainchild of the Board of Trade and at the specific request of Board Members Anya Hindmarch and Libby of Libby London. Anya and Libby both expressed their enthusiasm to support UK garment manufacturing which, in Anya’s case, began when she started to look for onshore production during Covid.

The event was hosted “at home” by Akshata Murty, wife of the Prime Minister and Lord Offord, Minister for Exports at the Department for Business and Trade. The event was organised by the No 10 Cabinet Office.

This was the first event for the fashion and textile manufacturing sector at 10 Downing Street and brought together approximately 35 UK manufacturers, the majority of which were either UKFT members or work closely with UKFT through a wide range of projects and initiatives.

Many of the UK manufacturers have their own brands including Blackhorse Lane, Harley of Scotland, John Smedley, Peregrine Clothing, Robert Mackie Yarmouth Oilskins (Yarmo), Corgi Hosiery, TV personality Patrick Grant’s Community Clothing, Golden Fashion, Hiut Denim, London Tradition, Owen Barry and Christi-Anna Lomas. There were an equal number of companies which make predominantly for third parties, including Apparel Tasker, BFashion Studio, Fashion Enter, Gosia London, LLUK, MAES London, Olenka Atelier, Intimate Apparel Samples, Plus Samples, Albion Knitting, Basic Premier, Cookson and Clegg, Shahtex Leicester, Sourgrapeand Tower Garments. Textiles were represented by The Natural Fibre Company, Maake, Silk Bureau and Standfast & Barracks, while buttons were represented by Courtney & Co.

To match with these UK manufacturers were buyers from Alice Temperley, Anya Hindmarch, Boden, Burberry, Cefinn by Samantha Cameron (a previous occupant of 10 Downing Street),  John Lewis, Libby London, Margaret Howell, Toast and others.

The event was a great opportunity to shine a light on the UK’s potential as a niche sustainable and ethical supply source for more UK brands, especially those which want to work on a flexible just-in-time basis without the hassle of customs procedures. UK manufacturing also can contribute to the production of a lower carbon collection for consumers, with less travel for goods.

This vibrant, diverse and innovative sector produces high-quality products featured on international catwalks through to the high street, as well as in hospitals, cars and even space. It creates jobs and opportunity and is a significant driver of growth to the UK economy, as outlined in UKFT’s recent report ‘The Fashion and Textile Industry’s Footprint in the UK’ by Oxford Economics.

Sustainability and innovation

The event was also a good opportunity for UKFT to remind the manufacturers of the work of its Sustainability Team including its Sustainability 101 series, which explores key issues for manufacturers. Published editions cover sustainability standards and green claims, while further editions will look at supply chain due diligence for manufacturers and chemical compliance, among other topics.

UKFT is also working with the British Fashion Council (BFC) on the Circular Fashion Innovation Network (CFIN) and a wide range of other innovation projects relating to circular fashion, textile recycling and sustainable manufacturing, supported by UK Research and Innovation.

International recognition

A number of the companies at the showcase and many others regularly exbibit with UKFT at key international trade shows and feature in our Discover British Brandscampaign. Corgi Hosiery, Harley of Scotland, John Smedley, Robert Mackie and Yarmo are already recognised international brands.

UKFT’s Let’s Make It Here is a free database to connect designers, brands and retailers with a wide range of UK manufacturers. It is due to be updated shortly to improve functionality and highlight those with sustainable credentials. Many other UK manufacturers of fashion and textiles not included in the showcase have also been included in UKFT’s Member Royal Visits which specifically highlights the importance of supporting UK manufacturing. In the past five years alone, recent visits by UKFT’s Royal President, HRH the Princess Royal, include: Marton Mills, Laxtons, Maes London, GH Hurt, Kalopsia Collective, Eribe Scotland, Macnaughtons, Henry Poole Savile Row, Courtney & Co, John Spencer, ACS Clothing and Try and Lilly.

Skills and training

Supporting UK manufacturers with skills and education led UKFT to be chosen as the industry’s sector skills body for the industry. UKFT works with Government and manufacturers across the four nations of the UK to ensure that the country’s apprenticeships are tailored to the needs of industry and that manufacturers have access to Government funding to support their training and skills for the future.

At the same time, UKFT works with a wide range of education partners to ensure that UK students at colleges, universities and other training facilities have skills they need to support UK businesses and manufacturing. These include Manchester Fashion Institute, De Montfort University, London College of Fashion, Textile Centre of Excellence, The Tailoring Academy, University of Leeds, Bath Spa University, University of Huddersfield, Bucks New University, Glasgow Clyde College, Heriot-Watt University, Istituto Marangoni, KTL (Key Training and Learning),  Nottingham Trent University, University of Bolton, University of Westminster, WEPT – London Fashion & Textiles Academy and Westminster Kingsway College.

Supporting UK manufacturers

UKFT’s CEO Adam Mansell said: “One of our main priorities at UKFT is to ensure that UK manufacturers get the right skills, education and support to continue to produce quality fashion and textiles sustainably, ethically and competitively here in the UK. This is part of a long term partnership between industry and government. At the same time, we recognise that businesses in the UK are often less supportive of domestic manufacturing than in other countries. This needs to change, from public procurement to making sure our imports have to meet the same standards we set for UK businesses to create a level playing field, to ensuring that UK companies can access the UK’s trade agreements around the world.”

There is no doubt that UK manufacturers can and do produce high quality fashion and textile products in the UK, and that the UK leads the world in its commitment to sustainable and ethical manufacturing. However, supporting manufacturers to get their goods sold in the UK and around the world remains a significant challenge and one which UKFT is committed to working on every day, from campaigning for financial support for UK companies at key international trade events, to lobbying for the right trade deals for UK businesses, to campaigning for a fairer deal for UK manufacturers.

Paul Alger MBE, Director of International Business at UKFT said: “UK manufacturers with some notable exceptions are the unsung heroes of the fashion and textile industry. They have been traditionally neglected by larger UK retailers and brands, even though they are loved and admired in the US, Japan, China, South Korea, the Middle East and the EU. UKFT is delighted to have been involved with this group of companies at 10 Downing Street and hope that this event will mark the beginning of a period of greater help for sustainable and ethical UK manufacturers to help them to grow their businesses.”

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HOW WE SUPPORT UK MANUFACTURERS

Pictures by Simon Walker / No 10 Downing Street.

Royal visit to British button manufacturer Courtney & Co

Coming soon: The international launch of Letsmakeithere.org