Fashion and tradition: how John Smedley is innovating in a tough market

Fashion and tradition: how John Smedley is innovating in a tough market In the final article in a series on high-end British manufacturing we look at a clothing brand that dates to the 18th century but is increasingly on-trend

Tina is wielding a large pair of scissors with authority, slicing with immense skill and precision.

With 38 years of experience, she is an important member of the 230-strong manufacturing team producing fine knitwear for the John Smedley brand. Using a chalk, a semi-circular guide and a sharp pair of scissors, she cuts necklines in the knitted garments ready for the final trim to be attached.

The brand’s site in the Peak District, Derbyshire , is the oldest continuously operating factory in the world, with a maze of buildings, one of which dates to 1784. Inside is a mix of hi-tech Japanese knitting technology, skilled artisans such as Tina, who finish garments by hand, and some machines which date back more than 60 years and have to be kept going with bespoke parts. Another smaller Smedley factory, in Armthorpe, South Yorkshire, also finishes the garments.

The company – which holds royal warrants from King Charles and Queen Camilla – has faced difficult times in the luxury market in recent years, but is surviving by mixing heritage with innovation: from launching new designs and forging celebrity partnerships to investing in the latest equipment.

Most UK fashion manufacturing closed down more than 30 years ago as brands moved to cheaper offshore manufacturing locations such as China, India and Bangladesh.

There are 3,515 manufacturers of clothing in the UK, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics collated by UKFT, 315 fewer than a decade before. The number of people working in the industry is now just 15,000 according to the ONS, compared with 173,000 30 years ago.

Smedley has stayed true to its roots. It not only knits and puts together garments, but dyes cotton yarn, and washes, steams and packs the finished products, all in a beautiful wooded valley in Lea Bridge, near Matlock.

Water comes from a brook that runs under the factory with much of the steam for its processes generated by ancient-looking boilers as well as some shiny new silver ones.

Together, the workers produce 4,500 items a week not only under the John Smedley name, but under contract for high-end brands including Lanvin, Margaret Howell and Daks.

In 2024, it invested more than £4m in updating machinery to become more efficient and increase the range of styles it can make.

Jess McGuire-Dudley, the 41-year-old marketing expert who stepped up to be managing director last year after a decade at the company, says the family owners are “open to change”. “As long as it is in an appropriate way, that’s always embraced,” she says.