Make it British Podcast

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 b…

Lucy Jones was the founder of a prestigious, luxury lingerie brand back in the 1980s.

Her distinctive silk lingerie was stocked in retailers such as Harvey Nichols and Rigby & Peller.

After two decades…

Join me on a trip to Leicester to meet Said Saleh and Keith Cummings from Mars Knitwear. Based in Wigston, Leicestershire, the chaps at Mars have been making knitwear for over 30 years.

Having been ma…

Monika Young is the founder and creative director of Monika the Label - a sustainable fashion brand inspired by 70s California and made in the UK.

In this episode, Monika tells the story of how she se…

What are some of the things that I see successful British-made brands do consistently?

In the first episode of series 4 of the Make it British podcast I look at what makes for a great British-made bra…

The new series of the Make it British Podcast is coming very, very soon! Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss it. As well as the usual advice and tips for making in the UK, along with interviews…

I've interviewed some fantastic guests over the past 3 series of the Make it British podcast. To celebrate the milestone which is 200 episodes, I'm bringing you a summary from 21 of the Make it Briti…

Starting any business can be tough - especially one that involves making products! Whether you are just about start a brand, or you've already launched and it's not quite going to plan, here are 11 t…

Probably one of the questions that I get asked more than any other is 'how long will it take me to launch a new product if I make it in the UK?' The short answer is - 'how long is a piece of string!'…

London-based designer Maria Grachvogel is renowned for her clever use of cutting to flatter the female figure. In this interview, Maria talks about why she has chosen to use more UK manufacturers for…

How do you follow up with a manufacturer (and have a better chance of a response)? In this episode I give you some great tips on how to make sure that you get a response back from a manufacturer ever…

One of our epidode's from the very first series that is well worth a revisit is this one with Andy Ogden at English Fine Cottons. Greater Manchester was once known as cottonopolis because it was the …

Unfortunately, mistakes can and do, happen in manufacturing, but there are ways to avoid them. In this episode, we look at the main reasons that manufacturing a product usually goes wrong, how to res…

In this episode, I chat to Ian Maclean, managing director of John Smedley – the oldest operating factory in the world. John Smedley is one of the finest knitwear manufacturers in the world. The compa…

I think visiting a factory is essential for anyone that is developing a new product. One of the benefits of making in the UK is that factory visiting is far easier than if you are making your product…

Julie Deane CBE, set up the Cambridge Satchel Company in 2008 with £600 and went on to make it a global, multi-million-pound business.

But behind the success story, there was a lot of hard work, inclu…

Some people think manufacturers should do any initial work for no charge in order to pitch for your business. But that’s often not the case.

In this episode, I explain why many UK manufacturers charge…

Labour Behind the Label is a workers rights organisation that fights for living wages for garment workers. They have produced a report about the unethical working practices of factories in Leicester …

In this episode, I look back over the first 100 episodes of this show to find out what makes British-made businesses great. There are many common themes running through the last 100 episodes and that…

Today I’m chatting to Lindsey James, who is the founder of womenswear brand Violet Flamingo.

Lindsey was making and selling bespoke clothing for her clients from her studio before covid hit. Finding h…