Barbour Jackets Of England

Mary Portas has been on the television a lot lately trying to build up a positive public opinion on British and more so English manufactured goods, and what a fine job she is doing as well. It is about time that we as a nation started to support our local industries and we need to take the decision to want quality over cheaply made goods from over seas.

It would be nice if people started to think along the lines of when they purchase local good at a slightly higher price they but the money straight back in to the immediate area which in turn gets spent locally, so eventually some of that money will find its way back in to their pockets.

Saying this we haven't abandoned our British made goods completely, some companies have always produced their products here and they have always maintained a good following through their history. One such company is Barbour and this is their story.

When you think of the North of England one of the first things that might come to mind is the harsh swirling winds and the winter rain, which I might add can appear any time through the year not just at winter. So it is no wonder that a company like Barbour would appear to protect people and especially fishermen and sailors from the testing conditions.

So in 1894 a Scottish man called John Barbour started to sell OilSkin jackets in South Shields in Newcastle. The cloth from the jackets had been impregnated with oil or wax to make them waterproof and this made them a great hit with the people down at the docks. The original oil used for the jackets was a paraffin wax.

One of the great things about Barbour is the after care service, when they sell you a product they take pride in the garment long after it leaves the factory door. In South Shields they have a dedicated section in the factory just for repairs, there they will replace any part of your jacket that has worn out. Many people just send their jackets in for a re-waxing or a little stitching to be repaired but it has been known for people to own a Barbour jacket for 40 years. Over the years the jacket goes in and out of the repair shop until nearly none of the original jacket is left. These tend to be working jackets from farmers who like to hold on to their jackets for as long as possible.

This is another great reason to buy locally, it would be hard to find an overseas company which would offer this same service, especially at every level of their production. This kind of care is usually only available to very expensive bespoke clothing, with Barbour it is open to all.

This year Barbour have been experimenting with new dying techniques on old jackets to great effect. The Bedale has been over dyed which has really bought this jacket up to date. It is always good to see more mature companies like Barbour going the extra mile to keep them selves up with the times with losing their heritage and this over due treatment is a great way of doing it. The general public have been re dying their Barbour's for years to the technique is nothing too new it's just the way that it has been applied with bright red and royal blues, this gives the jackets a truly contemporary feel with out losing any of their history.

As you can see from the two photos above the jackets look really well and we have added a little poll underneath so that we can see which jacket is the most popular, the red or the blue.

My choice is the blue but I like the hood on the red one, but don't let that effect your voting.