Make it British Podcast
Kate Hills is on a one-woman mission to save UK manufacturing. In this podcast she shines the light on British brands and manufacturers, and goes behind the scenes of their businesses. With tips, hints and tricks to help you manufacture in the UK and buy British. Never has there been a more critical time to get behind 'made in Britain'.
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Kate's Sunday Journal 17 May 26: UK-made T-shirts
<p>Read this email</p><p>Subscribe to Kate's Sunday Journal 🧡</p><p>🚀 Ready to create a British-made product business that's built to last? Without faffing about, wasting wads of cash, or struggling with unreliable factories. Apply for the British Brand Accelerator: makeitbritish.co.uk/apply</p>
Weaving Wool in Yorkshire with Laura Watts at Marton Mills
<p>In this episode of the Women in Wool series, I'm joined by Laura Watts, managing director of Marton Mills, 3rd generation family weaving business based in Otley, Yorkshire.</p><p>Marton Mills was founded in 1931 and has built its reputation on uniform fabric - supplying school wear, military contracts for the Navy and the RAF, and fabric for the King's Coronation.</p><p>Now, alongside its core uniform work, Marton Mills is launching its first fully traceable British wool collection in autumn 2026, with yarn sourced just down the road from Laxton's and fabric finished at Roberts Dyers in Keighley.<...
A Visit to Laxtons Spinning Mill with Carly Smith & Rochelle Tracey
<p>In this episode of the Women in Wool series, I visited Laxtons Yarns in Baildon, Yorkshire, a fourth generation family spinning mill that is now employee-owned.</p><p>I was given a full tour of the mill floor by commercial director Carly Smith and national accounts manager Rochelle Tracey, before sitting down with them to talk about British wool, the future of the business and the exciting relaunch of their hand knitting range.</p><p>Laxtons spin worsted and fancy yarns for hand knitting, machine knitting and weaving. Their Sheepsoft yarn is a blend of Blue Faced Leicester and...
For the Love of Knitting with Genevieve Sweeney
<p>In this episode of the Women in Wool series, I take a trip to the beautiful Essex countryside to visit knitwear designer Genevieve Sweeney in her micro factory, where she designs, programmes, knits, and finishes her collection in house.</p><p>We talk about the realities of owning your own industrial knitting machine - from learning to keep the yarn and machine happy, to breaking needles in tears and coming out the other side.</p><p>We also hear about Genevieve's mission to revive the almost forgotten art of hand Intarsia, a knitting technique synonymous with Scottish knitwear.</p><...
5 Steps to Finding a UK Manufacturer
<p>🚀 Ready to create a British-made product business that's built to last? Without faffing about, wasting wads of cash, or struggling with unreliable factories. Apply for the British Brand Accelerator: makeitbritish.co.uk/apply </p><p>In this episode I'm sharing the recording of a recent webinar I ran - 5 Steps to Finding a UK Manufacturer.</p>Learn my signature 5 Step Factory Readiness Method™ which has helped hundreds of small business owners to get their products made in the UK.Find out why manufacturers don't get back to you (and how to make sure you get a reply).Why sampling costs...
The Great British Wool Revival with Harriet Fletcher-Gilhuys, Fashion Roundtable
<p>In this episode of the Women in Wool series, I'm joined by Harriet Fletcher-Gilhuys from Fashion Roundtable.</p><p>Harriet is the project lead for The Great British Wool Revival and is also working with the King's Foundation on an event in May 2026 to promote the use of British wool.</p><p>If you're a designer, maker or brand wanting to work with British wool but not sure where to start, the Great British Wool Revival is the resource you need to know about. It maps the entire wool supply chain from sheep to spinning, dyeing, knitting and weaving...
Building a British Tweed Tailoring Label in Yorkshire with Isabelle Randall
<p>In this episode of the Women in Wool series, I'm joined by Isabelle Randall, a fashion designer and tailor based in Scarborough, Yorkshire, who has been running her own label for over 21 years.</p><p>Isabelle works in British tweeds and wool fabrics, making everything bespoke in her atelier. We talk about the Yorkshire mills she loves working with, her tailoring process, and why her bespoke approach keeps customers coming back again and again.</p><p>We also get into what it feels like, as a designer who makes everything herself, to hand over the responsibility of production to...
How British Wool Helps Brands Source Local Fibre with Louisa Knapp, British Wool
<p>In this episode of the Women in Wool series, I’m joined by Louisa Knapp, Marketing Executive at British Wool.</p><p>Based in Bradford, British Wool operates as a farmers' cooperative that collects, grades, and auctions fleece for around 35,000 sheep farmers across the UK. </p><p>Whether you’re a designer wondering how to source British wool or you’re just curious about what happens to a fleece after it’s sheared, you’re going to love this episode.</p><p>In this episode we cover:</p>How the British Wool cooperative operates and makes it easy for brands to...
The Reality of Running a Knitwear Micro Factory with Kate Stalker from OUBAS Knitwear
<p>In this episode of the Women in Wool series, I’m joined by Kate Stalker, founder of OUBAS Knitwear.</p><p>Kate runs a knitwear micro factory in the Lake District, where she designs and manufactures fully fashioned knitwear using natural fibres, including British wool. After studying knitwear at Winchester School of Art, she returned to Cumbria and started the business with a single hand flat knitting machine in her parents’ utility room.</p><p>Today OUBAS produces knitwear on industrial knitting machines, with everything knitted, linked and finished in house by a small team. The business combines design, manu...
Launching a Brand with Traceable British Wool with Dee McGilvray, CLÒ FOLD
<p>In this first episode of the Women in Wool series, I’m joined by Dee McGilvray, founder of CLÒ FOLD.</p><p>Dee has launched a womenswear brand built entirely around 100 percent British traceable wool. In just five months, alongside a full time job, she has taken an idea rooted in farming and the British countryside and turned it into a finished product made entirely in the UK.</p><p>Her first piece is a wool gilet woven in Yorkshire using traceable wool sourced through British Wool. Every part of the supply chain, from farm to finished garment, has bee...
