Linton Tweeds

• Shop Cumbria
• 20th December 2016
• Cumbria Guide

Linton Tweeds have been creating fabric for couture houses for over 100 years. They are iconic for producing the best in quality, particularly when it comes to their oldest and most celebrated customer, Chanel.

Many of us will have admired the Chanel collections that are paraded down the catwalks. You may even have daydreamed about thequilted 2.55 bag. However, what you may not realise, is that the tweed which is crafted into those elegant jackets and chic shift dresses is created right here on our doorstep.

Shaddon Mills, near the centre of Carlisle, is home to the family-owned Linton Tweeds, whose fabrics have been worn by the likes of Princess Diana, Michelle Obama and Kylie Minogue. For the last 104 years, Linton Tweeds have been creating bespoke, innovative tweed for some of the world’s most renowned fashion houses, but their most illustrious customer remains Chanel, after a relationship that spans almost 90 years.

Scotsman William Linton started the Linton Mill in 1912, employing just two salesmen. He was introduced to Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel by his great friend, Parisian couturier, Captain Molyneux, while she was on a trip to the Lake District with the Duke of Westminster. Chanel had always admired the English look, particularly English textiles and soon a wonderful association blossomed. In 1928, Chanel first used Linton Tweeds in her collection and it has featured in every collection since.

After two generations of Lintons, the family appointed Leslie Walker as Managing Director in 1969. It was the beginning of a new era but the relationship between Linton Tweed and Chanel stayed strong. When Karl Lagerfeld took over as Artistic Director of the fashion house, in 1982, he kept up the connection, the tweed continuing to be a major part of the collections.

Ross and Duncan Walker, sons of managing director Keith Walker have carried on family tradition by being the third generation of family to take up positions in the company. Ross said: “We have worked with Chanel for many years and feature in all their collections. They love our fabrics and the relationship is continuing to flourish”.

From the very start, William Linton was in tune with the modern world and the use of brightly coloured yarns meant his tweeds were sought after by the fashionable women of the Jazz Age. Today, Linton have the ability to produce many imaginative and innovative mixes, often using unusual yarns. It is this that which sets them apart from other manufacturers.

Louise Carruthers, who works in Sales and Product Development at Linton Direct explained: “The fabric is so different from other tweeds because we use unique and exciting yarns from all over Europe, even twisting some of our own to create these wonderful cloths. This is why we have been able to adapt to the ever changing market within the UK textiles industry.’’

The fabrics are always changing, and each season the design team create a new, exclusive collection, in order to stay ahead in the ever-changing game of fashion trends.Louise said: “We go to Premiere Vision, a large trade show in Paris which specialises in fashion fabrics, this is where we show the new couture collection and gain valuable information from our customers. We can also look at the latest trends, find new and upcoming designers and building our sales orders for the forthcoming year. Our design team work closely with the couture fashion houses to create the best cloth possible which we manufacture here in Carlisle.’’

However, couture fashion houses are not their only customers. In the UK they supply to brands including Jigsaw, Jaeger and John Rocha and they also have a huge presence in Japan where the name is probably better known than it is here. Lintons launched their Linton Direct collection in 2010 which sells the finest quality fabrics through the internet on a retail basis. The Accessory range, launched in 2016, incorporates their fabrics into products including throws, scarves, notebooks and purses.

Ross said: “Our Linton Direct collection has grown every year since its launch over 5 years ago and we hope that our accessory range that we launched this year will do the same. We aim to grow and develop the accessory range in the next year.”

He added: “We know a lot of people admire our fabrics so we launched the accessory range as a way of selling our fancy innovative fabrics to anybody and not just the couture houses.”

In 2012, Linton Tweeds celebrated its centenary, the result of the incredible efforts of two families who have worked to develop the mill into the highly-regarded brand it is today. The Walker family have every intention of continuing this for another 100 years.

Ross said: “Our aim is for all areas of the business to continue growing. It was really good to reach 100 years, but our main goal is to last another 100.”

The beautiful fabrics are available to purchase online at www.lintondirect.co.uk or in the Linton Tweed gift shop, where you will also find the full accessories range. The Bobbin coffee shop, next door, is always brimming with visitors enjoying lunch or tea and scones.