THE LEDGER: YOUR MASTER SOURCING LIST
For deep-dive journals and photographic studies of UK-made icons, visit The Edit. Here in The Ledger you’ll find our ever-expanding directory of UK makers with details on their origins, products and more.
These are short-form entries - distilled intelligence on heritage, provenance and why these brands deserve a place in your collection. As our field research continues, we’ll produce full photographic reviews in The Edit.
WHICHFORD POTTERY - Whichford, Warwickshire
The Heritage: Established in 1976, the pottery throws frost-proof terracotta pots by hand using blended British clays.
The Verdict: Durable horticultural ceramics. The manual throwing process and specific clay blend produce heavy, porous pots that withstand freezing temperatures better than slip-cast alternatives.
Core Products: Hand-thrown terracotta planters and urns.
WILLIAM WHITELEY & SONS - Sheffield, England
The Heritage: Founded in 1760, Whiteley is the oldest scissor-maker in the Western world. They still drop-forge their scissors by hand in Sheffield, producing tools so highly regarded they were commissioned to make the scissors used to cut the ribbon at the opening of the Channel Tunnel.
The Verdict: Perfect, specialised steel. Whether you are cutting heavy canvas, tailoring a suit, or trimming a thread, using a Whiteley scissor is a visceral reminder of Sheffield's industrial might.
Core Products: Tailor's shears, embroidery scissors and industrial cutting tools.
THE WALSALL WHEELBARROW COMPANY - Wolverhampton, England
The Heritage: The only remaining company to manufacture wheelbarrows entirely in Great Britain. For over 70 years, they have pressed, welded and painted heavy-duty steel barrows in the West Midlands.
The Verdict: A triumph of stubborn UK manufacturing. In an era of flimsy imported plastic, a Walsall barrow is a heavy-duty, galvanised workhorse built to outlast the gardener pushing it.
Core Products: Galvanised steel wheelbarrows and heavy-duty builder's barrows.
THOR HAMMER COMPANY - Birmingham, England
The Heritage: Established in 1923, Thor is the world's leading manufacturer of soft-faced hammers, operating from its purpose-built factory in Shirley, Birmingham.
The Verdict: Engineering's hidden hero. From the Rolls-Royce assembly line to the world's most elite Formula 1 garages, a Thor hammer is the definitive tool for applying force without damaging the workpiece.
Core Products: Specialist soft-faced hammers, including rawhide, copper, nylon and rubber mallets.
THOMAS FLINN & CO. - Sheffield, England
The Heritage: Founded in 1923, Thomas Flinn & Co. is the last remaining traditional saw manufacturer in Sheffield, the historic heart of British steel. They continue to manufacture completely by hand, producing saws that are world-renowned for their tension, balance, and precision.
The Verdict: A true survivor of Sheffield's golden age. In an era of disposable power tools, their hand-set, resharpenable saws are heirloom-quality instruments built for absolute precision and longevity.
Core Products: Traditional hand saws, tenon saws, dovetail saws and specialist woodworking tools.
RASPBERRY PI – Pencoed, Wales
The Heritage: Originally designed as an educational tool in Cambridge, Raspberry Pi reshored the majority of its production from China to the Sony UK Technology Centre in Wales in 2012. This facility has since produced over 60 million units, representing a significant success for UK high-tech manufacturing. The Pencoed site remains the global primary production hub for the flagship Raspberry Pi 5 and the new Pi 500 series.
The Verdict: Raspberry Pi serves as a definitive case study in how domestic manufacturing can enhance sustainability in the electronics sector. The Pencoed facility is powered by 100% renewable electricity, supported by an on-site installation of over 1,700 solar panels. The brand’s circularity is underpinned by a unique partnership with the Royal Mint, located just eight miles away, where precious metals are recovered from production e-waste using a room-temperature chemical process. Unlike standard consumer electronics, these devices are engineered for a decade of service through robust hardware design and long-term software support. This longevity, combined with the 2025 launch of their Carbon Removal Credits programme - which allows users to offset the remaining footprint of their hardware - places them at the forefront of ethical computing.
Core Products: Single-board computers, including the Pi 5 and 500+ mechanical keyboard series.
PRIVATE WHITE V.C. - Manchester, England
The Heritage: Operating out of a 150-year-old redbrick mill on the banks of the River Irwell, the brand is named after the founder's great-grandfather, a local Victoria Cross recipient. They use locally sourced fabrics to craft military-grade menswear.
The Verdict: The pinnacle of modern British garment manufacturing. Their outerwear is engineered with obsessive attention to detail, utilising copper hardware from RIRI and spectacular Ventile cottons.
Core Products: Twin Track jackets, Ventile macs and premium menswear.
PASHLEY BICYCLES - Stratford-upon-Avon, England
The Heritage: Founded in 1926, Pashley is Britain's longest-established bicycle manufacturer. While globally recognised for their iconic classic commuter bikes, they continue to hand-braze incredibly dynamic, Reynolds-tubed steel frames in Stratford-upon-Avon, proving their engineering mastery extends far beyond the leisurely ride.
The Verdict: A brilliant duality of British cycling. You can buy a dignified, upright town bike with a wicker basket, or you can buy an aerodynamically minded road or gravel bike that delivers speed, agility and world-class, hand-built craftsmanship.
Core Products: Classic loop-frame bicycles, Reynolds steel road and gravel bikes, the Guv’nor (an icon!) and the Pashley-Morgan range.
LINCOLN JEFFRIES - Birmingham, England
The Heritage: Rooted in Birmingham's historic gun quarter, the company manufactures the established 'Marksman' brand of airgun pellets.
The Verdict: Precision lead manufacturing. The products maintain strict weight and dimensional tolerances required for accurate target shooting.
Core Products: Airgun pellets.
LITTLE GREENE - Manchester, England
The Heritage: An independent, family-run UK manufacturer with roots dating back to 1773 at the outskirts of Manchester.
The Verdict: The benchmark for color depth. Their collaboration with the National Trust has preserved historic British palettes for the modern home.
Core Products: Luxury paints (including the National Trust collection) and high-end wallpapers.
JOSEPH MARPLES - Sheffield, England
The Heritage: Not to be confused with the mass-market "Marples" brand, Joseph Marples is a fifth-generation family firm that has produced its "Trial 1" tools in Sheffield since 1840.
The Verdict: The joiner's choice. These tools are built using traditional brass-inlaid rosewood and ebony, offering a level of tactile precision and longevity that modern plastic alternatives cannot match.
Core Products: Premium woodworking marking and measuring tools, including try squares, mortice gauges and sliding bevels.
INCE UMBRELLAS - Bethnal Green, London
The Heritage: Established in 1805, they are the oldest continuously operating umbrella maker in the UK. For six generations, the Ince family has manufactured in East London, originally supplying the local Spitalfields silk trade.
The Verdict: The genuine article. While most "British" umbrellas are now cheap imports with a logo slapped on, Ince still cuts, stitches, and finishes their frames in London. They are the unseen stars of Mary Poppins and Kingsman.
Core Products: Handcrafted gentlemen's and ladies' umbrellas, folding models and bespoke commissions for film and theatre.
HOPE TECHNOLOGY - Barnoldswick, England
The Heritage: Founded in 1989 by two former aerospace engineers, Hope has transformed a former Barnoldswick textile mill into a state-of-the-art CNC machining facility.
The Verdict: The "Rolls-Royce" of the mountain bike world. By keeping 100% of their production in Lancashire, they maintain a level of quality control and innovation that has made them a global engineering powerhouse.
Core Products: High-performance bicycle components, including disc brakes, hubs, cranksets and carbon fibre frames.
HOLLAND and HOLLAND – Kensal Green, London
The Heritage: Founded in 1835, Holland & Holland is a name synonymous with the absolute pinnacle of UK gunmaking. While the company is now part of the Beretta Holding, its manufacturing remains fiercely domestic, operating from a specialist factory in West London where master gunsmiths spend hundreds of hours hand-crafting each individual piece.
The Verdict: This is extreme manufacturing. A single Holland & Holland shotgun or rifle can take up to two years to complete, involving traditional skills like action filing and stock carving that have remained unchanged since the Victorian era. From a sustainability perspective, these are infinite-life objects; they are designed to be used, maintained and passed down as heirlooms for centuries. Their material integrity is almost beyond reproach, utilising high-grade walnut and the finest British steel. By choosing a London-made Holland & Holland, you are directly supporting the preservation of some of the world's most endangered metal-finishing and woodworking skills.
Core Products: Bespoke 'Royal' side-by-side shotguns and sporting rifles.
HILLBRUSH — Mere, England
The Heritage: Founded in 1922, Hillbrush represents over a century of British wooden brush-making expertise. A proud Royal Warrant holder to His Majesty The King, this family-owned business continues to manufacture their high-end goods from their UK workshop, passing down generational craftsmanship while embracing modern sustainability.
The Verdict: Hillbrush elevates the mundane tools of daily life into objects of true beauty and endurance. Rejecting plastics entirely for their heritage 'Natural' range, their makers select only sustainable, FSC-certified beechwood and centuries-old natural fibres like Tampico, boar bristle, and horsehair. A masterclass in functional elegance for the home.
Core Products: Premium wooden scrubbing brushes, sweeping brooms, clothes brushes, and grooming accessories. URL: https://www.hillbrush.com
Full Review in The Edit: Read it Here.
HIUT DENIM CO. - Cardigan, Wales
The Heritage: Based in the Old Jeans Factory in Cardigan, a town that once produced 35,000 pairs of jeans a week before the industry vanished.
The Verdict: They don't just make jeans; they make a point by employing "Grandmasters" to revive a town’s identity through exceptional craft.
Core Products: Premium selvedge and organic denim jeans.
GLOVERALL - Northamptonshire, England
The Heritage: Founded in 1951 when Harold and Freda Morris ("Gloves and Overalls") began selling surplus military duffle coats, they eventually created the civilian archetype we know today. They are the original makers of the Monty coat, named after Field Marshal Montgomery.
The Verdict: The "Monty" remains the gold standard. While fashion brands make "duffle-style" jackets, Gloverall uses authentic jute rope and wood toggles with heavy English Melton wool that is virtually indestructible.
Core Products: Authentic duffle coats, peacoats, parkas and knitwear.
GARRARD & FLACK - Cambridge, England
The Heritage: A specialist cricket bat-making workshop that hand-clefts, presses and shapes English willow into custom cricket bats using established manual techniques.
The Verdict: Bespoke sporting equipment. The manual pressing and shaping process allows the maker to tailor the balance and performance of the willow to individual requirements.
Core Products: Hand-made English willow cricket bats.
FOX UMBRELLAS - Croydon, Surrey
The Heritage: Founded in 1868, Fox Umbrellas revolutionized the industry by introducing the steel tube frame (invented by Samuel Fox). Hand-made in England, their umbrellas have shielded British royalty, John F. Kennedy and countless City of London executives from the rain.
The Verdict: The gold standard of the British umbrella. A Fox umbrella is rolled so tightly it doubles as a walking stick, offering an elegant, lifetime defense against the UK’s weather.
Core Products: Solid stick umbrellas, tube frame umbrellas and telescopic umbrellas.
FOOTPRINT TOOLS - Sheffield, England
The Heritage: Founded in 1875 by Thomas R. Ellin, this brand is a cornerstone of Sheffield's industrial identity, remaining in the same owning family since 1948.
The Verdict: Industrial survival at its finest. In a market flooded with cheap imports, Footprint remains one of the few places where you can still find a professional-grade chisel forged and finished on UK soil.
Core Products: Professional building tools including cold chisels, line pins, bolsters and the iconic Footprint pipe wrench.