MADE IN WILTSHIRE
Dents : Keeping the art of glove making alive
Warminster is home to the internationally renowned Dents brand , one of the world ’ s finest glove makers . Synonymous with British tradition and craftsmanship , the firm established in 1777 is one of only 3 companies in the UK keeping the art of glove making alive .
The firm is family-owned and has only been passed between two families since its inception . Employing 70 peoples at the Warminster head office and manufacturing facility , the firm exports to 27 countries making 40,000 pairs of gloves a year , and a further 300,000 gloves in Eastern Europe . We met with Deborah Moore , Dents chief executive to find out more about the company .
How has glove making changed over the years ?
The techniques that we use to make gloves are exactly the same as we have used for the last 240 years . The only change came when electricity was introduced and we started using electric sewing machines . Everything here is still done manually , from all the cutting to the stretching of the leather .
How long has Dents been working on a global scale ?
Dents has always been a truly international company , before international companies were around . We had warehouses , in London , Paris , New York , Grenoble and Naples . We also had factories all over the world and scheme dressing yards , so this was a massive company . Those were the days when women always bought gloves to co-ordinate with an outfit .
Our gloves were for sale in Selfridges when it opened it 1906 . You would go and sit down , put your elbow on a velvet pad and have the glove peeled on to your hand , because the fashion was to have very tight fitting glove .
The red glove used in the first episode of the BBC series Mr Selfridge was a Dents glove , especially made for the drama .
Are your gloves often used for TV and film ?
Yes , we do a lot of movie work . Dents gloves can be seen in the recent James Bond films . Daniel Craig loves our gloves . He designed his own and we still have lots of orders for the Spectre and Skyfall gloves .
We are currently making gloves for Kenneth Branagh ’ s Murder on the Orient Express , featuring Johnny Depp .
How long has Dents carried the Royal Warrant ?
The Royal Warrant was granted by HRH the Prince of Wales in April 2016 . We were lucky to receive it , it ’ s not a given that you get it . You have to be selling to the person for up to five years .
When we applied for it , there was a lot of work . We have always been careful about the sourcing of our skins , but we had to prove that everything is sustainable and fully traceable . We had to produce several hundred documents to reinforce how eco-friendly the whole procedure is . Luckily , because we ’ re in a new building everything is environmentally friendly . The lights go on by movement for example , so we were part way there , but we had to measure waste and reach targets to recycle more , so it was a great exercise for us . We then waited several months before we were told we were granted the Royal Warrant , which is great because we export to 27 different countries , so having the Royal Warrant on all our packaging is fantastic .
Where do you source your leather ? There are three types of leather , hair sheep , deer skin and peccary . Hair sheep comes from Sudan and Ethiopia , dry , arid countries . The hair sheep is a cross between a sheep and a skinny goat . It ’ s obviously killed for its meat and the skin is a by-product of the meat industry . It ’ s a very strong , supple skin that can be stretched .
The second type of skin is deer skin ; it comes from North America and its got a lot of texture and character in the skin . Personally , it ’ s my favourite skin .
And then we ’ ve got peccary , which is a wild pig from South America . Traditionally the Japanese love these gloves and they sell for anything up to £ 500 a pair . The traditional colour of the peccary glove is a yellowy / golden colour , mostly hand sewn .
What are the main countries you export to ?
Japan , the US , South Korea , Italy , Germany , France , Belgium and Holland . More recently Lithuania and Estonia have been good importers too . We ’ ve had a wholly owned subsidiary in Australia for over 100 years , which we still have .
You ’ re stocked in leading department stores all over the world , where can we find Dents products ?
In the UK Harrods and Selfridges , Mitsokosi in Japan , Isetan in Japan , Hyundai in South Korea . There ’ s a very long list ! We also have white labels and make for a lot of designers .
When did the firm start to diversify and make things other than gloves ?
In our museum based here in Warminster , we have catalogues from the turn of the century and in 1901 / 1902 , we were making pyjamas and stiff collars and we ’ ve got illustrations of that , so we ’ ve always made other products .
Have you changed the way you sell over the years ?
Prior to coming here , I worked as a buyer for House of Fraser , Littlewoods and Boots . So , I see everything from a retailer ’ s point of view . When I joined , Dents was a factory making gloves , so they were selling what they could make . We turned it around and made what we could sell , so the emphasis was on retail .
What ’ s the future of Dents ? Web sales are going incredibly well for us . They now account for 20 % of our business and this figure is growing all the time . I love the website , as I see it as a shop window and we run it exactly as if it was a shop . If sales are slow , we run promotions , do mail outs , change our image , it ’ s just like running a shop .
For more info : www . dents . co . uk
@ dentsgloves
THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2017 15