Washington Business Winter 2020 | Washington Business | Page 50

doing business as
employer: James Churchill Glove Co.
founded: 1895
location: Centralia
website: www.jrcglove.com
Churchill Glove
The James Churchill Glove Co. was founded in 1895, and its tradition of
hand-sewn quality gloves is carried on today by the fourth generation of
the family. Every Churchill glove is hand-made in downtown Centralia
and shipped around the world. A glove born to serve loggers in the
hills of southwest Washington now also protects the hands of welders,
motorcyclists, ranchers and even champion bull riders.
Brian Mittge
a peddler’s bright idea: James Churchill was a horse-and-wagon peddler
selling door-to-door in 1890s Centralia. One day he swapped some crockery for raw
deer hides. It looked like a bad trade at first, but Churchill took the hides to a tanner
for processing, then sat down and made them into gloves by hand. They became his
hottest-selling items. He bought more hides and made more gloves. He opened his
first factory in 1897. Now, almost 125 years later, every glove is still made by hand.
the legacy: His great-grandson, Andy Churchill, didn’t plan to take over the
family business. He studied forestry at Washington State University and went
to work at the local coal mine. In 1990 his father asked if he wanted to join the
company. Andy learned to sew and to repair their machines. His wife, Andrea,
joined in 2001. The couple’s daughter handles the company’s online presence from
her home in Hawaii. Time will tell if any of the fifth generation of the Churchill
family will decide to join the glove factory and continue the Churchill Glove legacy.
Their many fans across the globe undoubtedly would celebrate if one of them does.
the product: Churchill produces high-quality leather gloves popular with
people in America and beyond who demand quality and comfort. It exports gloves
to Japan, Vietnam, Thailand and Russia (their gloves are popular at Code 7, a hipster
clothing store in downtown Moscow.)
noteworthy clientele: Shaquille O’Neal, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael
Jordan and Terry Bradshaw are among Churchill’s customers. The Churchill family
donated boxes of their sturdy work gloves to Ground Zero after 9/11 and to Eastern
Washington after wildfires.
output: The company produced 22,500 pairs of gloves last year, or an average of
about 60 pairs of gloves per day. That’s not how production happens, however; it
usually takes seven weeks to complete an order. Business is booming. Demand far
outpaces the company’s ability to increase supply — they struggle to find workers
with the aptitude, work ethic, patience and sewing skills (or willingness to learn).
like family: The company’s 12 employees include three women in their 70s who
have spent decades at the firm. Andrea calls them family. “They’re the heart,” she
said. “They’ve been so loyal. Their work ethic is impeccable. They’re gold.”
in their words: “We can’t even catch our breath, we’re just so busy. We’re
obviously proud to keep the business going. I don’t mind getting up and going to
work every day.”
— Andy Churchill, president
50 association of washington business