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So, I thought long and hard before deciding to produce shmuncki designs in Britain.
I knew that, sadly, it would in some ways be restrictive - it's much more expensive to produce here for one thing, and I wanted to make the collection to the highest standard but maintain a high street price tag.
The advantages far outweigh the increased production cost in my opinion, 'you get what you pay for' as my Mother would say!
I'm always happy to pay a little bit more for something I know is well made and safe for my children.
My primary objectives when making the designs a reality, were to:
a) Be in control of the execution of my designs.
b) Be assured of the quality and safety of the materials.
In addition to the quality and safety aspects, I didn't want to produce a collection for children that could potentially have been made by children, working in the worst conditions.
So, failing international travel on a fairly regular basis (I prefer my holidays on a beach thanks!), I felt that I could not be guaranteed that wasn't happening from here.
For me, it's also wonderful to be able to pop up to our lovely suppliers and see the locally skilled machinists in action.
A small but perfectly formed operation - real people taking pride in every single garment.
Even the building is a reclaimed old town bakery!
It feels right - it feels hands on and not a faceless delivery of shipped goods.
It's clothing I would happily put on my children, and that's the litmus test for me really (I am a bit of a paranoid parent as my friends will confirm), so fabric testing to Oeko Tex 100 standards are really a must for me, along with nickel free poppers.
From what I see, clothing manufacture in Britain is still fairly uncommon and that's so sad given we have some of the world's best craftsmen and a wonderful industry that really should be flourishing.
Producing here also ensures our carbon footprint remains baby-sized, along with our collection.
PS) Those are my son's little feet, which are way bigger now!
