CWB gets a snapshot of a recent Independent Schoolwear Suppliers Association (ISSA) study
trip hosted in Belfast at the headquarters of leading schoolwear supplier, Douglas & Grahame.
At the tail end of last year, a delegation of UK schoolwear retailer members of the Independent Schoolwear Suppliers Association (ISSA) made the short trip across the water to Northern Ireland to spend two days in the company of Douglas & Grahame. The trip enabled members of the ISSA to learn more about one of Ireland’s largest schoolwear suppliers as well as have detailed discussions about the industry and enjoy the sights of Belfast.
1880 Club, the schoolwear brand owned by Douglas & Grahame, is famous for its high-quality schoolwear and boys’ occasionwear. The business also has a long heritage of quality menswear, having been a gentlemen’s clothier since 1924. So, you could say that the company knows a thing or two about designing and manufacturing clothing.
Matthew Rawlings, Douglas & Grahame’s commercial director, was previously a director at East Anglian clothing retailer, Coes. It was his background with Coes – an active member of the ISSA – that led to the trip being arranged. Numerous ISSA members including Horncastles, Emblematic, Grays of Blackburn, Coes and Petites Modes, spent a day touring Douglas & Grahame’s 100,000 sq. ft headquarters, which is based a stone’s throw from Belfast in Carrickfergus. There, they met members of the design team, walked the warehouse and dispatch area, and took an in-depth look at the latest 1880 Club schoolwear collection.
Commenting is Arron Potts, head of sales for Douglas & Grahame.
“To be able to welcome such prestigious UK schoolwear retailers to our operation in Northern Ireland was an absolute pleasure. We want to carefully build on the current success of the brand, and being able to accommodate events such as these will only help to secure long-lasting business relationships.”
There was also time for the ISSA members to visit award-winning independent retailer Wallace’s of Ballymena, where they were given a tour of the shop including its sizeable schoolwear department. Then, for the final afternoon, the group headed into Belfast. Douglas & Grahame owns and operates a store of its own in the city centre under the Remus Uomo fascia. The UK visitors were able to visit the Victoria Square Shopping Centre to see this, before embarking on a sightseeing tour of the city.
To find out more about 1880 Club, please email matthew.rawlings@douglasandgrahame.com.
