Just 13 years after Richard Arkwright develops the first water-powered spinning mill, Peter Nightingale and his associate John Smedley establish John Smedley as an enterprise at the original mill in Lea Mills.
The second John Smedley takes over at the age of 34 and sets out his vision for the company, where spinning, knitting and manufacturing takes place under one roof using only the finest raw materials.
John Smedley becomes a limited company and develops a production line capable of manufacturing fine gauge, fully fashioned underwear and outerwear.
John Smedley's Sea Island Cotton is first used to knit John Smedley underwear, unique for its fineness, luxurious staple length and high tensile strength.
Icon pieces in John Smedley's Sea Island Cotton are introduced, including Isis, the three button polo shirt, Leander, the long sleeve polo and Pembroke, the roll collar.
Outerwear becomes the main focus and begins to be exported the world over.
Fine knitwear machinery from Japan is introduced, leading to styles featuring pattern and texture.
Extra fine New Zealand Merino wool introduced, bred by specially-selected Merino wool farmers in New Zealand.
Flagship Brook Street store opens in London.
To Your Wardrobe launches – an online delivery service direct from the John Smedley website.
Introduce pioneering whole-garment technology, creating unique, lightweight, seamless knitwear.
John Smedley celebrates 225 years of fine knitwear manufacture.
This year, John Smedley celebrates 225 years as specialists in fine, lightweight knitwear. Our family business was there at the birth of the industrial revolution, back when the first factories and looms were being built. Today we continue to innovate and evolve – as a company and in the knitwear we produce.
Use the arrows or dates above to explore the John Smedley timeline and learn more about some of the key events in our history.
