The textiles and fashion industry in Leicestershire is largely focussed on the city of Leicester. The city is one of the UK’s largest textiles and fashion clusters, and hosts significant head office and corporate activity, as well as design, production, e-commerce, and distribution functions.
History of Textiles
The textiles manufacturing sector was at the heart of Leicester and Leicestershire’s economic development throughout the 19th and 20th century, predominantly developing a specialism for knitwear and hosiery, including companies such as Corah, Wolsey and Byford.
Key Organisations
The textile sector still has 1,500 firms in Leicester and Leicestershire, the second largest concentration of textile firms in the country outside of Manchester. Hosiery and clothing companies that are still based in include Next, Boden, Pantherella as well as many smaller firms making high quality clothing and specialty textiles.
Leicester’s strategic position and easy access to the rest of the UK, and its capacity for logistics, combined with its history as a textile hub, has made Leicester a strategic hub for ultra-fast fashion. Firms such as Asos, Boohoo and Missguided can replicate the most popular styles on social media in a matter of days thanks to the short lead times of the Leicester factories, where garments can be designed and finished within two weeks.
De Montfort University
It’s only natural that one of the UK’s largest textiles and fashion clusters would have a university which specialises in the sector. De Montfort University has been named among the best fashion schools in the world by The Business of Fashion and has also been recognised as of the most sustainable fashion and textiles schools in the country.
Other Key Sectors in Leicestershire
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