Crockett & Jones
was founded in 1879, in Northampton, by Charles Jones and his
brother-in-law, James Crockett. They established the business with a
grant of £100 each from the Thomas White Trust ‘to encourage young
men of good character in the towns of Northampton and Coventry to set
up business on their own’.
Northampton had
always been renowned for shoe making in England since the middle
ages; starting as a centre for tanning. The abundance of local oak
forests provided the oak bark, which was considered the best tanning
material at the time and the River Nene was the source of water for
this process. The central location of Northampton, en-route to
London, gave the town good communications and enabled the tanners to
obtain hides from the butchers with ease. After this it wasn’t long
before shoe makers naturally gathered where leather was readily
available, working out of their homes and in small workshops. By the
time that Crockett & Jones was established, shoe makers had begun
to join together to open small factories using new machinery that had
been developed specifically for the shoe industry during the
Industrial Revolution.
The first Crockett &
Jones factory in 1879 was a small building in Carey Street,
Northampton with 20 employees. Here they concentrated on making men’s
boots. The leathers were cut at the factory before being distributed
to out-workers who would take the parts home. They would then return
the finished components to the factory, so that the boots could be
completed.
The business was
successful and expanded rapidly with more and more work being done
inside the factory. In the 1890’s the 2nd generation (Harry
Crockett and Frank Jones) began to integrate new machinery, which was
invented by Charles Goodyear from the USA for stitching the uppers,
welts and soles together. This made the process much easier, and
faster, and gave rise to the name for the superior construction
process that we continue to use today, called ‘Goodyear Welted’.
Towards the turn of
the century James Crockett and Charles Jones recognised the need to
find a larger factory for continued expansion of the business. In
1897 they bought a new factory in Perry Street, which Crockett &
Jones still occupy today. In 1910 a 5 storey wing was built onto this
factory; the first all-steel structured building in Northampton. It
boasted a huge proportion of glass to give superb natural lighting
for production – an attribute which still benefits the workforce
today.
Around this time
most of the shoes were sold in the home market but the company was
also exporting a significant volume through-out the world to:
Australia, Argentina, Europe, New Zealand, South Africa, USA and the
Far East. Crockett & Jones had now established a reputation as
one of the best shoe makers in the country. In 1911 they were awarded
the Diploma D’Onoro (Diploma of Honour) at the International
Manufacturing Exhibition in Turin for their designs.
In 1911 Percy Jones,
the brother of Frank Jones, joined the company – this was to be the
start of a long serving, 67 year partnership in the business. In 1914
Crockett & Jones footwear was used for the 2nd time on a
Shackleton Polar expedition thus emphasising the excellent quality of
the shoes and their construction.
In 1924 Crockett &
Jones was honoured with Royal Patronage; a visit to the factory in
Perry Street by H.R.H The Duke of York (later King George VI) who
paid great attention to the shoe making process on his tour around
the factory. This visit sparked much national press interest and
people crowded the streets to get a glimpse of The Duke.
In 1927 Gilbert
Jones, the son of Frank Jones, started at Crockett & Jones
becoming the 3rd generation of the Jones family involved in running
the business. By this stage the company employed over 1000 people
and production had reached record levels of 15,000 pairs per week;
the majority of which were women’s shoes and boots.
An intensive
advertising campaign was launched in the 1930’s to drive sales
using the Swan and Health brands. As the company continued to succeed
a second wing was added to the Perry Street factory in 1935,
providing a new office block, showroom and an in-stock department.
The original front door was moved from Magee Street to Perry Street
with a new staircase and reception. This is still used as the main
entrance today and retains its impressive 1930’s Art Deco design.
During the 2nd World
War Crockett & Jones manufactured over a 1 million pairs for the
armed forces. They were under instructions from the government to
switch the majority of the production to military footwear; making
officers’ shoes and boots for the army, navy and air force. To
produce this volume many retired men and married women came back to
work to join in the war effort.
After the war in
1947 Richard Jones, son of Percy Jones and grandson of founder
Charles Jones, joined the business. Today Richard is still involved
as Chairman and imparts his vast knowledge of shoe making to
everyone. In 1948 the Crockett & Jones Partnership was dissolved
in order to found Crockett & Jones Ltd and Percy Jones became
Chairman.
In the 1950’s the
bulk of production was sold in the home market, although exports had
begun to expand again. By 1961 around 21% of the output was exported.
The factory continued to embrace new technologies to aid production,
while keeping the traditional hand processes passed on through the
generations, in order to maintain high quality standards at all
costs. In the 1970’s however, sales in the Commonwealth countries
began to decline following Britain’s entry into the European
Economic Community (EEC). In 1974, Crockett & Jones dropped the
'Swan' brand for women and 'Health' brand for men. After this all
shoes made by Crockett & Jones were made under the Crockett &
Jones brand.
Jonathan Jones, son
of Richard Jones, joined the company in 1977, the same year that
Richard was appointed Managing Director. At this time, a decision was
taken to re-focus the business. From now onwards they would
concentrate on producing men’s high quality Goodyear Welted
footwear and developing export sales in Europe, USA and Japan. A new
marketing division was put in place under Jonathan’s management and
the UK and International collections were re-defined.
As the business
began to build again over the next 15 years, exports reached 70% of
the overall production and in 1990 Crockett & Jones was awarded
the coveted Queens Award for Export Achievement. Crockett & Jones
continued to supply some of the world’s best known “own label”
collections but now as Managing Director, Jonathan also wanted to
increase the ‘Crockett & Jones’ branded distribution. As part
of this strategy it was decided to re-visit the company’s long
standing interest in retail. In 1997 Crockett & Jones opened
their 1st retail shop in Jermyn Street, London. Over the next 14
years another 10 retail shops and concessions were opened by Crockett
& Jones across London, Birmingham, New York, Paris and Brussels.
In 2004 the factory
in Perry Street was designated as a Grade II listed building, in
order to preserve the history of the shoe trade in Northampton. The
building has, in fact, changed very little since the 1930’s. In
2005 Nicholas Jones, Jonathan’s brother, joined the company as
Production Director and Jonathan, as Managing Director, concentrates
on strategy, sales and development. In 2006 Philippa Jones,
Jonathan’s daughter, started in the family business as the 5th
generation of the Jones family.
Crockett & Jones
continue to export about 70% of the production. The expansion of the
retail division together with on-going development of worldwide
distribution has led to the brand becoming internationally
established. The strong reputation of Crockett & Jones, which
continues to flourish, is built on solid foundations and a great
ethos started many generations ago. The fact that the business
remains in the hands of the family who started it, ensures that the
standards of the past are maintained today and lends a more personal
touch to the fine shoes that they produce.
Now after more than
130 years Crockett & Jones' shoes still retain the attention to
detail, quality, comfort and durability that was the hallmark of
their founders, Sir James Crockett and Charles Jones.
Crockett & Jones
is a shoe manufacturing company, established in 1879 by Charles Jones
and Sir James Crockett in Northampton, England. They were able to
establish the company with a grant from the Thomas White Trust. It
specialises in the manufacture of Goodyear-welted footwear. It is
currently being run by the great grandson of its co-founder, Charles
Jones. Crockett & Jones produces both men's and women's footwear
with three collections offered for men (Hand Grade Collection, Main
Collection and Shell Cordovan Collection) and a limited range of
boots and low heeled shoes produced for women
Though the
manufacturing of shoes has changed since Crockett & Jones was
founded, the company's aim is to produce shoes of the highest
quality. C&J uses a skilled workforce in labour-intensive
operations. A Goodyear welt in Crockett & Jones' shoe assembly
gives a high level of reliability and strength in the shoe.
Northampton is
traditionally known for its shoe-making skills, one reason for
setting up the factory there in 1879. At the start of operations they
produced men’s boots. In the 1890s the second generation of Harry
Crockett and Frank Jones began to modernise with more advanced
machinery, particularly equipment produced by Charles Goodyear. It
produced shoes at a faster rate with lighter manual work.
In 1897, Crockett
and Jones expanded the company into a larger factory and purchased
the facility, which is still in use by the company.
In the 1910s the
company began exporting a large part of their production to
Australia, Argentina, South Africa, USA and the far east though the
UK still remained its principal market.
In the 1930s with
the third generation of the founders and still a family business,
production reached 15,000 pairs of shoes each week. The majority of
these were women’s boots and shoes. They also supplied the 1940s
war effort producing over a million pairs of officers' boots. The
company stopped production of their usual footwear during this time.
The company has
continued to evolve and absorb the changes necessary to make it
competitive, but still maintaining a high quality product. The is
also where all operations for the company take place, including
production, design and development.
The factory in Perry
Street, Northampton, dates back to the 1890s with additions to the
main building in 1910 and 1935, giving a large internal working
space. It has a large proportion of glass to give good natural
lighting throughout the building and a pleasant working environment,
but can get rather cold in the winter and extremely warm in the
summer.
In 1947, the
grandson of Charles Jones, Richard Jones, joined the family company.
In 1977 he was appointed Managing Director and is still involved with
it today as acting Chairman. Jonathan, Richard's son, also became
involved with the family business in 1977.
Jonathan Jones says:
We're flat out at the moment and our biggest problem is managing that
demand and finding the skilled labour we need to do it. The majority
of shoes produced today are being exported worldwide. The majority of
shoes sell in the $400–550 range.
As at 2014 there are
11 Crockett & Jones retail shops and concessions based in London,
Birmingham, Paris, Brussels and New York. The shops provide a stylish
and contemporary showcase for ready to wear footwear, including
velvet slippers and driving shoes and accessories. An extensive range
of Crockett & Jones shoes can also be found at high-end shoe
retailers such as Double Monk in Melbourne.
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