Viyella is a

blend A blend is a mixture of two or more different things or substances; e.g., a product of a mixer or blender. Blend Blend may also refer to: * Blend word, a word formed from parts of other words * ''Blend'' (album), a 1996 album by BoDeans * Bl ...

of wool and cotton first woven in 1893 in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and the "first branded fabric in the world".''Times'', 8 Sep 1987 It was made of 55% merino wool and 45% cotton in a

twill Twill is a type of textile weave with a pattern of diagonal parallel ribs. It is one of three fundamental types of textile weaves along with plain weave and satin. It is made by passing the weft thread over one or more warp threads then under ...

weave, developed by James and Robert Sissons of William Hollins & Co, spinners and

hosier Hosiery, also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the feet and legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also known generically as h ...

s. The brand name, first registered as a

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...

in 1894, and registered in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1907, soon covered not only the original fabric, to be sold by the yard (

piece goods Piece goods were the textile materials sold in cut pieces as per the buyer's specification. The piece goods were either cut from a fabric roll or produced with a certain length, also called yard goods. Various textiles such as cotton, wool, silk, ...

), but also clothing. At first this was made by separate businesses, but it was not long before Hollins started producing their own clothes and offering franchises to manufacturers who would use the Viyella label. Following increasing emphasis on garment manufacture over the years, Viyella is now a fashion brand for clothes and home furnishings made of a variety of fabrics. The original wool/cotton blend is no longer sold.

The fabric

Viyella was a soft dress-weight fabric that was more resistant to shrinkage than any comparable pure wool alternative ( challis, for example). In its early years it was marketed as a fabric which combined lightness and fashion with warmth and durability. One 1920s advertisement called it a "guaranteed unshrinkable fine wool flannel" for women who wanted both "daintiness" and "protectiveness".''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...

'', 21 Nov 1927 By the early 20th century it came in various weights and widths, some rather narrow by today's standards, and in both plain colours and woven or printed patterns, and was exported from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

to other English-speaking countries. Towards the end of the 20th century it was woven in wide lengths suitable for modern garment design and production. The first ready-made garments using Viyella were shirts and nightgowns, and soon came dresses,

slip Slip or SLIP may refer to: Science and technology Biology * Slip (fish), also known as Black Sole * Slip (horticulture), a small cutting of a plant as a specimen or for grafting * Muscle slip, a branching of a muscle, in anatomy Computing and ...

s and other clothing, much of it produced under franchise arrangements using the Viyella trademark. It was also made into sheets, and at one time Viyella yarn was available for home knitting. In the mid-20th century the fabric was popular for children's clothes, from babies' nightgowns to winter shirts for British schoolchildren, and for pajamas, shirts and dresses; it became associated with sensible, cosy clothing. Officers in the British and other

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armies purchased their own uniforms during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and Viyella shirts were a desirable option. In the late 20th century it was 're-invented' as fashionable fabric. In 1987 ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' said it was used by designers interested in "vintage" style, like

Laura Ashley Laura Ashley (née Mountney; 7 September 1925 – 17 September 1985) was a Welsh fashion designer and businesswoman. She originally made furnishing materials in the 1950s, expanding the business into clothing design and manufacture in the 1960s ...

, and creators of "modern classics". Clydella was a cheaper, less soft alternative made with 81 percent cotton, produced at factories in the

Clydeside Greater Glasgow is an urban settlement in Scotland consisting of all localities which are physically attached to the city of Glasgow, forming with it a single contiguous urban area (or conurbation). It does not relate to municipal government ...

area, including

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

and

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, where Viyella was also woven. Hollins also produced the related Dayella cloth used especially for babies' clothes.

The companies

The name Viyella is based on the unusually-named valley road, ''

Via Gellia The A5012 road is a main road in the south of the English county of Derbyshire. Route Around in length, it connects two primary north–south routes; the A6 at Cromford and the A515 between Buxton and Ashbourne. It passes through Pikehall ...

'' (the A5012) near Matlock, where in 1890 Hollins & Co acquired a mill used for the early production of Viyella. Hollins had started business in 1784 in Pleasley, about 20 miles away on the

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

border. Later their offices were at Viyella House in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

. After a merger in 1961, Hollins became Viyella International, led by Joe Hyman, who in the next few years acquired a series of related companies, with Viyella growing to be one of the biggest textile businesses in the UK, owning 40 factories across the country. After a few years as Carrington Viyella and then Vantona Viyella, the company owning the brand became Coats Viyella (Coats Paton, now Coats Group plc), who in the 1980s built a new mill to produce Viyella cloth in Barrowford,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, but this was demolished in 1999. In the 21st century much of Coats manufacturing (now specialising in thread) has been moved abroad to

far east The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

countries and it is no longer possible to buy Viyella fabric in the UK. Coats underwent major restructuring in 2002 and sold off its Viyella fashion retail business (and Jaeger) to entrepreneur Richard Thompson in 2003 for £1, who re-sold Viyella weeks later to

venture capital Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth potential or which ha ...

ist Harris Watson. Viyella Ladieswear has since added home furnishings to its range of goods. The fashion chain entered

Administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...

on 7 January 2009 citing "an assessment of the current economic situation and the prospects for the future" as the cause. In 2009, the upmarket retailer Austin Reed agreed to buy Viyella for an undisclosed sum. In late 2011, Viyella opened its flagship store next to Austin Reed at 92 Regent Street, London.

References

Literature

*''

'': ''Fashion: Soft touch for a romantic'', 8 September 1987 *''The Times'': Obituary of "Joe Hyman, textile magnate", 8 July 1999 *''

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

'': ''Thompson measures Austin Reed bid'', 28 March 2003
Viyella historyTextiles in the Glasgow area

External links

Viyella
{{fabric Woven fabrics Clothing retailers of the United Kingdom Products introduced in 1894 British companies established in 1784 1784 establishments in England

The fabric

The companies

References

Literature

Further reading

External links