special report
Monday February 4 2019 THE NATIONAL MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM, BIRMINGHAM
that reproducing the Denby look elsewhere is virtually impossible.” She noted that Denby has adapted its products
D
enby pottery has been hand-craſted in Derbyshire since 1809, following the discovery of an exceptional seam of
local clay - which has been used for creating Denby stoneware ever since. Marketing manager Vikki Irvine said: “All Denby
stoneware is produced at our pottery and headquarters in Derbyshire in the same way it has been for over 200 years. “Although traditional potting skills are very
evident in our processes, we have also developed our own techniques and established our own skill base. The unique set of conditions and processes that we have perfected over the years - coupled with our location close to a rich seam of clay - mean
over generations to meet the needs of consumers as eating habits change. “Whatever the era, we’ve been able to transform from a producer of salt glazed stoneware bottles and jars, to the functional kitchenware of the 1920s, into the creation of full matching tableware ranges to meet the rise in the home dinner party in the 1970s. Today Denby is the UK’s leading premium casual tableware brand and exports to over 40 countries.” For those customers who prefer porcelain or china or like to have glassware, accessories and cast iron, then Denby works with selected overseas craftsmen and women who, Vikki said, “share our values for quality and durability. Every item is designed by the same team in Derbyshire, with items then carefully sourced from trusted specialised suppliers.”
“British manufacture is one of our key USPs”
For Denby, the benefits of making in Britain are
manifold. “The factory is the beating heart of our business,” Vikki commented. “Our designers work closely with our skilled craftsmen and women in the development process that allows blue sky experimental thinking and product trials, which lead to our award-winning product innovation.” Another plus is that new product development [NPD] samples are available much quicker; “the design team can walk outside their door and they can see their samples coming off the kiln. The NPD, raw materials and production processes can be carefully monitored.” So why should retailers consider stocking
products made in Britain? “The UK is renowned throughout the world for its design expertise and quality, and there’s an appreciation of the craftsmanship and heritage that we have in the UK. “The renaissance for artisan/hand-crafted
tableware has been inspired by restaurant dining and this, together with an increasing preference of natural aesthetics in the home, means that British brands such as Denby are leading the way worldwide for British tableware.
One year ago this month in Housewares Magazine…
• KitchenCraft announced a three-year multi-million pound investment plan, which included a new software system and a state-of-the-art fulfilment centre, scheduled to open in 2019.
• More than 1,300 UK and international exhibitors showed their wares at Autumn Fair at the NEC in Birmingham.
• Selfridges claimed to be the first department store in the world to launch its Christmas Shop 147 days before Christmas Day. The department store group opened the Christmas Shop in its flagship on London’s Oxford Street on July 31.
• The Wooden Spoon Cookshop in the Staffordshire town of Leek celebrated its first anniversary.
• A new retailer joined the Cheshire housewares scene when Brambles Cookshop opened its doors in Audlem on September 1.
• The Government announced plans to tighten the law on online sales of knives to stop under 18s purchasing them. The proposed measures meant anyone who bought a knife online would be required to collect it in person, with retailers responsible for checking the age of all buyers.
• Department store group John Lewis planned to ‘take personalisation to the next level’ over the festive season by introducing Christmas Villages into 11 locations. As well as personalised baubles, sacks and wrapping paper, for the first time John Lewis partnered with the Magic Candy Factory to offer customers the chance to have a selfie transformed into fruit jelly.
• Euroscrubby’s Scrubbies and T&G Woodware’s Pride of Place ceramic storageware were the best-selling products at La Cookshop in Blagdon, Northumberland and Trevor Mottram in the Kent town of Tunbridge Wells.
Debuting this year, Studio Blue is Denby's best-selling pattern and has proved to be one of the company’s most successful launches in tableware
In addition, “consumers are being more considered in their purchases now, as they turn their backs on throwaway products and prefer to buy trusted brands.” In fact, consumer interest in the Denby brand has
always been strong. An early advocate of industrial tourism, Denby has been showing visitors around the pottery from 1952, when the local WI (Women’s Institute) branch expressed an interest in seeing the process of creating pottery from a lump of Derbyshire clay. Today, Denby Pottery Village welcomes nearly a quarter of a million visitors and invites customers to the site where they can try their hand at painting their own piece of Denby. Vikki concluded: “There are no plans to take
production of Denby stoneware outside the UK. We support and understand the benefits of British manufacture and it's one of our key USPs - we couldn't achieve what we do at Denby elsewhere.”
:
september 2017
Source: Housewares Magazine September 2017
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