A UK-made denim model: United Overalls

Born in 2019, from founder Thomas Burke’s ardour for denim, United Overalls purpose to provide the very best high quality pair of UK-made denims.

Right here he explains why being a 100% UK-made denim model was the one approach to go.

When was United Overalls based and what’s your background?

United Overalls has been going since 2019, but it surely took about two years to get the model began. Earlier than engaged on the model I labored in retail so needed to study lots about design and beginning up a enterprise earlier than launching our first fashion of denims.

Most of my denim data comes from my time working in numerous clothes shops. The primary was Levi’s the place I used to be taught in regards to the historical past of the model and the way the enduring 501 modified over time. I then labored at Son of a Stag and discovered all the particulars and building strategies that make Japanese and American made denim manufacturers the very best high quality denims on this planet. It was a fantastic place to soak up a wealth of data and meet with individuals within the trade who grew to become beneficial contacts in a while.

“The choice to choose English woven selvedge denim and North London building ticked the containers for the smallest carbon footprint by way of delivery, plus we might ship a degree of high quality not discovered wherever else.”

Why do you select to make your merchandise within the UK?

For me, it was a mix of the environmental impacts of delivery materials midway the world over. I used to be impressed to observe within the footsteps of the Japanese and American manufacturers that might boast virtually 100% domestically produced merchandise.

Numerous the selections we make as a UK-made denim model are to cut back the influence of our firm on the surroundings, for instance, we solely use unwashed denim and solely 100% cotton.

So the choice to choose English woven selvedge denim and North London building ticked the containers for the smallest carbon footprint by way of delivery plus we might ship a degree of high quality not discovered wherever else.

Who’s the everyday United Overalls buyer?

Sometimes our clients have been people who find themselves on the lookout for distinctive, small run and top-quality merchandise which are championing British craftsmanship. Usually they’re “Denim Heads” who avidly analysis the very best quality denims from around the globe and see our ED-1 denims as a real one-of-a-kind product.

They’d have numerous publicity to different manufacturers in the marketplace however locate our model both by means of social media or by trying to find any manufacturers that make denims within the UK. We now have had clients from America and Europe in addition to clearly the UK and we hope we’ve got extra clients around the globe sooner or later!

Why would somebody select to spend money on a pair of United Overalls denims fairly than one other model?

If somebody is on the lookout for one of the best pair of denims they will purchase then they need to undoubtedly come to us. Ours stand head and shoulders above others, primarily as a result of building strategies that the parents at Blackhorse Lane Ateliers have the talent to execute. Only a few of those particulars embody the shortage of any over-locking, a one-piece selvedge line fly, and rivets on all areas of pressure together with on the backside of the fly (a characteristic not seen on denims because the ’30s).

I additionally took numerous time discovering issues with denims I had owned beforehand and rectifying them for United Overalls. One of many greatest issues I had with uncooked denim denims was that the back and front pockets have been at all times too small for palms and my cellphone and pockets, plus the pocket baggage have been at all times product of skinny materials that will put on out a lot faster than the denim.

The ED-1 denims have a lot larger pockets and pocket openings to make them as comfy to put on with a cellphone and pockets in them, and we use a thick, heavy-duty canvas for the pocket baggage that lasts so long as the denim.

You purpose to make your denims as environmentally acutely aware as potential, are you able to inform us the way you do that?

Exterior of the beforehand talked about UK sourcing, we guarantee that there isn’t any plastic used within the building of our denims to ensure they gained’t launch micro-plastics into water techniques. Many denim manufacturers will nonetheless use polyester threads to assemble their denims so we even guarantee that not solely is our cloth 100% cotton however so is the thread used to stitch all of it collectively.

This implies it’s going to even be simpler to repair the denims sooner or later for those who can handle to put on them out. As commonplace, we add in a spare patch of denim to orders to be able to use it as a patch to restore your denims or simply as a wash check swatch. The one piece of plastic we use is the recyclable plastic bag that we re-use from the manufacturing facility to wrap the denims in throughout transit to assist defend them. 

We may even begin wanting into different supplies to cotton in future runs. The mill that produces our cloth additionally does some Linen and Wool blended denim which we might like to get our palms on! We try to make each determination for the model as thought-about as potential and we hope individuals can see that in our choices. It implies that it does take numerous time to develop merchandise however we predict it’s value it in the long term.

“Numerous the selections we make as a model are to cut back the influence of our firm on the surroundings, for instance, we solely use unwashed denim and solely 100% cotton.”

You’re so obsessed about denim you actually have a podcast about it! Inform us extra…

Nicely for some time I’ve been a part of a denim meet-up group (Denims Nameless) known as Worn Out World, began by two chaps known as David and Kevin. These conferences often contain simply assembly after work close to retailers we like in London, consuming an excessive amount of and speaking briefly about denims earlier than getting onto different topics.

As soon as lock-down got here into impact David had the concept of taking the concept of those conferences and bringing them to a podcast! So we spend an hour or so simply chatting about issues we might chat about usually – hobbies, information, music and clearly giving opinions on denim, denim developments, and types that we like or dislike.

All of us come from completely different backgrounds so it offers a very rounded view on sure topics, not all of us are bearded motorcyclists swigging craft Ales you realize. One instance can be our working joke about David’s obsession with neon and black in virtually every part he wears. Sneakers, denims, jackets. Every little thing.

Go to the United Overalls web site to learn how a UK-made denim model is striving to make the very best quality denims.