Emma Gushlow and Katrina Cole have a passion for the craft of making beautiful shearling garments and accessories. The South London born designers met at school at the age of four and have worked creatively together since graduating from The London College of Fashion, cementing their design partnership with a debut collection in 2003.
The Gushlow and Cole brand was born from many years’ experience working with traditional English manufacturing methods of shearling within the highly respected Cole family business giving them unrivalled specialist knowledge and understanding for their chosen materials. Their first project, a small accessory range, was sold at East London’s Spitalfields Market. Demand was so high this quickly became a destination stop for stylists and media types, which led them to launch a luxury accessory collection at London Fashion Week. They found their own unique style and skills were of great interest to buyers looking for a brand with a strong British identity. With the whole range made in England and the quirky Englishness of design, their individual look is instantly recognizable. Gushlow and Cole have produced a shearling garment and accessory collection every winter since with growing success. Taking care to use ethical tanneries, all skins they use are a by-product and every item is hand made in England. Selecting the finest materials, they place emphasis on fit and construction through mastery of their medium. The label has attracted a clientele of high profile celebrities including Angelina Jolie and can be found in many prestigious stores around the world.
You’ve been working together for a long time! What would you say has influenced your designs most over the years? The biggest influence on our designs has come from my father and working in his factory. We learned at grass roots level how to construct shearling and leather. It’s such a marvellous product to work with – it can be so dramatic. We have since worked on a vast spectrum of collections, from designers like Margaret Howell and Amanda Wakeley to Aviation leatherwear. Each collection holds a piece of our heritage. Vogue magazine has also been a huge influence on our emerging aesthetic, especially in our earlier years. I still have the first copy we purchased in July 1990!
Has the Gushlow & Cole style changed over the years? It is surprising how little our style has changed over the years. I like to see it more as evolving. This underlines that what we create has longevity and a certain timeless appeal. We have always had a fresh approach to the products we create. I would say we have a relaxed luxe style.
You’re a (very successful) partnership of two individuals. How does your friendship influence your business? How do you resolve any differences that you have? Our friendship influences our business on many levels. Our different senses of style work in unison. I might create the base design but Emma will add her touch, make it work and ultimately have the final say. Any differences we do have are very few and far between and are ironed out immediately. My nickname for her is ‘The Wife’. We have total trust and respect in one another which is the key to any successful partnership.
Emma Gushlow and Katrina Cole have a passion for the craft of making beautiful shearling garments and accessories. The South London born designers met at school at the age of four and have worked creatively together since graduating from The London College of Fashion, cementing their design partnership with a debut collection in 2003.
You’re very committed to the British manufacturing industry and your clothes are all made in the UK by specialist craftsmen and women (who are named on the labels of the pieces they create). How do you go about choosing who makes your pieces? We believe it is important to know and understand where a product is made. The ‘made by’ labels celebrate the specialist individual skills each one of our makers have. We match the product to the maker to ensure the highest quality of craftsmanship.
Your Apprentice Scheme shows how important it is to you to ensure that young people are trained in the skills needed to produce your clothing. With mass production becoming more common, do you think there is a danger of such skills being lost in the future? Unfortunately, there is a real danger of luxury shearling manufacture disappearing completely from England. The fashion industry can be notoriously hard on factories, squeezing prices and taking production abroad without a thought for the factory they leave behind. Specialist factories, not just shearling, should be supported, nurtured and cared for by both designers and the government. If they’re not we will lose them, and part of the heritage of what makes British fashion great, forever.
You pride yourselves on the quality of your pieces. How do you ensure that the quality is always consistent? Quality is integral to the creation of luxury. Many of our craftsmen and women have been with us for years, and understand our brand philosophy and the importance of quality. Emma and I take a hands-on approach to everything – especially the manufacturing process. We will quite often jump on a machine to demonstrate how we like things to be done. We check everything down to the smallest of detail, from the length of a button shank to the millimetres in a stitch. As we personally wear what we create, we are our biggest critics. If there is a quality issue, we will find it.
Good ethical practice is clearly important to you. How do you ensure the provenance of your shearling? The origin and authenticity of our materials and good ethical practice is integral to our sourcing. We therefore only work with a few trusted European tanneries which supply shearling from the European basin only. This takes into account animal welfare and strict European environmental controls which ensures good ethical practice is followed throughout. As we do not believe in using pelts from animals which are farmed for fashion, we also only use skins which are a by-product of the food industry.
You make a range of beautiful coats, jackets, gilets scarves and accessories. Would you like to branch out into other areas of fashion? Are there other materials you would like to work with? As our collections evolve we find inspiration in, and organic symmetry between, shearling and other natural materials. We have become known for mixing shearling with natural materials, for example a luxurious long haired Toscana shearling scarf with cashmere from Johnston’s of Elgin, or a back panel of a gilet in chunky hand knitted alpaca wool. As our brand grows we are naturally moving into other areas of fashion.
You’re already being sold in over 20 countries – where next? Do you have plans to expand into other countries? We are always looking to expand into new markets. We currently deliver to over 40 counties worldwide and this is continuously increasing. The online market is another huge platform for growth and allows our international customers to purchase Gushlow & Cole. We now have a great new online store to launch new products throughout the year, so watch this space!
What would be your advice to a young British designer thinking of setting up their own business? Take a long hard look at your product range and understand who your customer is. There is a huge demand for good British design – and even more so for British made design, so think internationally and visit the shows. UKFT (The UK Fashion and Textile Association) are a great help to any designer looking to export. They offer a membership scheme which gives access to much needed advice, support and funding which is invaluable to any young designer. Most importantly, have belief in yourself and your product and go for it – just be prepared to be in it for the long haul