1805

The Crombie story begins over 200 years ago, in the year of the epic Battle of Trafalgar. It was at this time that John Crombie - son to a family of Scottish weavers - established his first woollen mill at Cothal Mills in Aberdeen.

Using only the finest natural fibres, John Crombie quickly established a reputation throughout Britain for the quality of his luxury cloth. Each year, he would set out on horseback to sell his prized fabrics - not only to cloth merchants, but also direct to London tailors eager for the richest offerings to present to their noble clients.

JOHN CROMBIE, FOUNDER, 1772-1858

1810

The company receives an award from the "Board of Trustees for Fisheries and Manufactures in Scotland", for the exceptional standard of its Forest cloth - the woollen cloth of the time

Wool was scoured and milled, spun and woven and subsequently tailored to produce Elysian overcoatings worn by the best-dressed men.

COTHAL MILLS, THE FIRST OF MANY CROMBIE MILLS IN DIFFERENT LOCATIONS IN ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND

1828

James Crombie, the eldest son, joins the expanding company, which continues to prosper through the post Napoleonic War period.

The main production was tweele and wincey, woven mainly in blues and greys, having already been dyed in the west of England. Folk etymology suggests that the word "tweed" was born at around this time as a result of a London merchant misinterpreting a Crombie employee's badly handwritten letter referring to an order of tweele.

JAMES CROMBIE, 1810-1878

1849

By the mid-nineteenth century, the Crombie business has established its reputation amongst the fashionable drapers of London and Paris.

Crombie's fine wools, tweeds, cashmeres and merinos became the fabric of choice for Savile Row tailors and gentlemen of taste.

REGENT STREET PREMISES OF JAMES LOCKE, FIRST AGENT TO CROMBIE IN LONDON, 1849

1851

As the Victorian era progresses, the Crombie name becomes renowned for excellence and fine craftsmanship.

In 1851, Crombie's cloth was presented at the Great Exhibition, and was awarded a prize medal by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert "For Superior Manufacture and Beauty of Design".

FROM THE CROMBIE ARCHIVE

1855

At the Exposition Universelle in Paris, Crombie is similarly commended by Napoleon III.

PRESENTED TO CROMBIE BY NAPOLEON III - CROMBIE ARCHIVE

1861

The outbreak of the American Civil War establishes a new export market.

Business increased five-fold as Crombie received large orders for "Rebel Grey" cloth from the Confederate army - who had no mills of their own in the blockaded South.

CONFEDERATES IN THEIR ICONIC GREY UNIFORMS

1862

Queen Victoria's commissioner commends Crombie cloth at the International Exhibition held in London in 1862.

CROMBIE ARCHIVE

1870s

John Crombie's grandson Theodore journeys extensively across the globe, with trunks filled with Crombie's trademark cloth, to secure new markets in Europe.

Such was his success that in 1871, during the Prussian siege of Paris, an order was famously sent by hot air balloon to secure delivery of the legendary cloth. Theodore's agents went on to establish the Crombie brand name as far afield as Canada and even Japan - where Crombie's agent was Thomas Glover, who went on to help establish the Mitsubishi Corporation, and supposedly inspired Pucccini's opera Madam Butterfly.

THOMAS BLAKE GLOVER, CROMBIE'S AGENT IN JAPAN, WITH YANOSUKE IWASAKI

1880

Links with Russia are established which persist to the present day.

Crombie entered the Russian market in 1880 with the "Russian Coat" - a heavy pile coat specially designed to shield wearers from the harsh Russian winter. Crombie soon established a favourable reputation in Russia, and became the fabric of choice for Tsars, the Russian Imperial court, and later even the Politburo. When the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev stepped onto British soil for the first time at Heathrow in December 1984, television commentators observed that he was wearing his British Crombie coat.

TSAR ALEXANDER II
A RUSSIAN ADVERT FOR CROMBIE COATS IN THE 1970s

1900s

Crombie turns its expertise to lighter weight coats, suits and morning coats for markets opening up in France, Germany and Belgium.

The Crombie "Beaver-Raised" woollen overcoating proved an international success, particularly for gentlemen's wedding attire. The cloth, made from merino wool, was given a secret finish that imparted a mirror-like gloss.

A PRE-WWI ADVERT FOR CROMBIE OVERCOATS

1914-1918

During the First World War, Crombie temporarily switched its production to military officers' uniforms.

Such was the extent of Crombie's production that one tenth of all greatcoats worn by British officers were made from Crombie cloth. The term "British Warm" was coined at this time to describe the coat made from Crombie cloth. The name remains synonymous with Crombie to this day.

"BRITISH WARM" SAMPLE FROM THE CROMBIE ARCHIVE

1928

Another textile family, the famous Salts of Saltaire, West Yorkshire, bring Crombie into the Illingworth Morris group - creating what becomes Britain's largest textile group for much of the twentieth century.

INTERIOR OF CROMBIE'S LARGEST AND MOST FAMOUS MILL AT THAT TIME: GRANDHOLM, ABERDEEN

1932

The Duke of York (later King George VI) visits a Crombie mill in 1932, wearing a coat created by Crombie especially for him.

This design was revived and re-released by Crombie in 2009 as the "King Coat".

THE DUKE OF YORK, LATER KING GEORGE VI, ON THE RIGHT

1939-1945

In the Second World War, Crombie once again makes its contribution for Britain.

During 1941 alone, Crombie's output included overcoats for 90,450 soldiers, 23,364 RAF officers, and 12,042 US army officers. In 1942, Crombie supplied the Norwegian resistance movement with a dark grey cloth to match that of the occupying German troops. Despite the vast quantities involved, the cloth produced by Crombie during this period maintained its legendary status, on account of the exceptional quality of every garment.

1944 MARKED THE FIRST VISIT OF HM THE QUEEN & HRH PRINCESS ELIZABETH TO THE CROMBIE FACTORIES

1946-present

With its war work over, Crombie reassumes its position as a purveyor of fine British fashion to celebrities royalty, and statesmen worldwide.

CARY GRANT 1946 - WINSTON CHURCHILL 1949
KENNEDY & EISENHOWER 1960 - THE BEATLES 1964

1983-1992

When the legendary British tailor Tommy Nutter sought to return to Savile Row with his own ready-to-wear range, he approached Crombie for support. A partnership was formed, and for many years Crombie and Tommy Nutter products were sold alongside each other from the same shop.

During this time our joint store at 19 Savile Row had clients including Elton John, John Lennon, and Mick Jagger. Tommy Nutter produced a variety of eye-catching designs - including Jack Nicholson's Joker costumes for the 1989 Batman movie - while Crombie supplied him with the cloth.

Since Tommy Nutter's sad death in 1992, Crombie has continued to release respectfully commemorative Tommy Nutter products derived from his original designs.

TOMMY NUTTER SUIT, DESIGNED FOR AND WORN BY JACK NICHOLSON IN TIM BURTON'S 1989 BLOCKBUSTER, BATMAN

1990s

Crombie opens it first stand-alone stores: in Edinburgh, followed by London and Manchester.

CONCEPTUAL DESIGN OF CROMBIE FLAGSHIP STORE AT 48 CONDUIT STREET, LONDON

2010

Crombie launches its new website as its "fourth store", bringing the best of British style to customers all over the world. Apart from Britain of course, Crombie's classic designs prove particularly popular with online shoppers in the USA, Australia, Germany, Poland, Sweden and France.

FRONT PAGE OF THE NEW WEBSITE AT THE TIME OF ITS LAUNCH FOR THE AUTUMN/WINTER SEASON 2010

Timeless

Crombie remains an iconic British brand, trusted worldwide for the quality of its products and the timeless elegance of its designs.

Crombie continues to source only the finest raw materials to make its luxury products. To this day, the majority of fabrics used in our coats are milled in England and Scotland (otherwise in Italy). Likewise, 80% of our accessories are "Made in England", from five-fold silk ties hand rolled by English craftsmen, all the way up to handmade classic fur felt hats.

THE BEAUTIFULLY CRAFTED CROMBIE COAT: A TIMELESS CLASSIC EVOKING THE VERY BEST OF BRITISHNESS