Interview with Simon Cotton

Simon Cotton
CEO
Johnstons of Elgin

Intend to remain true to Made-in-Scotland story

Established in 1797, Johnstons of Elgin is a woollen mill in Elgin, Scotland that produces cashmere garments. In an interview with Fibre2Fashion, Simon Cotton, CEO of Johnstons of Elgin, ellaborates on the factors that differentiate the Scottish textile market from rest of the world, the changes the pandemic has brought in consumer preferences and some of the new announcements the company looks forward to.

How does Scotland differentiate itself in the textile market from other world regions?

Scotland is particularly well known for traditional, natural animal fibres like wool and cashmere. Most of the companies here service the luxury markets. These fibres require very careful processing due to the fine and delicate fibres, which are easily broken or damaged by high volume production practices. For these reasons Scottish made products achieve a premium, as the knowhow and care which goes into them is reflected in products which are beautiful to touch, with very few chemicals used and wear exceptionally well.

Your company is the last vertical wool mill in Scotland. How do you plan to carry on with the legacy?

We believe that our vertical business model offers us many advantages. If we want a product to perform a certain way in finishing, we can go right back to the raw fibre to achieve this. In addition, we have been able to achieve a huge amount in sustainability because we have a very high level of control over what goes into every stage of our process including chemicals, energy, water, and fair work. The vertical business model has never been more relevant than it is today.

Could you give us an overview of the success story of your brand?

Two thirds of our turnover comes from providing manufacturing to many of the world's leading luxury brands. Our own brand is however very important to us. Although it was once known simply for very beautiful, basic products, increasingly we are using it to develop new technology and techniques which can then be used across the business. Because of this, consumers can find new-to-the-world products which cannot be found in any other brand and really match our dual commitments to innovation and craftsmanship.

Where does the brand have its footprints in the world?

Our home is here in Scotland, based in small, rural communities, where craftsmanship is still considered exceptionally important. Our supply chains reach across the world including Australia for Ultrafine Merino, China and Mongolia for Cashmere and South America for Vicuna. Our products are sold in over 65 countries right around the world. Our company has always been an international one, sourcing the finest fibres from around the world since the 1840's and selling our products around the world since our first sales to Nova Scotia in 1813.

Which regions of Scotland do your craftsmen come from?

Most of our craftspeople are very local to our mills and live within walking distance from them. However, around 15 per cent of our workforce originally started their lives, and very often their textile careers, in other countries. We have over one hundred employees with over twenty years of service. It is very common for two or more members of a family to work in our mills and for several generations to work here. We take that as a great compliment, and it really does help to build our sense of community.

How does your supply chain work? Where are the raw materials sourced from?

Our supply chains reach across the world including Australia for Ultrafine Merino, China and Mongolia for Cashmere and South America for Vicuna. Typically, we are buying raw fibre and we keep track of where everything is scoured and dehaired. Increasingly, our fibre is becoming fully traceable. All our wool for our yarn production is now bought with Responsible Wool Standard certification and we are moving all our cashmere purchases to the Sustainable Fibre Alliance standard as the capacity develops.

Which are your major markets?

We sell to every market in the world, but the Japanese market is particularly important to us. We have a strong position in the US and Europe and markets like China and South Korea are growing extremely rapidly. Scottish textile products are synonymous with luxury so any country with a significant luxury market is of interest to us.

Who is your typical customer in the domestic market?

Our customer in the UK is typically a luxury traveller, who shops luxury brands and wants to take home high-quality products from their travels.

What has been the impact of the pandemic on the textile industry of Scotland?

Demand dropped sharply during the pandemic but is now recovering rapidly. We expect to be back at 2019 levels next year and demand this year is significantly stronger than we expected.

What changes has the pandemic brought in the way of doing business and consumer preferences?

We have seen quite dramatic changes in consumer behaviours. We have been very pleased to see consumers taking much more interest in how the products they buy are made, who makes them and how those producers are looked after. We know that has not been the case across all areas of the market, but we see a small but growing group of consumers who genuinely care about these things. We also saw a massive shift away from formal office clothing to a more casual "all day" style of dressing. Our soft, comfortable fabrics are very well suited to this style of dressing, and we believe that shift will continue post-pandemic.

What were the key initiatives undertaken by you for wellbeing of the employees and other CSR work?

We are the largest employer in the UK textiles sector to have adopted the Real Living Wage. We believe that it is important that our team members are properly paid for the incredible skills they have. We try to treat everyone with respect, communicating regularly and openly. We involve employees in problem solving and genuinely try to listen to them. We also run initiatives like mental health first aiders and mental health helplines, operate employee consultation forums and support union recognition.

What are your views on the increased importance of sustainable fashion in the last two decades and more so after the pandemic?

The attitude towards sustainability within the industry has changed dramatically over the last year. I believe we have reached a tipping point where we no longer rely on companies to act altruistically to achieve sustainability improvements. It is now in every company's self-interest to take sustainability seriously. Sadly however, there is still far too little genuine work being done and too many sustainability claims are being dressed up by marketing teams. We have a responsibility to be honest in our reporting, to report the good and the bad and to take urgent and sustained action.

What role is technology playing in the way you do business?

Technology is increasingly important in every aspect of our business, from presenting products through the Joor business-to-business selling tool, through to planning our production with Preactor. At the same time our manufacturing technology continues to be a massive area of investment with the latest innovations from Shima Seiki in whole garment knitting technology in our knitwear mill and a massive movement to fine jacquard weaving technology in our weaving mill. We are also continually looking to support the skills of our people, by bringing the latest technologies in to quantify skills which have relied for centuries on the skilled personal judgement of our craftspeople. Maintaining a position at the top of the industry requires that we can always provide the latest technology but, even more important is investing in the development of our people. We train more people than any other company in the UK textile industry, not just to replace skills as people retire, but to be continually improving, learning more, and stretching ourselves. What role is technology playing in the way you do business?

What are the new announcements to look forward to in the current year?

We are working on an exciting new collaboration in our home products area, where we have seen some exceptional growth, as consumers look to enhance the home space where they have had to spend so much time recently. We are also planning further announcements on our sustainability work as we continue our 360-degree look at every aspect of how our collection is produced.

What are your future plans?

We intend to remain true to our Made-in-Scotland story, but will continue to innovate to bring exciting new ideas to the market. Sustainability will continue to be at the very centre of our strategy. Our expectation is continuous improvement in every aspect of what we do every day. It is that spirit of innovation that helped us last the last 224 years and which is even more essential today. (PC)

Published on: 15/06/2021

DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.