News

From Lewis to Russia, with love

By Gary Moug

A NEW Scots company that has helped revive the Harris Tweed industry will send out its first order tomorrow — to Russia.

Harris Tweed Hebrides took over the closed-down mill at Shawbost on Lewis late last year. 

The move was greeted with huge relief on the island, where concerns had been mountingover the industry’s future. 

Production of the luxury cloth has fallen in recent decades and the mill had been closed by a former owner. 

But Ian Taylor, a Scottish oil businessman and main shareholder of Harris Tweed Hebrides, invested £1 million in the mill, ensuring it re-opened last year.

Celebrate

Since then the company has embarked on major refurbishment to make the mill operational and will celebrate the transformation by sending its first order to Moscow-based manufacturing and retail giant Glosab.

Glosab plan to use the fabric for men’s and women’s clothes, to be sold throughout the company’s 37 stores.

Sales director Rae Mackenzie said, “I knew Glosab from trade fairs about 10 years ago when they started buying Harris Tweed and they were disappointed when, last year, they were told it would no longer be available. 

“After a recent meeting with one of our agents in Munich, they were absolutely delighted to find out about Harris Tweed Hebrides.

“This was one of our first orders to come in and the first to go out. I have high hopes that Russia can become a very important market for us. 

Quality

“It’s a discerning market and there is a demand for high-quality, hand-crafted products — exactly the category that Harris Tweed comes into.”

Yesterday the company enlisted the services of Edinburgh-based top Russian model Margarita Dobroskokina to help send the tweed to Russia with love.

Brian Wilson, former UK trade minister, is chairman of Harris Tweed Hebrides. He said, “It’s great to see the mill back in production and Harris Tweed orders coming in from all around the world. 

“There’s relief among Harris Tweed’s long- established customers that the fabric is more widely available once again, in addition to new interest from designers and manufacturers who are getting to know this unique product for the first time.”

Harris tweed is the world’s only commercially hand- woven tweed. The cloth is woven by the islanders of Lewis, Harris, Uist and Barra in their homes, using pure virgin wool that has been dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides.