Sometimes stuff just happens. Good stuff rarely happens on its own. It happens when good people try hard. And that’s what we have here – these articles are about things that have happened. And will happen.
A pint costs more than a half. A 12in pizza costs more than a 9in one. Curry and large chips costs more than a cone on it’s own. That’s common. That’s normal. People are used to that. Even though commercial hospitality is largely the cost of serving bums on seats, we’re happy to pay more […]
A HebTroCo British Standard white T shirt might not the best choice for wearing on a road trip, but I like it, it’s what I’m wearing. It’s also my job to put stuff to the test. Heading into the second week and the T Shirt has been getting the rough treatment. It was splattered with […]
It’s pretty well reported now that our company started in the pub. The basic idea, the celebrations about that basic idea, the realisation that we’d better do something more than just talk about the idea to actually make it happen. So yes, our company started over a pint, but with a marker pen, and two […]
English Fine Cottons are, after 50 years of industry decline, spinning cotton again in Manchester. This was central to the T shirt we launched last week. People on Facebook went mad for it. Or perhaps at it. We’ve been working for a couple of years now on British made products. We started with trousers, then […]
Alongside Poetry Recitation (1976), Best Article Singletrack Mountain Bike Magazine (2009), 3rd place Roveniemi 150 Arctic Ultramarathon (2013) there is now a new trophy on my sideboard. The story of the Nimbus told in a previous Happen post – https://hebtro.co/2018/04/25/the-nimbus/ – is now entering a new chapter. Once a pile of junk with potential, the […]
On a sunny day, people who don’t ride bikes usually say, “it’s a nice day for the bike” and of course they’re quite right. The words always surprise me though, because most of the time it’s a good day to be on two wheels, whether that’s the pedalling or motorised variety. A day with time […]
We come from a background in the cycling industry. brant was a magazine editor and bike designer, while Ed was a skills trainer and guide as well as writing product reviews and magazine features. Hammering prototype bikes through rocks and putting the latest technology to the test through miles of mud was our stock in […]
In a world where the media channels are controlled by hidden lizard giants (apparently), sometimes it’s good to lift the lid and understand who’s pulling the strings and what’s actually going on. Of course, commerce always has an agenda. People need to make money. Trousers don’t grow on trees and we have to pay the […]
Boston Dynamics have been posting videos of their robot development for the last few years. It’s truly amazing what they’re actually making these things do, and it’s fascinating coming from a mechanical and engineering background (which we sort of do) to see how things are developing. Closer to home, brant’s son Toby is actually a […]
Sandwiches at work are fine. There’s nothing wrong with a good sandwich. But we fancied something better. It’s good to have a challenge, and trying to cook a single pot dish using a slow cooker has been a fun challenge. If we get things moving by 9am, you can have a great lunch by 1pm, […]
Sandwiches at work are fine. There’s nothing wrong with a good sandwich. But we fancied something better. It’s good to have a challenge, and trying to cook a single pot dish using a slow cooker has been a fun challenge. If we get things moving by 9am, you can have a great lunch by 1pm, […]
When we cock it up we like to put things right. Jim ordered a pair of trousers from us. We took his money and then sent him the wrong trousers. Doh! Normally in a case like this we ask the customer to send us the item back and we refund the postage. Jim was planning […]
I’m the world’s worst motorcycle restorer. The first time I saw this vintage motorcycle it was just a rusting heap of bits. The bike had been partly disassembled for repairs which were never completed and to make it easier to store. The cylinder head and engine barrels were separated, the pistons rusted into the last […]
We sell online and we like it that way. By avoiding the mark up, that is incurred by passing on goods to be handed over by someone else, we are able to offer premium quality British made clothing at a more affordable price. You won’t find HebTroCo products on the high street. Even though we […]
Home From Home starring Johnny Vegas is on BBC1 this Friday at 9.30pm. It’s directed by Paul Murphy pictured at the front looking great in his HebTroCo Governor Jacket. The rest of the crew, all from Hebden Bridge, are pictured standing on the original 500 year old bridge that gives the town its name. From […]
Let’s get this straight. A pie has pastry at the bottom, round the sides and on the top. It doesn’t just have pastry on the top. It might look like a pie from the outside but it’s not a proper pie. We’re not being pedantic, this is an issue of quality. The pie tastes better […]
In our modern times life can be crushingly easy. We often have to take the stupid route to test ourselves, take some risks and find some excitement. Riding old motorcycles is on the surface a glamorous practice. It’s also a road full of breakdowns and disappointment. When they run right though, out there on the […]
You don’t want to make a big man angry. We used to only offer one cut of trouser, the tapered leg 177. Lots of people loved them and continue to do so. However some gents with big calf muscles and mighty ankles couldn’t get the trousers on. If they were wearing boots, there just wasn’t enough room […]
We’d seen this guy hanging around the Business Park where the HebTroCo unit is situated. He was usually riding round on a bicycle like a kid, always in shorts. After asking around it turned out that he’s a Para Olympic cyclist. On Twitter his name is @stevebatembe but we didn’t think he was African and […]
We don’t play the fashion “seasons” game. We do stylish clothing that’s made to last, rather than fashion that’s designed to be worn then discarded. You should expect to get years of wear out of something that you buy from us. Some people call this ‘Slow Fashion’. It’s just what we do. Clothes should be […]