How hard is it to make a t-shirt in Britain?The answer is really very hard. The problems are many.

BOTHERING | Product News | April 06, 2025

Jersey UK /ˈdʒəːzi/ (noun): a soft, fine knitted fabric

HebTroCo used to sell great t-shirts made for us in Manchester by a company who spun the cotton into yarn, had it knitted into jersey and then sewed it all up into our own exclusive design. We worked with them for a few happy years and our input with their hard work made those t-shirts great. There are plenty of them around still being worn by us and many satisfied customers. Just look at the reviews.

That company went bust. The lights went out and there was nobody to put them back on. We sampled with other factories but were never satisfied with the quality of manufacture. We also struggled to find good enough jersey of consistent quality to satisfy us.

We have pulled out hair and done some swearing and got into conflict with this part of the HebTroCo project.

These are some of the key problems to making a t-shirt in Britain today, they are both technical and cultural:

1. There’s nowhere to hide in a simple design. Low grade jersey base material or poor sewing skills stick out like a sore thumb.
2. Once upon a time we made lots more things here. There were more skilled people spinning, knitting and sewing garments. There were more suppliers to choose from and all the materials were at hand. This doesn’t mean that everything was good, far from it, but there was a choice and within that a scale going from low to high end to choose from.
3. We are greedy and we want lots of clothes but we don’t want to pay much.
4. Mass production of cheap t-shirts means we have become used to low price and forgotten what quality looks and feels like. “It’s just a t-shirt” implies that because it looks simple it must be easy. If it’s easy it must be cheap.

BUT. If we are going to bother to make a t-shirt it is going to have to be really bloody good. Struggle is part of the game, especially if you don’t do it the easy way.

SO. After 2 years of trial and error we have got a t-shirt that we’re really happy to sell to people.

It won’t be for everyone because it’s not going to be cheap.

We’ve not told many people yet because they’re not in stock and ready to ship. There’s only so much of the moon you can offer before people demand a taste of the cheese. We have bought the jersey. The order is in with the factory. They will make them soon.

Our jersey is made in Italy. Clothing is art there and not just cloth to stick over a body. Simple things are good in Italy. Think about the everyday food. Ingredients are good and fresh and made into dishes with love. Fabric has to look and feel beautiful. Our jersey is heavyweight so it drapes well and has a structured look that makes you look good wearing it. The weave is strong so the t-shirt won’t lose its shape with repeated wear and washing. To the touch it is super soft, almost like fleece on the inside. It will wear well and last a long time.

The factory we found to make our t-shirt is good at what they do with skilled cutters and machinists. They specialise in outerwear and are used to making high quality stuff with expensive and varied materials. They make in volume so are not playing at this, they are not messing around. They’ve been around a long time for a reason.

Here are some photos taken in a back alley in Manchester just for our records. Ed is wearing our production sample t-shirt. It’s been worn and washed and bashed about a bit. He still loves it.