Late last year, in October, Zofia and I were contacted about the possibility of saving Christys’ the brand, the company already being insolvent . As we understand it, Christys had been available for sale for some time, but we were only approached very late in the process. When the opportunity was presented to us, it felt like both a privilege and a responsibility to step in.
Of course it was very sad to hear that the Witney-based company Christy & Co., had gone into liquidation and were closing its' doors. We would have loved to have kept Christys’ in Witney, but we’re a small team and Laird and logistically it just wasn’t possible in the end. The brand has been part of British manufacturing history for more than two and a half centuries, and the loss of such heritage has sadly become a sign of the times. Christys’ sister brand CW Headress was sold off in 2024, moving up to Liverpool, splitting the original company in half which can’t have helped.
The last 4 months have really been a whirlwind, happily planning towards Christmas and 2026 production, Christys’ not being on our radar at all let alone 4 months later being tasked with rejuvenating this famous brand. We’ll be honest as well by saying that we have plans and a clear vision of course, now that is, but its been such a short time that we’re making it up a bit as we go along. We were always confident that we had our own workshops, so knew what we could do and we’ve worked with our cloth and felt suppliers for many years, but we’re a small team at Laird and have had to play catch-up pretty quickly. We will start with a new collection and launch online, and plan to grow slowly. I know that Christys’ had an extensive list of client, but very little information from the old company came across to us. I must be clear that on taking on the Brand, IP and domains we’ve had to start from scratch, and have no connection with the previous Owner of the brand.
In the short-term we are relaunching the brand online. This weekend marks the relaunch of the
www.Christys-Hats.com website, where customers will still be able to purchase some of the remaining original stock with the first pieces of the new collection, like the “Windsor” cap pictured, Made in London of course, from a Shetland Wool, woven by Abraham Moons in Yorkshire.
We’ve had to re-pattern some of Christys’ caps, and we’re currently having new hat blocks (forms) made from some of the most distinctive hats in the previous collections and of course we’ll be adding some of our own and developing some new styles along the way.
Christys’ London is an extraordinary name in British craftsmanship and hatting. Founded in 1773, it has over 253 years of heritage, making it one of the oldest hat brands in the country. The London Trademark Office, the first in the world, opened in 1867, Christys’ London was registered by the 1st of March of the same year. Historically the company was founded and closely associated with London, and we were excited to bring the brand full-circle bringing production back to London.
Laird Hatters have workshops in London and Hertfordshire, and our goal very quickly was to re-establish Christys' as a “Made in London, England” brand again, restoring the Christys' original connection with the capital.
Laird were known to the previous owners as one of the few remaining British hat businesses still producing caps and hats in England, and that traditional craft focus made the acquisition a natural fit for us. Of course, it is always regrettable when a company closes its doors, and we’re saddened that it wasn’t possible logistically to retain members of the original Whitney team. Those decisions are never easy when a business has entered liquidation.
However, we do already have a connection to Oxford through our Laird Hatters Oxford shop, located on the corner of Cornmarket Street in a beautiful 13th-century building. Oxford has long been a city associated with craftsmanship, tradition and British style, and see Oxford as one of our flagship stores. That said, we will be keeping the brands very separate and won’t be stocking Christys’ products in our Laird stores. We’ve built Laird from the ground up as a made in England brand, with 7 successful stores in Oxford, Cambridge and London and are proud to say it’s elbowed it’s own place amongst some big competitors like Christys’, Stetson and Borsalino. We also make headwear for some other large brands seeking British craftsmanship.
Our plan is to rebuild the brand from the ground up. We will be developing a new Made in London Christys collection, focusing on traditional hat styles and quality British cloth mills. A key part of that vision is championing British textile mills and traditional materials. We work with cloth from some of Britain’s most respected mills, including Abraham Moon & Sons, Lovat Mill, Mallalieus of Delph, Brisbane Moss, and the historic Harris Tweed Authority.
We are also keen to promote sustainability in the old fashioned sense of the word. Quality fabric, low travel miles and then made with love to last and be handed down. Buy using primarily British mills, these fabrics travel only a short distance, from the mills of Britain to our workshops in London and Hertfordshire, before becoming hats and caps designed to last for decades..
Ultimately, our goal is simply to honour the past while ensuring that Christys continues to thrive well into the future.
Laird Hatters itself is a family business run by Alex and Zofia Torun‑Shaw, and our eldest daughter Daisy joined the company in 2023, beginning her career in the Oxford store.
For us, heritage is not just about history it is about continuity and striving forward. Christys was among the earliest trademarks registered in Britain after the UK Trade Marks Registration Act 1862, with the first trademarks registered when the office opened in 1867, officially recorded at the London Trademark Office on 1 March 1867. That legacy is something we feel strongly about preserving.
Our aim is to continue that story for centuries to come.
