Hip hosiery designs and flawless service make an ideal fit for customers and why huge online store UK Tights has become a global brand championing all shapes and sizes and attracting growing numbers of male devotees.
Crotchless tights have become recent best sellers while shiny flame red head-turners are the latest big hit for wife and husband owners Dawn and Jonathan Barber. Operations are from an 8,000sqft site with nine staff in Macclesfield, Cheshire, and the business expects a £2 million turnover this year.
Hygiene concerns and people’s more adventurous tastes may account for some of new buying trends the company is seeing. As for UK Tights’ male customers – 40 per cent of buyers – they comprise cross-dressers and the many workers spending hours outside such as roofers and policemen seeking affordable layering.
After launching in 2005 with a home-based start, expansion has steadily continued with profits reinvested and includes the acquisition of its biggest competitor My Tights in 2016 which doubled revenues.
Now selling more than 40,000 different products and 75 brands of legwear worldwide, UK Tights buys from distributors and features hold-ups, stockings, leggings and knee highs as well as tights along with lingerie and activewear.
Most of the brands offered are made in Europe, although Gio, Pamela Mann and Sassy are UK produced and the company it has its own labels including Maximus. Its devoted 500,000 customers are worldwide.
The powerful combination of technical director Jonathan’s IT skills with managing director Dawn’s buying expertise and contacts network make another lovely pair.
Three of the Barbers’ children also now work in the business where customer service and sustainability are the priorities.
“We are small and perfectly formed,” says Dawn. “Jonathan is on top of any technical issue immediately, we can react quickly to anything. Customer service is everything for us and we have long standing relationships.”
A plus-size herself Dawn has worked closely with manufacturers to introduce new machinery capable of broadening the range of tights’ sizes by incorporating bigger back and tummy panels.
“We were the first online reseller to offer XXL and we can now cater for women up to 32 dress size,” she explains. “Before this, curvy girls were literally left out in the cold where legwear was concerned.”
Strong on sustainability, “we strive to work with makers whose processes need less water, less environmentally harsh dyes and use wool and cotton where possible. Recycled off cuts is another development we encourage so long as the quality is maintained,” she adds.
Buying from Europe, Brexit was a tough test. “But we learned new ways of importing and got on with it and absorbed the extra costs as much as possible so our customers weren’t affected,” says Jonathan.
“We have experience of downturns and one thing that has always stood us in good stead is our strong supplier relationships. That was certainly the case during lockdown when there was more home working and we were helped with flexible payment arrangements.”
Climate change is now having an impact on seasonal buying trends with summer sheer products in demand for longer and opaque ones less.
This year will see the company undertake its biggest tech upgrade, to streamline the customer experience and integrate its sister site UKSwimwear.com. “Choice, service and speedy delivery always win out,” declares Dawn. www.uktights.com
