For centuries, Derbyshire has been a place where creativity and making has flourished. Janine Sterland reveals some interesting local tours and uncovers a history of innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and rich industrial heritage
Well known for its strong values of craftmanship and production innovation since its formation over 240 years ago, John Smedley remains at the forefront of British fashion.
Maintaining a reputation for quality and sustainable manufacture, the company is also renowned as a prestigious Royal Warrant holder and industry leader within the luxury knitwear sector.
Enduring at its original site in Lea Mills overlooking the River Derwent since 1784, and as an eighth-generation family business, John Smedley is woven within both the Derbyshire landscape and its surrounding communities.
Here, at its historic location, high quality fine gauge knitwear is crafted by over 250 experts using a fusion of traditional and modern techniques through skillsets perfected by generations of talented artisans.
Proudly retaining a close-knit operation with families found across the business, many of whom have worked at the mill for decades, garments are crafted with up to 35 labour intensive processes – many by hand – finessed though years of experience.
Led by a member of its production team, John Smedley factory tours reveal an insight into these skilled production processes. Here, each garment takes around six weeks to create and a quarter of a million garments are manufactured each year.
Within the guided tour, visitors will discover a variety of in-depth construction and finishing methods, from yarn to completed garment, packed and ready for customer delivery.
These stages include yarn preparation, ribs and trims application, fully-fashioned and Shima knitting, dressing, first make-up, as well as the final stages of garment construction and finishing.
Ending at the Factory Shop, visitors will also receive a ten per cent discount voucher to use on the day. Within this varied outlet, discover iconic pieces such as the best-selling cotton short-sleeved polo shirt, Adrian – a version of a garment which has been continuously in its range since the early 1930s.
johnsmedley.com/uk/discover/how-to-book-a-factory-tour
As a master craftsman and trailblazing design entrepreneur, David Mellor is recognised as a pioneer of modern living – a legacy which is embedded throughout products used in our daily lives to this day.
Commissioned for major public and governmental redesigns including the national traffic light system, stainless steel cutlery for NHS hospitals, modern street furniture, as well as silver tableware for British embassies, David Mellor is famed for having adopted a ground-breaking approach to his work; a vision which combined a timeless design aesthetic alongside function and practicality that has been celebrated all over the world.
Following the success of numerous cutlery ranges, and through collaboration with renowned architect Sir Michael Hopkins, David Mellor cutlery manufacture was moved to the purpose-built Round Building factory in Hathersage in 1989.
Having achieved multiple architectural awards over the years through an accomplished use of traditional materials combined with modern structural techniques, Round Building cutlery production continues to produce fine products to this day.
Here, existing designs, alongside new cutlery concepts, are carefully crafted under the creative lead of David’s son Corin Mellor, following his father’s passing in 2009.
During a Round Building factory tour alongside an expert guide, visitors can discover the design, machinery and techniques that are synonymous with the manufacture of David Mellor cutlery.
As part of the tour, guests will learn how these skilled processes produce high-end cutlery collections supplied to the likes of Claridge’s; The Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills; The Savoy Helsinki; Chatsworth Kitchen; and the David Mellor Design Museum Café located opposite.
Within a stunning factory setting, visitors are also given an overview of the design processes and craftmanship involved in the making of David Mellor cutlery, along with an insight into the future direction of the company.
davidmellordesign.co.uk
Back in 2005, using a pre-owned brewery making kit and within renovated outbuildings at the 100-acre estate at Thornbridge Hall, founders Jim Harrison and Simon Webster embarked on an ambitious journey to create a new brand of Derbyshire beers.
Launching with a classic bitter, Lord Marples, followed by popular IPAs, Jaipur and later Green Mountain, fast forward 20 years, and having developed a number of bestselling ales, a fanbase spanning 38 countries, and a peak of 125 tonnes in beer exports each week, the rest as they say, is history.
Over time, demand has greatly intensified to levels outreaching its original brewery premises. As a result, Thornbridge Ales relocated in 2009 to its current purpose-built state of the art brewery, Riverside, at Bakewell, where each year up to nine million pints are brewed.
Here, at the Riverside Taproom, original brewery equipment continues to create a cask ales range, and as part of a Taproom Brewery Experience, visitors can discover the history of the company, its milestones and brewing processes, followed by a curated tasting session lead by a knowledgeable taproom supervisor.
As part of the tour, the varied sampling experience includes three keg styles such as Lukas (a pale ale), Green Mountain (a hazy IPA), and Brock (a nitro stout) as well as cask beers Lord Marples and Jaipur.
During the tour, guests also have an opportunity to see an exciting recent Taproom addition; the Burton Union – a historic brewing kit dating back to the 1800s which uses a wood-barrel traditional fermentation process to brew a small selection of beers.
To enhance the Taproom experience, end with one of its popular handcrafted pizzas – of which 100,000 were sold in 2024 and, if stacked, would be four times the height of the Shard.
thornbridgebrewery.co.uk
Built in 1771 by Sir Richard Arkwright and surviving as the world’s first water powered cotton spinning mill, for over 200 years Cromford Mills has remained an integral part of the story of the Industrial Revolution and of the Derwent Valley landscape.
A natural experimenter, Arkwright was also an inventor of the revolutionary water frame cotton-spinning machine – a transformation within the cotton industry which led to the evolution of what had been a small cottage industry into a large-scale factory production line.
Becoming a major manufacturer of cotton thread during its 18th century heyday, Cromford Mills is now celebrated for its unique historical story. Whilst from Arkwright’s success sprang the development of numerous other cotton mills throughout the country – adopting the concepts and ideas proven by Arkwright and leading to the expansion of early 18th century British cotton trading.
To uncover the history of Cromford Mills and discover how it became a cornerstone of British manufacturing, opt for one of its guided tours.
Led by knowledgeable volunteers, visitors are invited to follow in Arkwright’s footsteps during an on-site tour of its Mill Yard and audio-visual experience, whilst visitors can also explore the story of the site’s renewable energy through the Arkwright Society’s innovative Hydro Power Project.
All tours include a visit to the Arkwright Experience – meet Richard Arkwright himself through award-winning technology courtesy of the wonders of CGI.
Here, within a unique cinematic experience, Arkwright reveals a personal account of his working life and how Cromford Mills emerged as the birthplace of the modern industrial factory system.
For an enhanced mill experience, choose a mill manager’s pass, which provides annual access not only to a Mill Yard guided tour and Arkwright 3D experience, but also an immersive audio tour which delves into the intricacies of life at Cromford Village.
cromfordmills.org.uk/plan-your-visit/main-attractions/experiences
White Peak Distillery can be found at the former Johnson & Nephew Wire Works in the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site; the English heartland for innovation and manufacturing.
This is a place which produced ironwork for suspension bridges; cable for the first sub-sea channel telegraph service; and telegraph cables laid underneath the English Channel during World War II.
Having employed over 500 people at its peak, the site fell into disrepair and closed as a wire works factory during the mid-1990s.
With the uniqueness of this setting in mind, Max and Claire Vaughan held an aspiring vision – to create a destination for whisky and tourism in Derbyshire and reinvent this historic wire works factory into a working distillery.
Now a premium spirits manufacturer, White Peak make award-winning spirits – Wire Works Whisky, Shining Cliff Gin and White Peak Rum.
The distillery not only creates whiskies through a variety of different cask finishes, but also a 30-day fermented rum and a range of locally inspired gins – all under oner roof.
Here, within one of three guided tours, discover how specialised equipment such as copper stills and mash vessels craft White Peak’s most sought-after ranges; with processes including mashing, fermentation and distillation.
Amidst an immersive tour, visitors also have a unique opportunity to sample a variety of spirits and whiskies – all within an atmospheric backdrop of the distillery warehouse or tasting room.
In celebrating its industrial legacy and as part of an authentic visitor experience, look out for the upcycled factory tasting room table and vintage whisky barrel lights, as well as interiors painted with Johnson and Nephew Wire Works blue.
Join White Peak Distillery for a tour and meet the people, taste the spirits, and soak up their unique sense of place.
whitepeakdistillery.co.uk/product/tours-tasting.
For over 200 years since its founding in 1809 by entrepreneur William Bourne, Denby Pottery has created its iconic stoneware ceramics using hand skills honed by generations of talented craft experts.
Today its story of success continues at its original Derbyshire site – now reaching just over 68 acres and where 100,000 pieces are made each week using 110 tonnes of iron-rich Derbyshire clay.
Renowned for its durability and eye-catching signature glazes, Denby continues to be celebrated as a leader in its sector and enjoys a loyal and versatile customer base, within local clients including The Museum of Making Derby and The Dovecote Morley Hayes, as well as further afield in prestigious restaurants across 40 different countries.
To discover this history and each stage of its pottery manufacture processes, Denby offers in depth guided factory tours on its site at Denby Pottery Village.
Hosted by its knowledgeable and long serving experience team members, tours start at the mould making department and continue through each process of pottery production, including making, handle application, glazing, kiln firing and inspection.
In revealing all stages of its live production, whilst also meeting a variety of factory departments, tour members will discover the difference between its jollying, fettling and ting room processes and how Denby operates on a zero to landfill policy.
Here, tour guides also explain how at each stage of manufacture, production materials are recycled and through adopting these innovative methods, the brand continues a commitment to site and product sustainability.
A further insight into the history of the company and its celebrated stoneware ceramic ranges is available through a visit to its on-site museum – running at 1pm on factory tour days.
For queries regarding accessibility, Denby can be contacted on email: [email protected]
denbypottery.digitickets.co.uk/tickets
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