Buy British Day is an annual event held on 3 October.
It is a day for celebrating British craftsmanship, ingenuity, and creativity, by promoting support for British-made goods and manufacturing.
The origins of the event likely go back to 1968, with the “I’m Backing Britain” campaign that emerged under Prime Minister Harold Wilson. It was championed at the time by media mogul Robert Maxwell, who coined the term “Buy British”… but it didn’t really take off until half a century later.
In 2014, the Best of Britannia organisation held their first Buy British Day in Clerkenwell, London, which put the spotlight on British brands and businesses. In this form, held at the beginning of October, the day grew into an annual event which would be celebrated up and down the British Isles, as retailers turned their focus to British crafts, producers and manufacturers.
In an era dominated by global markets and multinational corporations, Buy British Day was conceived as a response to the challenges faced by local businesses and artisans. The idea was to encourage consumers to invest in their local economy, supporting homegrown talent and preserving traditional skills.
This movement gained momentum as people recognised the importance of sustaining local businesses, safeguarding employment opportunities, and reducing their carbon footprint by promoting products made closer to home.
Why Buy British?
Here are just a few of the benefits to Buying British:
- Preserving traditions: Buying British means supporting artisans who have honed their skills through generations. It ensures that traditional crafts are passed down to future generations, preserving cultural heritage.
- Boosting the economy: Local spending fosters economic growth by creating jobs and supporting small and medium-sized enterprises. This, in turn, leads to a stronger, more resilient economy that benefits everyone in the community.
- Environmental impact: Choosing locally made products reduces the carbon footprint associated with long-distance transportation. By supporting local producers, consumers contribute to a more sustainable future, promoting eco-friendly practices and minimising environmental harm.
- Quality and innovation: British products are renowned for their quality and innovation – whether it’s fashion, food, or technology.
- Community Building: Buying British fosters a sense of community. Local businesses often sponsor events, support charities, and engage in initiatives that benefit the community directly.
Buy British Day is a movement that champions the essence of community, tradition, and economic vitality. By choosing to buy British, consumers not only invest in the products, but also in the very fabric of their society.
Here at Alvio, we’re proud to be working with some of the very best British brands – so this week, to mark Buy British Day, we want to put the spotlight on some of our partners who are showcasing the finest in homegrown talent and British-made goods.
British Brands on Alvio
Dashel
Dashel is a Southwest company making bike helmets like nothing else on the market. Taking its name from the Cornish word for “thistle,” these stylish carbon fibre helmets are made in a plant in Devon, that runs on 100% green energy.
Dashel founder Catherine Bedford started the business in 2017 – as a safe and lightweight solution for busy people on the go, who wanted to be road-safe in their everyday clothes. Since then, these innovative and iconic helmets have even been exhibited in the London Design Museum.
Now on Alvio, Dashel offers British-made products, sustainable and eco-friendly, that are also gaining recognition as a design icon of the future. They’re looking for retailers to partner with, particularly in the sports and cycling industries, who’d like to add these sophisticated cycle helmets to their online stores.
Peper Harow
Founded in 2013, Peper Harow is a quintessentially British brand. The name Peper Harow comes from the parish in Surrey – which has a cricket heritage dating back to 1727 – and reflects the brand’s proudly British roots.
Peper Harow supplies customers across the globe with the highest quality socks, luxury accessories, and exquisite gifts. Their designs are unique, fashionable, and created to complement modern lifestyles.
They’re passionate about their products, and take pride in ensuring their practices work proactively towards sustainability. All of their socks are created in the UK, using a combination of traditional techniques and state-of-the-art knitting technology.
Partner with Peper Harow on Alvio
Temple Cycles
Temple Cycles are true craftsmen in the world of cycling. Their bikes are built using only the highest quality components, to exacting standards, and with a dedication to ensuring the longevity and sustainability of their products.
Based in Bristol, their philosophy is to take simple ideas and do them well. They offer a range of five bikes – the Classic, Adventure Disk, Step Through, Metro and the Electric. Each cycle is designed to be easy to maintain and repair, with spare parts readily available from the company. Far from the planned obsolescence becoming increasingly common in other modern consumable goods, Temple Cycles want your bike to last you a lifetime.
Over the last decade Temple Cycles have grown rapidly, expanding their workshop and their team, and these days they’re shipping their simple, elegant and reliable bikes to happy customers across numerous different countries. A British product built to last, we’re proud to have them on Alvio.
Partner with Temple Cycles on Alvio
The Crafty Brewing Co.
The Crafty Brewing Co. started off in 2014, when they were making small-batch craft beers for local pubs and village fetes. Their honest, tasty beers were soon in high demand, and they’ve since spread across the southeast – now featuring in more than 600 pubs, hotels, theatres and retailers in Surrey, East and West Sussex, Berkshire, Hampshire and London.
From a single 100-litre brewing vessel, they’ve now moved into a new 4000-square foot purpose-built state-of-the-art brewery – with a capacity of 100,000 litres of beer per month. Even as the operation has grown though, The Crafty Brewing Co. have kept their focus firmly on tradition and taste.
Now on Alvio, the master brewers at The Crafty Brewing Co. are looking for partners who share their values, their passion for quality… and for any retailers who are interested in adding some quality British beer to their online stores.
Partner with The Crafty Brewing Co. on Alvio
Work With the Best of British
Alvio is nothing without its partners, and the four we’ve showcased here are some of the best British brands we know. So this year, for Buy British Day, why not think about adding some of these fantastic locally-sourced products to your ecommerce storefront?
Setting up with partners on Alvio couldn’t be easier. We offer an intuitive and code-free solution, that will let you add whole new product lines into your storefront in just a matter of clicks.
Talk to us today for any help getting set up – and with Black Friday just around the corner, we’re offering a special fast-track sign-up deal that includes a complimentary one-on-one consultation with one of our ecommerce experts. Find out more about our BFCM signup deal here.
