Nowadays tartan is used by some of the most popular high-end brands such as Burberry, Dior and Prada; At Kinloch Anderson, it has always been at the core of our business allowing our brand to celebrate a long history since 1868, but has tartan always been so popular? The answer is no. It has seemed to be very easy to think of tartan and fashion as two faces of the same coin in the last decades, but the truth is that tartan is a history of tradition, pride and nonetheless of redemption.
In 1746, after the failed attempt of Bonnie Prince Charlie to unify the throne of Great Britain, the Government put a ban on wearing tartan clothes, or kilts, for highlanders as it was seen as a sign of loyalty to the Highlands and disloyalty to the Hanoverian government of Britain fighting against the Jacobite. The ban was only applied to officers and soldiers in His Majesty’s forces, offenders could be imprisoned for six months or transported to any of His Majesty’s plantations for seven years. In reality, what was meant to restrict the use of tartan had the opposite effect. Markedly, the Scots appeared in their beloved tartans again, reunited in Highland regiments and started fighting for Britain rather than the Jacobite cause. The Tartan used for military purposes was colourful and iconic, a letter to Sir Walter Scott from a French correspondent expressed the uniqueness of the Scottish way of dressing. Finally, Highland Dress and Tartan became a fashionable way to express belonging and it has never been out of style since then.
When Kinloch Anderson was founded in 1868 (originally as Wm Anderson & Sons), it was a bespoke tailoring company but with the wars approaching, William Anderson (the founder) soon moved to military Highland Dress to accommodate any need and preference of the Scottish regiments. It was with its third generation in the 1920s that a ready-to-wear line was introduced due to tartan becoming a new and innovative product. With the years going by, the growing demand for tartan clothing and Highland Dress led to the production of a ladieswear collection which was exported to the EU, the USA and later on, the Far East. Nowadays, we still stand by tartan, and produce along with our Highland Dress ranges, womenswear, childrenswear, homeware and accessories.
As Scottish culture has evolved, tartan has evolved with it demonstrating an incredible tendency to innovate itself by adapting to fashion trends and needs. Nowadays, as it crosses the most important catwalks, its heritage is protected by the Scottish Register of Tartans (created in 2009). With its exclusivity and beauty internationally recognised, at Kinloch Anderson, we give customers the choice of celebrating their roots, families and characters by offering an exclusive tartan design service. One of our last tartans to be designed was made for the V&A Dundee and their latest "Tartan" Exhibition, starting on the 1st of April 2023 (tickets available here), and celebrating tartan in all its colours and shades. The design takes inspiration from the initial concept pencil sketches for the iconic V&A Dundee building by its architect, Kengo Kuma. The pattern and tonal colour palette reference his pencil sketches of the building, with the addition of a shocking pink overcheck, to recognise Elsa Schiaparelli’s love of her time in Scotland.