1861–1907
I. Two Thomases & one mill
Whyte & Smith began in 1861, when Thomas Whyte and my great-grandfather, Thomas Smith, set up as Bag Hosiers, a trade now lost to the language. They owned the machines, but the work was done in the homes of knitters (or stockiners) across the county. Yarn went out by horse and cart and the finished hose came back to be inspected, paired, bagged, and sent to wholesalers nationwide.
In 1907, the Thomases bought a cotton mill in Charnwood, Leicestershire. For the first time, everything came under one roof and powered by a single steam engine that, years later as a small boy, I would know simply as the "Chuff-Chuff-Bang".
1920s–1960s
II. Argyll, invention & the wider world
My father, George Woolley, joined in the 1920s. He was a self-taught engineer and inventor with a knack for solving thorny problems. His first challenge was with the Argyll sock.
At the time, the diamond pattern could only be made slowly on hand-cranked Griswold machines. He worked out how to produce it mechanically, at scale, without losing its character. Within a few years we were the principal supplier and the market had gone global. America, especially, took to them; we shipped to Macy’s and beyond.
When tastes shifted in the 1950s, he adapted again, installing new machines and knitting for many of the leading names of the day. Then came another idea: a sock that combined wool’s warmth with nylon’s durability. Developed with Bentley Engineering, it used a cellular structure to trap air and improve comfort.
1960s–1980s
III. Lanolin, steam & learning the trade
I grew up in and around the factory. I remember the smell of lanolin on my father’s hands, and Saturday mornings wandering the mill while he worked. The highlight was always the steam engine, the aforementioned Chuff-Chuff-Bang.
There were trips, too: to engineering firms in Nottingham and spinners in Darlington, and to Leicester to see new machines. Later, to our suppliers of exceptional yarn in Piedmont, northern Italy, where I learned more about yarn than anywhere else.
By the 1980s, we were early adopters of electronic patterning. And in 1984, after more than a century of making socks for others, we put our own name on a sock for the first time. It quickly found its way into Liberty, Harrods, Selfridges and beyond.
Expansion brought its own pressures. The company was eventually sold, the chapter closed, and I stepped away.
I went home, and I missed it.
September 2024
IV. Back to it
A couple of years ago, my son Ben asked what I thought about returning to the business. The answer was immediate.
It seemed to us there was a gap in the market to be addressed: for socks that are properly made from the best yarn, with care and intent. With over 160 years of family experience, we felt well placed to answer this call. Plus, the manufacturer who had bought most of my machines years ago was still in Charnwood and willing to make our socks.
Between us, we had what we needed. Ben to run the show. His friend Drew to shape the brand. My old friend Si to handle operations and sales. And me, to return to design, yarns, colour, and all the small details that make a sock worth wearing.
On 17 September 2024, the four of us met, agreed to begin again, and marked the occasion with a glass of whisky. The colour is in the brand for a reason.
We're very excited to be back in business.
Thomas Woolley
Charnwood, England, August 2026