Menswear
Casual British-Made Men's Gilets, Vests and Body Warmers — Voted by the Community
This directory lists 9 brands that make casual men's gilets in the UK. Prices run from affordable to luxury. Ranked by community upvotes.
WAWWA
WAWWA is a Manchester clothing brand making functional, gender-inclusive everyday wear in its own UK factory. They work to a pre-order model, use organic and recycled materials, and pay the real Living Wage.
- Casual
- Contemporary
- Ethical
Shop to visit- Casual
- Contemporary
- Ethical
Farfield Clothing
Farfield Clothing has been manufacturing British-made ladies, mans and children's jackets, gilets, hats and fleeces in Sedbergh since 1985. Sedbergh is in Cumbria and also the YDNP. Using fabric made to our own design in Yorkshire
- Casual
- Heritage
Factory shop- Casual
- Heritage
See these brands on the map11 places from 6 brands, 5 of them shops you can visit.Open the map
Fortis
Fortis is a British outdoor clothing manufacturer founded in 1997, evolving from farm diversification to producing durable, sustainable garments with military-grade fabrics.
- Casual
- Classic
- Country
Factory shop- Casual
- Classic
- Country
Phoebe English
Clothing made in England attempting a variety of solutions towards less extractive fashion systems. Est 2011.
- Bridal
- Casual
- Classic
Shop to visit- Bridal
- Casual
- Classic
Oxford Blue Ltd
Oxford Blue is a leading British leisure brand since 1968, specialising in high-quality lifestyle and country clothing with innovative Classical Wax designs.
HebTroCo
HebTroCo is a British clothing brand founded in 2015 in Hebden Bridge, known for supporting small UK manufacturers by producing durable garments made exclusively in Britain.
- Casual
- Heritage
- Outdoor
Shop to visit- Casual
- Heritage
- Outdoor
Hemingsworth
Hemingsworth is a British-made menswear brand founded on a lifetime of travel, offering timeless, versatile garments engineered for the modern globetrotter.
- Casual
- Classic
- Formal
- Casual
- Classic
- Formal
- Illicitbloc
Illicitbloc
Illicitbloc, founded in England by brothers Josh and Arron. Illicitbloc is luxury athletic leisure wear with no shortcuts.
- Athletic
- Casual
- Streetwear
- Athletic
- Casual
- Streetwear
- Nattily Dressed
Nattily Dressed
Nattily Dressed offers British-made Polartec fleece gilets and quarter zips from recycled plastic bottles. Their colourful, sustainable clothing is designed and crafted in the UK for lasting quality.
- Casual
- Country
- Casual
- Country
Shops run by brands that make casual men's gilets
5 of the 9 brands that make casual men's gilets have a shop you can visit in Axminster, Hebden Bridge, London and 2 other towns.
Axminster
Fortisfactory shop
Hebden Bridge
Sedbergh
Farfield Clothingfactory shop
This independent directory lists UK-made clothing brands, and marks those that make only some items here.Why choose British-made?
A Brief History of British Made Gilets & Vests
The words “gilet” and “vest” both describe sleeveless upper-body garments, but they have different histories. “Gilet” is French for waistcoat, and dictionaries trace it through Spanish to the Turkish word yelek. In Britain today a gilet usually means a sleeveless jacket that closes at the neck, often padded for warmth. “Vest” has a British story of its own. In October 1666 King Charles II introduced a new fashion at court, which the diarist Samuel Pepys recorded as “a vest”. This long garment, worn under an open coat, developed into the waistcoat, a lasting part of men’s tailored dress. In British English “vest” now usually means a close-fitting undershirt, while in American English it still means a waistcoat. In modern menswear, gilets and vests are worn for practical layering in cooler weather and as part of casual, country and smart-casual dress, keeping the body warm while leaving the arms free. British makers draw on both tailoring and outdoor wear, using good cloth and careful construction to make garments that balance warmth, freedom of movement and everyday use.