Vincent Sanders
Dickies are an American work wear and clothing company that were established back in 1922 with a drive and focus towards providing top quality apparel to the masses. C.N. Williamson and E.E ‘Colonel’ Dickie (along with a few friends) started the US Overall Company in 1918- but renamed the brand after four years to be: The Williamson Dickie Manufacturing Company, hence how it gets the shortened version of the name nowadays. In those early years the company built a significant reputation for creating heard wearing, tough and durable work wear that lasted.
Dickies was originally based in the small town of Bryan, Texas, and when the war broke out the Government funnelled contracts towards them because of their distinctive reputation. The company worked hard to fulfil the orders and contributed greatly towards the clothing of their troops. When one thinks of war one thinks of the lives lost and not of the tireless efforts of those left on the home front, supporting the army however they can. Dickies was one such company and provided a great service to their country through those dark years.
After the war was finished Dickies continued to grow and expand. They now had the added reputation of the Veterans who had worn their clothing during service, and promptly spread word as to how tough it was. Even when the war was finished Dickies still received orders for new clothing. Riding on this wave of good fortune Dickies expanded overseas, setting up divisions in Europe and even reaching as far as the middle east, where oil field workers accounted for its growth and the further spreading of their excellent reputation. Dickies (UK) was formed in 1989 with the specific aim of bringing these top quality clothes to British shores and accessing a new market there. Since then they have experienced great success in the work wear market in the UK as well as in Europe. Based in Somerset the UK branch of Dickies has swiftly grown to earn the reputation of being the leading supplier of work wear within the entire country.
Today (and with their centennial fast approaching) Dickies has become a world leader in safety footwear and achieve most of their sales through International partnerships with large companies (such as Morrisons) who buy the majority of their work wear from them in bulk. Dickies has moved with the times in that they now supply all sorts of work wear, from front of house to security outfits and aprons. In this way they are able to provide a wide service to clients. They continue to examine new and interesting ways to expand their product range and to make their top quality clothing somehow even better. With such a long and illustrious history it seems that Dickies is set on the path to achieve great things. All that is left to do is congratulate them, and to watch this space and wonder where they will be in another fifty years?
