Clarksons was established in Lancashire 1984 by Tony Clarkson and was initially involved in the development of fabric coating technology alongside weft inserted warp knitting, a blending of weaving and knitting combining the strength and stability of woven fabric with the speed of knitting.
In 1987, new legislation was introduced stating that all upholstery fabric sold into the UK market was to be flame retardant to specific standards, a move which created an opportunity for the company to build on its coatings expertise and focus exclusively on providing specialist flame retardant coatings for the upholstery fabrics industry.
To accommodate the revised focus, a new factory was built on the present site, opening in 1990 with new coating lines custom built to give a high level of flexibility and enable all types of upholstery fabrics to be handled.
Operations initially concentrated on the process of treating fabrics supplied by the customer, but in recent years, the business has expanded into providing the complete product, supplying a comprehensive range of flame retardant upholstery fabrics to a wide range of customers in the industry.
The business has developed to become the leading specialist in flame retardant treatments for the upholstery fabrics industry, building a comprehensive in-house facility which includes a dedicated product and process development and testing laboratory.
Originally based around a single huge 50 metre coating line, the business today has 3 coating lines and a laminating facility in a 60,000 sq feet factory, purpose-built to keep pace with the business growth.
