It has certainly been a whirlwind of a day here at Dents HQ! You may have heard that Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall visited us today, to be given a tour of our building and present several long service awards to some of the most dedicated members of Dents.
Arriving at HQ at 10.30am in her very own pair of black Dents gloves, the Duchess started the tour with a meet and greet, followed by a trip to the factory, where HRH was given demonstrations in the leather selecting, cutting, machine and ironing processes that are involved in creating our fine heritage gloves.
Rodney Trigger talking to the Duchess about leather selecting
CEO Deborah Moore showing HRH all the components involved in making a pair of gloves
The process of webbing, in which each piece of leather is cut into shape using special knives
Janet Jay giving a demonstration in ironing and pressing
A tour around our museum was next, with opportunities to look at the fascinating articles on exhibit. Curator Sarah Kenyon was pleased to show the Duchess our extensive collection, including images from previous royal visits, plus gloves worn by the likes of Lord Nelson, Queen Victoria, and Queen Elizabeth II during her Coronation in 1953. HRH even had the chance to hold a pair of Sir Walter Raleigh’s gloves!
The visit also included a look at the Design Office, where designs for the Autumn/Winter 2015 collection were shown to HRH.
HRH meeting with the Worshipful Company of Glovers
The tour ended with staff and special guests gathering in the showroom to witness the long service awards being given out. The Worshipful Company of Glovers also took part in the presentation, with Master Glover Ann Esslemont announcing the recipients of the award, while HRH handed out the certificates.
John Cundick being awarded for his lifetime of service
Awards went out to valued past and present members of Dents that have been working at Dents for over 20 years. The most notable was of course Quality Controller John Cundick, who has worked at Dents for an impressive 65 years.
There were smiles all round when CEO Deborah Moore’s dog Ruby was presented a special cake for her 10 years at Dents.
Ruby was looking forward to her doggy treat… Photo credit: Ben Birchall/PA Wire
…And she certainly enjoyed tucking into the cake, decorated with dog biscuits! Photo credit: Ben Birchall/PA Wire
During the speeches, pictured with Master Glover Ann Esslemont and Chairman Robert Yentob
During her final speech, The Duchess said she was impressed that Dents still maintain traditional methods of glove production.
Departing at 11.30am, HRH was waved away by a flurry of Union Jack flags. The royal visit created a lovely buzz around the building, and today has been one that we certainly won’t be forgetting soon!
