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Independent Made In Britain Committee launches as 1,000th company joins campaign

A new, independent Made In Britain Committee has been created following the success of the Made In Britain campaign which was launched in 2011 by British cooker manufacturer Stoves and has now added its 1,000th business.

The non-profit organisation, which will take over the Made In Britain campaign from Stoves, will be run by a committee of Directors from UK-based manufacturers as well as leaders of other organisations which support British trade and industry.

The Committee has been formed following the outstanding success of a campaign which has not only been backed by British businesses large and small, but consumers, industry figures and politicians - last year it was adopted by Ed Miliband and the Labour party who called for cross-party support for the initiative.

Merseyside-based cooker manufacturer Stoves, part of Glen Dimplex Home Appliances, launched the campaign for a standardised Made in Britain marque, after consumer research revealed that half (48%) of consumers were confused about which brands could still claim to be Made In Britain. The findings also revealed that two-thirds (67%) wanted an official seal of approval to show products Made In Britain and the majority (52%) thought British brands should bring manufacturing back to the UK.

Following the unprecedented success of the campaign, the management team at Stoves decided to pass the baton to a Made In Britain committee in order for the campaign to evolve and move forward, independent of any one commercial organisation.

Antony Wallis of Best of Britannia, Kate Hills of Make It British and James Bradshaw - whose British Family initiative is to live for a year using only British made products - have taken board director roles alongside a group of senior figures from British manufacturers, in a move which is hoped to galvanise efforts to support British Industry.

Denver Hewlett, CEO of Stoves and Made In Britain board director said: "We were thrilled with the response to the campaign from the UK public and British companies alike, but as the popularity of the campaign grew, we realised we needed to maximise the opportunities that were presenting themselves.

"Having a board of senior figures from British industry and organisations passionate about driving the Made In Britain message forward, both here and abroad is for the better good of British manufacturing.

"The campaign was growing at such a rate that we felt it was no longer appropriate to have one company at the centre of the initiative, so we invited representatives from all companies who had applied to use the marque to move the campaign forward - this provided the members of the Made In Britain committee as it stands.

"Stoves will remain very much involved with the Made In Britain Campaign and we are delighted that people passionate about British manufacturing are giving their time for free to be part of the committee."

The Directors of the Made In Britain Campaign are:

* Kate Hills (Make it British)
* Anthony Wallis (Best Of Britannia)
* Adrian Walker (Deltec Precision Audio)
* James Bradshaw (A British Family)
* Denver Hewlett (Stoves)
* Amanda Nelson (The Artisan Spa)
* Cressida Granger (Mathmos)
* Alan Oliver (Beadlight)

T: 0844 248 4149?W: www.stoves.co.uk

27th September 2013