I came across Shinola recently for the first time when I saw images of some of their products on Instagram. Founded in 2011 in Detroit, Shinola sold only only in the US until September 2014 when it launched European e-commerce stores. It now has five such outlets around the world, with the last opening in London's Carnaby Street earlier in November.
What attracted my attention was the interesting range of goods sold. Watches make up their largest sales, but they also sell leather goods, journals, bicycles and pet accessories.
The emphasis is on bringing manufacturing back to the USA. Just as in Britain, there is a growing interest in reviving home production of luxury items. The watches, for example, are made in a new watch factory in Detroit.
Good design is clearly at the heart of what they do, the products being attractive and practical. For more information on Shinola, and to browse their products, see the Shinola UK website here.
I'm grateful to Shinola for their sponsorship of this post.
