Of all the industries in Simcoe it is probably no exaggeration to
say that none has made more remarkable progress in the past two
years than has the British Knitwear Co., located on Water Street.
Two years ago
last September four energetic young men, Messrs. Claude W. and Leo
Pond, Merrel [sic] H. Hare and H. C. Springstead, with
plenty of executive ability and practical knowledge of their
business, but with limited capital, commenced operations in their
present factory with a staff of eight hands.
Today they
employ 53 hands within the factory, have 200 agents scattered from
coast to coast, and three travelling salesmen. They also have a
warehouse in Winnipeg to take care of their trade from that point
to the coast. At the home factory they are making arrangements to
double the capacity of their dye room, which will be completed
during January.
In addition
to this the British Knitwear Co. have leased the north store in
the new Hambleton block on Norfolk Street, where the British-Knit
products are now displayed and sold, and the space before devoted
to the purpose at the factory will become available for further
plant expansion.
We were
informed by Mr. Pond that the uptown store is somewhat in the
nature of an experiment. In the event of its proving a success and
there is every reason to assume that is will, the Simcoe store
will be the forerunner of a chain which this progressive firm
intend establishing at various centres throughout Canada.
Through the
courtesy of Mr. Leo Pond, The Reformer man was permitted to look
over the local plant, and we have to admit that we were in common
with hundreds of other Simcoe people, in almost complete ignorance
of the extent of the operations being carried on there.
We hound a
large staff, mostly young women, busily engaged at their various
tasks, and all of them apparently contented and interested in
their work. And if favorable working conditions make for
contentment, the British Knit staff should be a happy lot. Clean,
airy and well-lighted, the factory is a model of what pleasant
working surroundings should be.
Speaking of
his operatives, Mr. Leo Pond told the pressman with some pride,
"We have the best staff here it has been my good fortune to
work with. We have no piece-work system except on one or two kinds
of straight work. Neither do we have what is called a line of
production. Production is a secondary consideration with the
British Knit. Quality is our objective, for nothing but high class
goods are turned out and every employee you see here takes just as
great pride in turning out a perfect garment as we
ourselves."
Of course the
firms desire is to reach as great a quantity production as
possible, but it is always subordinated to the standard of quality
which they have set themselves to maintain, and upon which they
are building their business solidly for the future. The feeling
existing between employer and employee at the British Knit is
certainly one that should make for a high factory morale.
The machinery
used in the manufacture of British Knit products is the last word
in modern equipment of its kind. A battery of five knitting
machines, costing two thousand dollars each, converts the finest
imported woollen and silk yarns into the fabrics from which
high-class garments are cut and assembled.
Not an inch
of cloth goes into any of those that has not knitted in the
factory under the supervision of experts whose constant aim is
quality. And not a strand of yarn goes into the bobbins which feed
these machines that is not of the finest texture procurable. The
woollen yearn is imported from England and is the best the market
has to offer. It comes in the form of cops or small
(Continued
on page 12)
