Powerpoint 1 Leicester - “City of 1000 Trades”

Leicester & County Chamber of Commerce & Industry Trade Directory 1976 ‘Fine knitwear and the best shoes are things that spring to mind whenever mention is made of the City of Leicester.’ ‘It is on Leicester’s pre-eminence in these industries that this city of 290,000 people has made its mark throughout the world.’

Leicester & County Chamber of Commerce & Industry Trade Directory 1976 ‘Leicester is the “city of 1,000 trades” with a diversity of skills able to meet almost any demand.’ ‘Hosiery and knitwear still ranks as the foremost staple industry.’

Leicester & County Chamber of Commerce & Industry Trade Directory 1976 ‘There are 300 factories in the city, employing about 28,000 workpeople in the manufacture of all kinds of knitted clothes, hosiery and fabrics...’ ‘This productive effort … make the city the world’s leading centre for the industry.’ ‘…a large proportion of the output is exported.’

N. Corah and Son’s Ltd Copyright University of Leicester – Special Collections Online Reproduced under Creative Commons Attribution –Non-Commercial 2.0 UK: England & Wales License:

Leicestershire County Council Trade Directory 1989, Apparel section Copyright University of Leicester – Special Collections Online Reproduced under Creative Commons Attribution –Non-Commercial 2.0 UK: England & Wales License:

‘Women migrants from India and East Africa had often never worked before but economic necessity dictated that they now needed to. In the beginning, the work was low paid until you we were trained.’ Stories of migration, displacement and new beginnings Photo from

‘When I was in Kenya I used to sit at home all day, but here you have to go to work.’ ‘In order to survive in this country you have to follow the rules.’ Photo of Nairobi from Jayaben Amin

‘It was easy to get a job because the workers put their heart and soul into the work and there was a relationship between the boss and the workers.’ Sushila

‘I was working two jobs together, really, looking after my kids and doing piece work at home.’ ‘I didn’t mind, I worked 7 days a week but I earned good money.’ Image from Harsa Kalyan

‘ It was really a very good working relationship with the colleagues that we worked with.’ ‘The wages were very good - we were able to afford to look after our families.’ Copyright University of Leicester – Special Collections Online Reproduced under Creative Commons Attribution –Non-Commercial 2.0 UK: England & Wales License: Women working at Rowley’s, 1988 Sushila

‘There were more ladies who worked in that department. There were only a few men.’ Copyright University of Leicester – Special Collections Online Reproduced under Creative Commons Attribution –Non-Commercial 2.0 UK: England & Wales License: Women working at Rowley’s, 1993 Sushila

‘By the early 1980s, a decline in manufacturing industries saw trade go to factories abroad, where labour and materials were cheap.’ Stories of migration, displacement and new beginnings Photographs from and

Belgrave Gate ‘As soon as the market started to take things from outside [Britain] it had a big impact on the industry, and people started losing their jobs.’ Sushila

‘Now-a-days it’s become very difficult to get a job and it has a very big impact on family lives in Britain.’ Sushila

Created for Charnwood Arts by Alison Mott