Brands of Tomorrow is Walpole's business mentoring programme for emerging luxury brands. Over the course of a year, we take up to 12 carefully selected, early-stage brands through a twelve-month programme of workshops and professional mentoring that will help develop their business skills and set them on a path to growth. Discover all of our Brands of Tomorrow 2025 here
Walpole: What is your career background – and how did that lead to launching your company?
Genevieve Sweeney: My career has always been in knitwear. I was lucky to find an industry I loved at a young age and went on to do a degree in fashion knitwear at Nottingham Trent University. My first role was as a knitwear design assistant for a fashion house in New York, I went on to work for global fashion brands in Switzerland and London and worked in design, development and production. I have always loved the makers, meeting the artisans in the factories knitting and spinning yarn. In my spare time I restored old Dubied knitting machines to knit in my studio, and I travelled around the Scottish Borders meeting the ex-knitters who were selling their machine on eBay and Gumtree.
As knitwear factories closed due to manufacturing moving to Asia in the 1980s, the knitters moved to piece-work from home and finally retired due to the lack of work available. I would spend hours with these knitters, sitting in local pubs hearing their stories of the golden age of knitting and then meet their friends and family who worked in the industry such as linkers, hand intarsia knitters and millers who all lost their jobs and have seen their communities around them disappear. This put everything into focus for me; here were incredibly talented artisans with so much love and passion for their craft yet had no outlet. I was working for premium British brands – some that no longer manufactured in the UK – and at the same time I became overwhelmed by the mass, overproduction and huge carbon footprints created. I wanted to do something to stop this industry from disappearing, to give these knitters work in the industry they so loved. So, in 2015, I launched Genevieve Sweeney.
Tell us about your company…
Genevieve Sweeney is a luxury British knitwear label devoted to heritage craft, slow luxury and responsible fibres. Championing the tradition and innovation of British manufacturing, the brand blends modern design with time-honoured techniques across womenswear, menswear, and accessories. Crafted in family-run mills across the UK, Genevieve Sweeney is celebrated for its exceptional quality with unique custom-spun yarns, and bold, nature-inspired palettes. Committed to regenerative design and craftsmanship, we're launching a new in-house micro factory and apprenticeship programme in summer 2025 - nurturing the future of British knitwear.
Why was launching this company important to you?
I had a sudden realisation that the British knitwear industry was disappearing and if someone didn’t do anything about it these heritage skills would no longer exist. While visiting factories across the UK, I kept hearing how difficult it was to train a new generation, as few young people were interested in working in manufacturing. Many small factories were closing or retiring at a rapid pace. It became clear to me that two things were vital. Firstly, to educate customers on the true value of a British made product; with transparency of the skill, time and labour behind each piece to reconnect customers with the beauty and meaning of slow craftsmanship. Secondly, to revive the industry by inspiring, upskilling and training the next generation.
How does your company represent the future of British luxury?
Sustainability, craftsmanship, and authenticity are at the core of everything we do. From colourful yarns spun in Scotland, to British-made buttons from the Cotswolds, to our intarsia socks knitted on heritage machines in the Derbyshire Dales, every detail tells a story of British craftsmanship. We thoughtfully bring together heritage and innovation – each piece designed with intention and made to last and we believe this is the beauty of British luxury. It is more than a product, it’s a story of community and provenance: something that is a joy to wear, to cherish, and to pass on.
What’s an important value for you that you’ve ensured is part of your business?
Responsibility runs through everything we do from how we design, source fibres, and manufacture, to how we support artisans and help revive the traditional skills of British knitwear. It’s about honouring the craft, sustaining it for future generations, and ensuring every part of the process is considered and respectful. We also carry a deep responsibility to our customers: to be transparent about our practices, to share the stories behind each piece, and to deliver an experience that feels personal and joyful. We want every customer to feel truly connected to our work – to feel part of the journey and be delighted by what they’ve invested in.
Tell me about an obstacle you’ve experienced in establishing your business, and how you overcame it?
Finding manufacturers to work with was a huge obstacle at the beginning. Many manufacturers had been burned by small designers and larger brands moving their production abroad. It was hard to get some small factories to trust us and take a chance – I would often prove myself by getting onto a linking machine to show that I understood the skills involved and wasn’t wasting their time. Three factories took a chance on me at the beginning, and I still work with them now to this day.
What is your ultimate goal for your business? What’s the dream?
Our dream is to be globally renowned for luxury British knitwear – to be the go-to brand for creativity, craftsmanship and heritage that comes together in a way that is modern, meaningful and truly unique. Also to leave a lasting legacy. I’d love to see our micro-factory evolve into an employee-owned factory that nurtures the next generation of artisans and the future of British manufacturing.
What’s a key piece of advice you’d share with another entrepreneur that you’ve learned or been given on your journey?
The best piece of advice I’ve ever received – and one I always come back to – is to follow your gut. If something doesn’t feel right, it rarely is. As a founder, you’re constantly making decisions, big and small. Tuning into your intuition and taking a moment to pause and listen, is incredibly powerful.
Learn more about Genevieve Sweeney at genevievesweeney.com
