Lochcarron Sold to Koreans

[cessna152towser]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotlan...tland-14011889
No surprise to me as a local that Lochcarron have been sold to a South Korean company.
Times have not been easy and Lochcarron shut their Hawick factory where they made pullovers and sweaters a year or so ago, it was a consolation that the tartan weaving side of the business in neighbouring Selkirk, eleven miles to the north was able to survive.
Let us hope they can continue to weave the tartans here in Scotland.

[vmac3205]

Amen to that, Alex.

[piperdbh]

That's sad, all around.

[Morris at Heathfield]

I had never heard of E-Land before, nor can I say that I recognize any of their brands. (Not that I ought to be an expert on Korean fashion, but I can at least claim to have heard of singers/groups Se7en, Rain, BoA, and 2NE1, so I thought it possible that I would recognize some of the brands.) The two companies seem horribly mismatched to me, but I trust the Lochcarron officers carefully considered the offer, and also entertained offers from other companies before making the decision. I do hope E-Land allows Lochcarron a great deal of autonomy to continue on as they had before, and that any changes introduced only enhance the company's profitability while not compromising its reputation as a weaver of quality worsted wool tartan. I may soon be in a position to test the level of interest in tartans in South Korea, so I look on this development with interest.

[WillieMacG]

I do hope E-Land allows Lochcarron a great deal of autonomy to continue on as they had before,

Doesn't matter. Still not gonna be the same. Ever again.

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Doesn't matter. Still not gonna be the same. Ever again.

Same thing was said about the sale of Rolls-Royce to BMW and Bentley to Volkswagen... but, except to those few people who keep track of such things, nobody else noticed (or seemed to care) and their respective products are actually better than the ones that rolled out of the factory pre-takeover.

I suspect it will be much the same with Lochcarron.

[Jock Scot]

I was at Blair Atholl a few weeks ago watching the Parade of the Atholl Highlanders and was "cornered" by a South Korean film crew and to cut quite a long, pleasant and amusing story short, the "crew" and the interviewer were very,VERY knowledgeable and enthusiastic about Scottish tartans(I wonder if they were anything to do with the purchasers of Lochcarron? The slant of their questions lead me to think that they might have been.). Anyway during the course of conversation they told me that Scotland and tartans in particular held a huge interest to those back home.Well, it seems that some one over there has put their money where there mouth is, my fingers are crossed that all will be well in Selkirk.

[English Bloke]

... my fingers are crossed that all will be well in Selkirk.

Me too. But the Devil is in the details. Lets hope it's a genuine rescue.

[creagdhubh]

Me too. But the Devil is in the details. Lets hope it's a genuine rescue.

Quite right John.

[Lime]

Does anyone know if the Lochcarron discussed above has any connection to the weavers on the shores of Loch Carron (between Lochcarron and North Strome)?