Belstaff

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The Belstaff logo

Belstaff, founded in Longton, Staffordshire in 1924 is a garment manufacturer currently still based in England where it produces high-performance waterproof jackets. The company has made several advances in jacket technology and currently is one of the most well known companies in its field with some products appearing in several movies.

[edit] History

Founded in 1924 by Eli Belovitch in Staffordshire, Belstaff produced male and female motorcycle all-weather jackets. However, as jacket technology advanced other parties in need of weather protection and the company diversified into creating goggles (primarily for the increasing aviation market), sacks, gloves and several other garments intended to keep its occupier warm, dry and safe.

The next 40 years saw Belstaff's popularity increase, producing several jackets now sought after by collectors. The 1970s saw the creation of the XL500, which self-claimed by the company was virtually indestructible in normal use.

In the 1980s, Belstaff diversified into the golf wear market creating the successful "Vent-o-Lite" range that was adopted as the official garment of the European Rider Cup Team.

The company was hit hard by the textile crisis of the 1990s precipitating the close of Belstaff's Stoke-on-Trent factory. Moving to Wellingborough, production was vastly reduced, but managed to stay afloat throughout the decade. The range was also manufactured in Australia by a sister company Driza-Bone. The company was more grew and in 1994 introduced Belfresh, a new design of nylon that allowed the transmission of perspiration from the body to the outside of the jacket, while deflecting other weather conditions, this was believed to be the most advanced of its time.

In 2005, through a collaborative effort with a leading weaving mill, Belstaff developed the Cotfort material: a fabric made from high-quality cotton, nylon, and Elastan fibers.

Today, Belstaff has achieved worldwide success with the opening of such markets as Japan, the Far East, Russia, the United States, Australia, and South America.

[edit] Movies

Beginning in 2005, Belstaff's apparel aroused a great deal of interest in the United States and the garments were requested for many popular films, including Batman Begins, Blade: Trinity, The Interpreter, Tomb Raider II, Mission: Impossible III, Ocean's Twelve, War of the Worlds and The Aviator.

The "Aviator by Belstaff" collection, inspired by original apparel in Belstaff's museum, was launched in 2005. This clothing was made in the 1930s and 1940s to protect aviators in extreme weather conditions. The Aviator by Belstaff collection, made with respect for the original materials to ensure maximum authenticity, were chosen by Miramax Films for the costumes of the film The Aviator.