As some of you may already know, Carradice has been handcrafting quality bicycle saddlebags and pannier bags since the 1930's. We have been sent in an old catalogue and price list by Gary Essex, a book dealer and Carradice fan who found these in a clearance of old books. You can see which products we were selling back then and compare them to our current range. We even had the Camper Longflap back in the 50’s!
Some products have changed more than others but our Originals and City Classics ranges still bear a close resemblance to their predecessors. They both still use the time served, 18oz waxed cotton duck canvas and chromed leather straps and are of course still made to last for ever.
There are some great images of traditional Rucksacks and Gauntlet Gloves which we used to make. The Rucksacks don't look too different to our new Rydal Rucksack with one of the main differences being the large steel “A” frames used to attach the shoulder straps.
You can see here that not only did we manufacture panniers for bicycles but we also used to produce panniers that fit on motorcycles!
So, as you can see, there have been some product changes in the past 67 years as along with prices and decimalisation. We have moved from the Leeds Road Works to North Street then to Brooks Street and finally to our current factory Westmoreland Works which is still in Nelson. We are still using some of the local suppliers that we used back then.
Our products may have changed and evolved over the years but our commitment to quality and customer service has never wavered. The many thousands of Carradice bags out in daily use today is testament to this.
