Best of British

The Devonshire mill that keeps on spinning

John Arbon’s spinning mill, nestled in the Devonshire town of South Molton, is one of only a handful still operating in the UK. Mills began closing down in the 1960s as it became cheaper to import wool from Asia, but Arbon, sensing a gap in the market – and a touch nostalgic – swooped in and bought the machinery that was being sold off.

He has since reconditioned the antique pieces and named them, based on their characters. ‘There’s Chapman the carder, Gino the comb winder – he’s from Italy – and, my favourite, Cuthbert the gillbox,’ says Arbon.

Today he uses them to create wool tea cosies, gloves and socks at his eponymous business, using woollen from alpacas, as well as from 300 Exmoor Mule sheep, a crossbreed native to the area.

Arbon, 53, had fond memories of childhood holidays spent in Devon, so he moved there in 2000 to pursue his dream of making socks. Having previously owned a T-shirt business and studied at London College of Printing, he had some knowledge of the textile industry and the business grew rapidly.

His bestselling socks are the Stanbury Walkers, named after a friend who works as a sheep farmer. ‘I was in the pub with Walker and suggested using his wool to make socks, joking that I’d name them after him,’ says Arbon. To Arbon’s surprise, Walker agreed and they began shearing wool from his Exmoor Mules.

Every April, the wool is sent to a scouring plant in Bradford to be washed. When it returns, Arbon’s team follows an age-old process using skills that would otherwise have been lost. To begin, they ‘card’ the wool to tease the fibres apart.

‘When it comes off that machine it’s in the form a rope of fibre called a sliver,’ he explains. ‘This is fed into a giller, a type of comb that makes the fibres parallel. Then we start the spinning process, where I draw out a thin strand of fibre and put a twist into it to hold it together. It’s just like twisting hair into a bun.’

Finally, the wool is wound together and sent away to be dyed and knitted. ‘The material is robust – indestructible, really,’ says Arbon. ‘I wear the socks myself. I’ve had some pairs for six or seven years, and they’re still going strong.’ jarbon.com

Arbon has named the machinery: ‘There’s Chapman the carder, Gino the comb winder – he’s from Italy – and Cuthbert the gillbox’

Photographs by Robert Darch Clockwise from top Juliet and John Arbon in their mill; the finished product; wool being dyed; antique spools. Interview by Jessica Carpani.