Kilt firm marks anniversary with sundial refurb and special tartan
An Edinburgh-based kilt specialist is marking its 150th anniversary today with the unveiling of the refurbished version of a sundial it gifted to the city in 1890.
The Kinloch Anderson Sundial was donated by Councillor W. Joseph Kinloch Anderson, a second-generation leader of the firm, and has been the centrepiece of Inverleith Park’s Sundial Garden since it opened in 1891.
The kilt firm is behind the refurbishment after being approached by Friends of Inverleith Park, and felt it would be an excellent way to celebrate its anniversary this year, having originally started out as a tailoring business.
The project includes adding surrounding cobblestones, and information boards giving details about the history and heritage of the item.
“We’re very proud and pleased with what we’re doing,” senior director Deirdre Kinloch Anderson told The Scotsman.
“I would like this to be a historic monument. I would like it to be a credit to Kinloch Anderson and a credit to the city of Edinburgh and I would hope that it will be admired and appreciated by as many people as possible. It’s going to look fantastic,” added Kinloch Anderson, whose husband Douglas is the firm’s chairman and her son John, the sixth-generation chief executive.
The firm has also created a special sundial tartan to mark the occasion, based on the Anderson Clan tartan in a nod to the firm’s founder William Anderson, and including three gold lines to represent each of its Royal Warrants as tailors and kiltmakers to The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh and The Prince of Wales. The tartan will be used to cover the sundial before its unveiling and decorates a range of products including ties and notebooks.
The festivities will be marked by a celebration attended by family, friends and business colleagues, and former Queen’s piper Derek Potter will welcome guests and escort the Lord Provost.
Lord Provost Councillor Frank Ross said: “I am delighted to see the historic sundial restored as a striking focal point in this garden. Thank you to Kinloch Anderson for both gifting and, 127 years later, reviving this centrepiece, a fitting celebration of their 150th anniversary.”
John Kinloch Anderson said recently that the firm aims to fuse digital opportunities with traditional values of service and quality of product.
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