David Nieper looks to take on 40 new staff to grow its workforce and pass on vital skills
Derbyshire fashion house David Nieper has put out a call for dressmakers, pattern cutters, knitwear linkers and other skilled people – as part of a new jobs push to meet record demand for its British-made womenswear.
The fashion designer and manufacturer is looking to take on at least 40 new staff during 2014 to boost its highly skilled workforce, and has already taken on 27 new employees this year.
As part of the recruitment drive, the Alfreton-based company is urging people with experience in textiles, as well as those looking to break into the growing fashion manufacturing industry, to get in touch to find out more about the variety of roles available.
The company is also offering paid re-training for ‘returners to the industry’ to brush up on their skills, whilst also recruiting for part-time and term-time only roles, for those with families or other commitments looking for a new job with flexible working patterns. David Nieper is also launching a new paid training programme for new recruits without previous dressmaking experience – specialist training that can take up to a year to complete.
The company’s latest jobs push comes as the UK sees a surge in demand for British-made goods, and Internet shopping for clothes. Exports at David Nieper have also increased, illustrating the growing reputation of British-made goods aboard for quality, service and design.
Christopher Nieper, managing director of David Nieper, said: “It takes real skill and high levels of craftsmanship to make our fashion collections.
“Not only do we need to grow our workforce, and create more and more skilled jobs to meet growing demand for our womenswear, we’ve got to ensure that vital sewing and couture craftsmanship skills are passed on to the next generation. The clock is ticking, we need to harness the skills of experienced staff for the benefit of our trainees, and if we don’t act now these skills could be lost forever.
“We hope to take on more than 40 new staff, and are particularly keen to hear from experienced dressmakers looking to return to the industry – as well anyone with a real passion for fashion manufacturing who has what it takes to train as a professional seamstress.”
One such returner is Louise Pike, 50, from Sutton-in-Ashfield who joined David Nieper as sewing supervisor in May 2014. Louise, said: “There is no industry like it. I’ve tried nursing and hairdressing, and other jobs, but there is real camaraderie in the fashion and textiles industry so it is great to be back doing what I love best.”
Sewing supervisor Louise Pike
In addition to its numerous fashion and textiles vacancies the company is also recruiting for a range of roles, including graphic design, accounting, IT and human resources. Further details can be found at https://www.davidnieper.co.uk/careers/
To help support its growth, David Nieper has also purchased additional commercial space near its Alfreton headquarters, to accommodate further expansion and was awarded a Derby Enterprise Growth Fund grant in 2013 to help fund the creation of a catalogue and printing division – securing employment for workers that had been made redundant from jobs elsewhere in the printing industry.
David Nieper was established in 1961 and employs 230 highly skilled staff. All David Nieper garments are designed and manufactured at its Alfreton factory, where they are hand signed by the seamstress that made them, a mark of quality and pride in the workmanship. A third of David Nieper’s total sales are to customers overseas.
