Tradelinens Ltd - About Us

Why work with
Tradelinens Ltd?
www.tradelinens.co.uk +44 (0)1442 843769 3

Ethics
As the first UK trade linen members of the Better Cotton Initiative, we work
with carefully selected partner manufacturers who support our ethos and
sponsor of education and training programmes in India and Pakistan; rest
assured our ethical trading programme is championed at the very highest
level within the business.
Luxury
The very best products of their kind, inspired by our experience
and crafted with exceptional attention to detail.
Quality
Traditional craftsmanship blended with the finest ingredients, all created
with a personal service from start to finish.
Pedigree
Led by two passionate textile experts with a combined 70 years of
experience. Consultants and suppliers to the luxury hospitality sector
with an enviable client list of iconic 5* properties.
Service
Exceptional attention to thoughtful details from product to delivery
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We are trusted
the world over to
provide a great
night’s sleep.
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The definition
of luxury is
changing globally
and you can trust
us to deliver
“
Luxury consumers continue to reassess their values
and are increasingly focused on getting the most out
of life. Luxury travel has entered a new phase, in
which conspicuous consumption is giving way to
conscientious consumption as well as a desire for
wellbeing and luxury “experiences”.
Global Luxury Travel Trends Report
Euromonitor International 2017
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‘The paired back hotel’ was Forbes number 1 emerging trend for luxury
hospitality, who predict a new definition of luxury is on the cards.
“
Gone is old-school opulence – overblown, fussy
and formal – and in is a pared-back approach
that focuses on pampering and soothing the
senses. Contemporary chic these days means less
is more. That’s not to say, however, that comfort
will be skimped on - importantly, what is on offer
is of the very best quality.
Forbes 2017
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Our portfolio of iconic 5* clients
spans the world
Our reputation in the industry
has meant that we’ve been
recommended and introduced to
international hotels that put their
guests’ experience top of
their agenda.
Top hotels, whatever their size,
differentiate themselves from ‘run of
the mill’ with touches of luxury that
get guests talking.
We have been tried, tested and
trusted for over
30 years
From General Managers to
Housekeepers, our help and advice is
often sought to help solve problems
and turn things from average to
awesome.
We’ve effectively got 5000+
showrooms in London’s finest
hotels and as guest experience is so
important now, the smart hotels are
upgrading where possible to reflect
this.
We ensure commercial sensibility,
balancing luxury and longevity
We’ll be able to advise you on
the best quality products without
necessarily breaking the bank.
We understand hotel cost models
and try to help optimise these,
without compromising on quality.
We work hand in glove with
laundries as well, to make the linen
element of the hotel seamless.
Over 70 combined years of textile
know-how
There’s not much we can’t get hold
of and this means that if you want
something ‘unique’ in your hotels,
we’ll almost certainly be able to
source it.
Luxury is about detail – we know
how to do detail in hotels!

Hand-picked and curated collection
of products designed for simplicity
from experience
Less is more sometimes, and
discerning guests recognise this.
Smart hotels are marketing their
bed and bath linens – they know that
guests are interested in these details
nowadays.
Unrivalled attention to thoughtful
details from
product to delivery
We’re used to looking out for the
‘gotcha’s’ and can save your time
by spotting mistakes before they
happen from specifications through
to delivery.
With guests wanting personal
choices as part of their special
experience, we can help you to
make their stay memorable through
personalised branding, unique linens
and clever extras.
Highest quality ingredients
& raw materials
not all threadcounts or down are
created equally, and we can help
you navigate rogue qualities without
making expensive mistakes.
Our ethical trading credentials
are not only a great marketing tool
for hotels, but also represent mills
and factories who take quality
seriously too.
Passionate about helping you to
provide a great night’s sleep to
your guests
This is our raison d’être and there
isn’t a day goes by when we don’t
get calls from guests wanting to
recreate the hotel experience in
their own homes.
Your guests will feel the difference
and remember the one thing that
can make or break a hotel stay –
how well they slept!
www.tradelinens.co.uk +44 (0)1442 843769 15

Robert
Lancaster-Gaye
Founding Director,
TRADELINENS
A textile man through and through,
Robert Lancaster-Gaye is the man
whose friends will always thank him
for teaching them the true meaning
of mitred corners and the vagaries
of thread count. More importantly,
he is known in the industry as
the go-to person for making sure
luxury hotels up and down the
country can boast the best bed,
towelling and table linen.
Rewind 45 years, and, when the
Managing Director of FB Lecky
(eventually part of the Mitre Group)
came to Robert’s school looking
for a protégé, Robert chose to go
out into the real world and flex his
business muscles rather than study
architecture at university.
From a grounding in wholesale
textiles in a small London
warehouse to running the UK
operation of Ewart Liddell (part
of Coats Viyella), Robert counts
his blessings that he truly
understands the journey from
thread to bed. Launching the UK
market for Frette back in 1990 was
the start of a partnership which still
continues to this day in some of
London’s finest hotels.
30 years ago Robert met Joe
Molloy who heralded from Belfast,
a city made famous very many
years ago as being home to the
finest linen manufacturers in the
world and so their partnership
started.
Their shared vision and exacting
standards meant that their linen
has graced the bedrooms and
restaurants of the world’s finest
hotels for the past quarter of a
century.
Turns out that a flair for art and
numbers not only gives you the
potential to study architecture;
mixing creativity with business
acumen can also put you on the
road to a passion for textiles, an
expertise in hotel furnishings, an
obsession with detail and quality,
and a chance to mix with some
incredibly interesting people
in the hospitality industry.
www.tradelinens.co.uk +44 (0)1442 843769 16

Joe Molloy
Founding Director,
TRADELINENS
Joe Molloy joined the Irish linen
manufacturer Ewart Liddell as a
Graduate Trainee in 1984. It was
his first foray into the industry and
where he adopted the attitude of,
“The answer is yes – now what is
the question?”
He got under the skin of the
manufacturing process by
spending a full year in the factory,
learning all aspects of dobby
and jacquard weaving. He was a
constant presence in a number
of other factories too, to learn
about spinning, dyeing and general
cloth manufacture to complete his
education.
London soon beckoned and Joe
spent five years there supplying
table linen and other related
products suitable for three, four
and five-star hotels and laundries.
It was here in London 30 years
ago that Joe first met Robert
Lancaster-Gaye who shared
Joe’s passion textiles and so their
partnership started.
He left Liddell in 1990 to apply all
his learnings and set up his own
venture. He was soon supplying
hotels in UK, Ireland and worldwide
with a full range of products
from bed linen, towels and filled
products, before setting up Mitre
Furnishing Company in southern
Ireland to service the burgeoning
Irish hotel market during that time.
As well as pride and confidence
that they provide the best quality
linen, both Robert and Joe worked
hard to become the “go to”
number when housekeepers and
purchasing managers need help
and advice. It is this approach
which has ensured the business
continues to prosper and grow.
In short, their aim is to be the best
at what they do and keep on doing
it to an industry in desperate need
of expert help and guidance!
www.tradelinens.co.uk +44 (0)1442 843769 18
www.tradelinens.co.uk +44 (0)1442 843769 19

Let’s start a
conversation

www.tradelinens.co.uk
Tradelinens Ltd, The Old Granary, Mile Barn Farm,
Hemel Hempstead Road, Dagnall, Herts, HP4 1QR