This is Leicestershire --A clothes factory is helping lead the revival of the textile industry by creating up to 150 jobs this year.
Basic Premier said growing high street demand for UK-made T-shirts, skirts and dresses was driving up trade.
It employs 50 people at its factory in Rolleston Street, North Evington, Leicester, supplying retailers such as George at Asda, Sainsbury's, Tesco, Top Shop, BHS, Matalan and Primark.
Managers hope the number of staff will rise to 200 by the end of the year.
City Knitwear firm BS Attwall said last month it hoped to create 130 jobs this year after buying a 130,000sq ft factory in Forest Road, Humberstone.
Husband and wife Mick and Raj Cheema run Basic Premier in partnership with clothing design and manufacturing company Basic Thinking, which employs a further 50 people in Grace Road, Aylestone.
Mick said he believed providing a clean, bright and safe working environment, paying staff above the minimum wage and offering a "Made in Britain" label, would help retail demand soar.
He said the factory could also make clothes to order much quicker than overseas suppliers, giving stores a chance to react to changing sales patterns and the weather.
He hoped other manufacturers in the city would follow their lead and help Leicester become a major player in clothes manufacturing again.
He said: "I think Leicester will regain it's crown.
"The UK has always been the leader in clothing and fashion and if the big stores start ordering from UK manufacturers again, it means they can respond to fashion changes far more quickly."
He said the firm was already advertising for staff on radio and would be using JobcentrePlus and the recruitment pages of the Leicester Mercury.
He said he wanted to look at the possibility of launching an apprenticeship scheme to train managers.
Basic Thinking commercial and operations director Chris Taylor said turnover at his company – which also employs 500 people at a factory in Egypt – had doubled to about £25 million this year.
He said: "All the major retailers are concerned about making sure the products they sell are being made in ethical and correctly equipped factories.
"Customers want to know their products are not being produced in sweatshops.
"Also, buying from the Far East, delivery times may be 16 to 18 weeks.
"By using someone closer to home, they have a much better chance of getting their decisions right.
"On top of all that, I think there's a real resonance with the public of buying a product made in the UK.
"We believe we can double turnover with the customers we already have." Reported by This is 19 hours ago.