If you’re familiar with Whiteley, you’ll know how proud we are of our nearly 270-year heritage. Over the decades, we’ve been lucky to have so many wonderful people stay with us for years and years, becoming an integral part of the Whiteley family and our story. In our latest blog, we’re shining a spotlight on one of those special people: Jean Colton, mum of our Master Craftsman Andy.
How Andy is carrying on Jean’s legacy
Jean’s son, Andy, started working in our hardening shop during secondary school for pocket money – £15 per week roughly. He started officially at Whiteley on 12th August 1974 and has now been with us for over 50 years, working his way up to the role of Master Craftsman.
Sitting at the heart of Whiteley for five decades, over the years Andy has honed his skills, crafting shears for everyone from Alexander McQueen to Ozwald Boateng and Paul Smith. Throughout his time here, he’s worked across many areas of the factory floor, mastering hand grinding and assembly.
Andy is one of the last scissor hand grinders in the world, keeping alive a rare British craft and ensuring our scissors are still touched with the history that has shaped them since 1760. Although scissor making has changed across the last few decades, Andy is keen to still champion tradition, passing his skills to the next generation.
The next generation of the Whiteley team
At Whiteley, our story has always been shaped by the people who’ve walked through our factory doors and chosen to stay. Jean dedicated 47 years to us, and Andy has dedicated 50 years and counting. Today, we’re proud to see the next generation beginning their own journeys on the same factory floor, gaining the skills from people who’ve lived and breathed Whiteley for decades.
With all his experience, Andy plays a hands-on role in guiding the newer members of our team, passing on techniques he’s mastered through years of practice. Many of these skills can’t be learnt from a manual, and they certainly can’t be learnt overnight.
It’s people like Jean and Andy who have enabled Whiteley to keep going for so long, helping us thrive now and well into the future, and champion a rare craft that exemplifies high-quality British manufacturing.
Explore our full scissor range and see the difference true craftsmanship makes.
Jean Colton began her career at Whiteley in the early 1950s, starting at our Rockingham Street location in the heart of Sheffield city centre. Mum of our Master Craftsman Andy, she got the role through Andy’s Auntie Dolly and started out on drilling on the factory floor.
From there, she then moved to warehouse packing, before becoming Warehouse Manager, where she helped owner at the time Bill Whiteley with finances, working as a key member of our team. She also made the big 150yd move to work at our Garden Street location, where she stayed with us until she retired in the mid 1990s.
Jean dedicated an incredible 47 years to Whiteley, all while raising three children, one of which being Andy. Her commitment, hard work and loyalty remain an important part of our story today, with Andy continuing her legacy all the way through to today.