Patterns of the Past

With over 120 years of history, Ernest Wright is still flying the flag for Sheffield scissor-making. Rosie Brennan talks to one of the current owners, Paul Jacobs, about legacy and more.

Reflecting what makes ‘Made in Sheffield’ famous, Ernest Wright and its highly-skilled craftsmen create supreme quality scissors and shears in the heart of the city.

Behind each pair is over a century of knowledge, passion and character, making around 1,000 scissors each month with just nine employees. Prices range from £33 to £550, for scissors you can love for a lifetime. Seventeen different patterns are available, including dressmaker, industrial, tailor, embroidery and kitchen scissors, the largest pair a whopping 13 inches long. An eye for detail others would often miss is key at Ernest Wright. The Broad Lane company was founded in 1902 and although no longer a family concern, current owners Paul Jacobs and Jan Bart Fanoy are committed to keeping the Wright heritage alive.

The company was founded by Ernest Wright, after his father Walter, a renowned ‘Little Mester’ of Sheffield and referred to as a ‘master scissor putter-togetherer’ inspired him to follow in his footsteps. A scissor putter-togetherer is the proud title given to the holder of a five-year-to-fully-apprenticed skill set and trade, known and still used by craftsmen today, described by Paul as “a special milestone and a rare achievement.”

Over the last 120 years, the company has faced its fair share of challenges.

“We’re talking about a very long period including two world wars, Covid, Brexit, and the conflicts that are occurring globally as we speak. These challenges affect our access to resources, orders and morale,” Paul explained.

World War II meant that Ernest Wright produced surgical equipment for a while, before experiencing a pot-war boom of demand due to the high demand for cutlery. The name ‘Kutrite’, still the name of their workhouse, was then introduced in 1954 as the company became a formidable force. The firm was the largest scissors manufacturers in the UK by 1977, exporting to 45 countries and employing over 80 workers before Wright Jr’s sons Graham and Phillip took over and globalisation creeped in. Paul described this as the greatest challenge faced by the company: “Sheffield was home to dozens of scissors-making companies at the time of Ernest Wright’s founding, and we’re now the only workshop using traditional skills that’s left in the city centre.”

Their documentary ‘The Putter’ went viral in June 2014. Reaching almost a million views, the short documentary made by the late Shaun Bloodworth as part of a project called ‘Storying Sheffield’, introduced the unique corner of the world that is Ernest Wright. Orders poured in immediately after the documentary was aired.

Paul added that the company has been featured in a few extremely popular YouTube documentaries in recent years, including one by Mercedes-Benz, and viewers often comment to say they’re surprised that something like Ernest Wright still exists.

The business was operated by family until the untimely passing of Nick Wright in 2018, at which time, Paul Jacobs and Jan Bart Fanoy decided to step in. Not wanting the Ernest Wright story to end, Paul said “As a supporter and customer of Ernest Wright, I felt compelled to help – so together with a friend I acquired the assets of the company and set out to preserve what mattered: the team, the traditional methods, the workshop and the heritage.”

He also decided to re-hire previous staff, including their most experienced putter Sam Clark, (the first trainee of the company’s current era to qualify fully as a putter), master-putters Eric Stones and Cliff Denton, and long-time employee Pam Addy. Despite disruption caused by the pandemic, work continued to reintroduce vintage patterns like the iconic Kutrite pattern of kitchen scissors.

“Someone needed to intervene and take the reins at Ernest Wright. Otherwise, its traditional ways would have been lost forever. Because Ernest Wright is one of the only traditional scissors-makers left in the country, the heritage craft of scissors-making was at risk of becoming even more gravely endangered than it is today,” Paul elaborated.

The workshop settled into its current home ‘Kutrite Works’, which you’ll find on Broad Lane in the city centre, in July 2011. Around the back on Garden Street, you’ll find the beautiful artwork created by a Sheffield-based artist painted across the workhouse, perfectly capturing the Sheffield pride the company has exhibited for well over a century. The quote “We are but two halves of a pair of scissors, when apart… but together we are something” by Charles Dickens can also be found across the back of the building, wonderfully encapsulating the passion the company so clearly has.

The best way to get a real feel for Ernest Wright is to visit their workshop. I was lucky enough to be invited down and given the guided tour by Paul.

Guided through the process step-by-step by, it is immediately obvious that an unbelievable amount of detail and refinement goes into the crafting, no matter the size, shape, or purpose of the product. The craftsmen, also known as ‘scissors-putter-togetherers’ push their passion into every aspect of the process.

“Above all, we trust that our process will create outstanding scissors that last because we’ve kept using traditional metalworking techniques and principles.” Said Paul, “Go into any Yorkshire antique shop and you’re likely to find very old Sheffield scissors or shears that could still cut beautifully. That’s what we’re creating for the future – superb tools with the longevity to become heirlooms.”

Starting its journey as a metal bar, this is pressed with enormous power to create the flatness and outline of the scissor, forging a rough shape. The shape is then precisely cut out and shaped accordingly. In what feels like both an exact science and beautiful art, an astounding attentiveness is paid to the specific curves and twists necessary for each product to function as smoothly as possible.

To achieve a perfect Sheffield-made shine, the scissors are then placed into a giant cleaning machine, filled with porcelain and bubbles. After drying, the detail comes in. Their most technical machine, the induction heater, softens part of the shank, allowing it to be bent to ensure the tips are precisely aligned

Long metal bars carrying hundreds of scissors can be seen around the workshop, each awaiting a meticulous level of detail provided by craftsmen. The delicate task of assembling the blades is then completed, the ‘putter-togetherer’ hammering the perfect curve into each blade, and marrying them together perfectly.

A polish completes a shiny mirror finish, and careful quality control is conducted to ensure the best possible product is sent out to customers across the UK and worldwide.

The dedication to heritage and tradition has certainly paid off for Paul and Jan. In September 2021, Ernest Wright was awarded the President’s Award for Endangered Crafts, a prize awarded by the Heritage Crafts Association (HCA) and initiated by the former Prince of Wales, His Majesty King Charles III. The prize provides the winning company or craftsperson with a grant to help ensure the survival of their craft, as well as representing a priceless mark of approval. Paul found it difficult to put into words how much this recognition meant to the team.

“It reminded us that what we’re doing at Ernest Wright is not just some wild adventure we’ve stepped into; it’s really making a difference. When others see that, it gives you goosebumps,” he said.

Cementing the legacy created by five generations of the Wright family has always been at the heart of this company. According to Paul: “By keeping the business and our craft alive, we’re ensuring you can still see and feel the quality we all took for granted in the past.”

With such a strong legacy behind them, Ernest Wright pride themselves on having the ‘Made in Sheffield’ label. When asked why these words are so significant, Paul responded: “’Made in Sheffield’ is a longstanding mark of quality and heritage associated with products manufactured in this city. Those three words are iconic: they represent our long history as a centre for metalworking, which goes back as far as the 14^th century. Customers still understand ‘Made in Sheffield’ as a hallmark of excellence, especially in cutlery, scissors and hand tools.”

Unfortunately, this label has been, and continues to be, taken advantage of by some dishonest manufacturers aiming to profit off the Sheffield mark of quality.

“It’s a shame that unscrupulous manufacturers have used Sheffield’s hard-earned reputation to mislead customers in search of a quick sale”, said Paul. “Ultimately, buyers will know a proper pair of handmade Sheffield scissors when they use them – there is no comparison to mass-produced scissors that come cheap, work poorly and mean little.”

Ernest Wright has managed to grow and develop over time, whilst continuing to maintain a high level of integrity and quality brought from the past into the present. On plans for the future, Paul said: “Our customers can expect to see us bring back more brilliant Sheffield scissor patterns of the past. And while this is not exactly a new development, we’ll continue our efforts to improve our quality and to strive to become the best metalworking employer in Sheffield.”

To find out more, visit www.ernestwright.co.uk