Pendleton

Pendleton is an American wool specialist with a long memory. The Bishop family founded it in 1863, and it became Pendleton Woolen Mills in 1909. Blankets remain the heart of the business, but menswear is where many people meet it. In 1924 the label introduced a colourful plaid virgin wool shirt, a break from the muted workwear of the time, and it later became a favourite of California surfers. The Beach Boys, originally the Pendletones, wore them. The Westerley cardigan, worn by Jeff Bridges in The Big Lebowski, is its best-known knit. Pendleton still owns two of the few remaining woollen mills in the United States and handles everything from raw fleece to finished cloth. It is still family-owned, six generations on.