The home of British-made bespoke hats
Welcome to Marcel Rodrigues, the home of British-made bespoke hats and headwear. We have been crafting one-of-a-kind pieces by hand for the last 7 years. For us, the process is just as important, if not more so, than the final product. We endeavour to make the story behind each piece one to both remember and cherish.
Hat making was never on the career agenda for Marcel. But he always had a love of fashion, and an interest in the industry that eventually led him to a career as an apprentice at Cad & The Dandy on Savile Row.
In early 2017, his obsession with exceptionally made hats was ignited. Marcel began by spending hours and hours painstakingly researching the history of hat making, traditional hat making techniques, the tools and materials used and everything in between.
Marcel began selling some of his much-loved vintage items in order to make enough money to buy some of the tools necessary to start blocking his own hats, and he travelled around the UK in search of the right tools. Marcel started honing his techniques and soon found that people began to take notice of his creations.
In December 2017, the Marcel Rodrigues brand was formally founded.
Marcel’s wife, Becky, left her career to join the business in 2018 and by early 2019, the family had relocated to Cornwall with the business now a full-time venture. During these years, the brand has opened several pop-up locations, including one in the home of bespoke tailoring, Savile Row.
Following several successful seasons, Marcel Rodrigues has consolidated their retail presence in a flagship store near Wadebridge, Cornwall.
Meet the maker
Sustainability
Sustainability is fundamental to Marcel Rodrigues. It is at the forefront of all decisions made here, from the materials we use, to our chosen energy suppliers, to where and how our products are made. In a world dominated by fast and unsustainable fashion, we believe that transparency in our making process is essential in shifting the mindset of what sustainability in fashion really means.
Handmade in the UK
All of our products are made by hand in the UK. Our hats are individually made in our workshop at our flagship shop in Cornwall. Our garments are made to order by our two Cornwall-based makers. Nothing here is mass produced or made overseas.
100% Natural Materials
All materials that we use in the making of our hats are natural, not only adding to the finished quality of our products, but also ensuring that at the end of their life they will naturally biodegrade.
Repurposing Materials
Wherever possible, we utilise repurposed or end-of-line materials in the production of our garments. This prevents the fabrics from unnecessarily being taken to landfill. Blankets, cotton canvas tents, and sleeping bags are just some of the items that we repurpose into high quality clothing.
Sustainable Energy Suppliers
We ensure that the energy suppliers that we use provide 100% renewable energy.
Meet the Team
Founder, CEO and Hat Maker
Marcel Rodrigues
Hat making was never on the career agenda for Marcel. A love of fashion and an interest in the industry led him to a career as an apprentice at Cad & The Dandy on Savile Row in 2008. An obsession with exceptionally made hats was ignited.
Marcel started honing his techniques and soon found that people began to take notice of his creations. In December 2017, the Marcel Rodrigues brand was formally founded and has now opened its flagship store at Hawksfield, Cornwall.
Hat Maker
Mac Johnson
Mac is our apprentice hat-maker, based in Cornwall. Originally from North Carolina, he brings some authentic US influence to the workshop. Mac has two passions in life; making music and making hats. He spends his time touring the country and writing music as one half of the indie-folk duo, ‘Our Atlantic Roots’.
As well as finding Mac in the workshop shaping and adding all the important details to our clients’ hats, you’ll find him sporting his own bespoke Marcel Rodrigues hats at various festivals and events around the UK.
Head of Design and Manufacturing
Christina Palmer
Christina studied fashion and design at Derby University and went onto work with Daniel Hansen in his design studio under the ‘Frog Design’ label, making design samples for jeans and denim jackets and pattern grading. This developed into working on samples for the dressing gown range that the Daniel Hansen name is now famous for.
Christina went on to work with Jan Prestwich and they became business partners; offering freelance services including, pattern grading, design, sampling and small-scale manufacturing.