Kangol

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Kangol is a clothing company famous for its headwear.

Founded in Cleator, Cumbria, England in 1938 by Jakob Spreiregen, Kangol (the K from silK or Knitting or Knitted, the ANG from angora, the OL from wool) produced hats for workers, golfers, and especially soldiers - they were the major beret suppliers to the armed forces during World War II, including famously Field Marshal Montgomery. [1]

General Montgomery, wearing his iconic Kangol beret

During and after the war, Kangol berets were the height of fashion. In the 1960s, designers Mary Quant and Pierre Cardin worked with the company, whose products graced the heads of the rich and famous, including the Beatles and Arnold Palmer, and later Princess Diana. The company also supplied uniformed organisations such as the Scout Association.

In the 1980s Kangol berets entered a new phase of fashion history with their adoption by members of the hip-hop community, such as Run-DMC, LL Cool J, Slick Rick, and Kangol Kid of UTFO. The release of more consciously stylish products in the 1990s such as the furgora (angora-wool mix) Spitfire, was helped by its presence upon the head of Samuel L. Jackson in 1997. Kevin Eubanks, bandleader for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, sports a Kangol beret on an almost nightly basis.

In December 2001 the licence to manufacture and sell headwear was sold to the Bollman hat company who are based in Adamstown, Pennsylvania. Shortly after, the last of the factories in the UK (the Frizington site) was also closed with production being transferred to factories in the Far East and particularly a wholly owned factory in Panyu just across the border from Hong Kong. Many ardent wearers believe Kangol's hats are now constructed to much lower quality standards.

The brand is currently run from a small office in London with a handful of employees overseeing what was once a substantial British business.