Barbour is a fifth-generation, family-owned British heritage outerwear and countrywear brand founded in 1894 in South Shields, North East England, by Scottish-born draper John Barbour, who began by supplying oilskins, waxed jackets and weatherproofed workwear to local sailors, fishermen, dock workers and farmers. Famously chosen by the British Royal Family for three Royal Warrants, Barbour remains best known for its hand-finished waxed cotton jackets (Bedale, Beaufort, Beadnell) — produced to this day in its South Shields factory — as well as knitwear, shirts and woolens that marry countryside utility with timeless British style.