Dot was founded in the early 1980s by Richard Hewitt and was originally set up as an agency for silk screen printing and embroidery.
Richard quickly realised how important and how much control you had by having a print warehouse and design facilities, so the Nottingham base saw Dot through the next decade.
During the 80s and 90s, a large proportion of our work was manufactured, screen printed or embroidered in the East Midlands and around the Nottingham area. However, it wasn't long before the growth of giants in China and the Far East left plenty of small businesses in the UK importing garments. This has now begun to change and once again it is becoming viable to design, manufacture and brand products in the UK. Dot is passionate about this and continues to strive to grow this trade whilst supporting local suppliers and manufacturers.
Over the last few years, our awareness of the industry's impact on our environment has increased. We are always looking for better and more sustainable ways to trade and this has led us to seek Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certification which we are actively working towards achieving for our t-shirt printing.
The staff at Dot are all committed to producing quality work with an emphasis on being hands-on. Most of our work is carried out in-house by our amazing team. Their skill and enthusiasm, combined with our high-tech equipment ensure that we can provide anything from that special one-off item to orders of 1000s, all delivered with the quality and service you would expect from a business as passionate as ours.
We are also lucky enough to work with some really interesting people and companies. These businesses are a big part of who we are, where we came from and will most certainly help define our future. Take a look below and see who we’re proud to call our friends.
Our Friends
Fantastic Sweatshirts!
George
Sion Hill
Nottingham
Uniform shopping couldn’t be any easier!
Rebecca Wood
Parent
Brookside School
Garments looking good
Iain Allen
F S Team Leader 2014-15 season
Oxford Brookes Racing
It Looks Brill
Andy Higson
Director
Black Dog outdoors
Perfect T-Shirts!
Kate
Coach
Kingston Vale Gymnastics Club
Absolutely spot on, am really pleased with them.
Zac
No Other Option Apparel
Shirts arrived and looked awesome!
Richard Pilbeam
Branding and Digital Manager
The Fresh Olive Company Ltd
Exactly what we needed
Anna Dobiecka
Account Executive
All 4 Comms, St Neots
I was really pleased with the quality of the t-shirts
WM Kevin Ruane MBE
MITOL
Nottinghamshire Fire & Rescue service
Always willing to go the extra mile and offer the full package
Ben Dodd
Assistant Supplies Officer
Nottinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service
Dot continue to deliver results time and time again
Colin Martin
Group Equipment Manager
Kingswood
Our team
Richard Hewitt
Founder and Owner
Richard has over 35 years’ experience in the screen printing and promotions industry, having trained at Alsager College, and is the sole founder of Dot. He looks after all our garment sourcing and embroidery and many of our customers. As well as being an avid climber, a guitar player and a big fan of the great outdoors, he is also a devout Francophile and spends as much time as work allows in France with his family.
John Eley
Print Production Manager
With over 35 years in screen printing, John oversees everything going on at Dot and is a responsible for each job from start to finish. During his career he had a time out from printing and owned the Rock House Nightclub as well as the Bat Cave which sold gothic and punk clothing. When he’s not on top of quality control he plays guitar and writes children’s stories – his granddaughter being his biggest fan.
Frere West
Artworker and Digital Printer
As a newer member of the Dot team, Frere brings with him a lot of experience in his field and is a hub of knowledge when it comes to artwork for print and heat press techniques. When he's not working his magic at Dot, Frere likes spending time with his friends and family and loves a good night out.
Sean Richardson
Screen Printer
Screen printing for over 18 years, Sean also first trained at Heatseal Textiles in 1987. He took a small break from printing during the 90s and was foreman at a record pressing plant. This may be where his love for music and in particular vinyl kicked in, but Sean admits to loving the Beatles (on vinyl or CD!). He’s also a big reader, loving George Orwell and used to be an active member of the TA.
Heliodor Skowronski
Screen Printer
Heli is our Polish member of the team and has been working at Dot for many years. Originally trained in sign making, he has now mastered the art of screen printing production. If he’s not busy printing at the carousels, Heli likes to take time out to meditate and do yoga so has a big collection of relaxing music. He’s also a bit of an artist and enjoys painting in his spare time.
