It started with the ‘Piece Trade’ - the Company’s trade in a variety of textiles from India – calicoes, ginghams, muslins, chintzes to name only a few. Factories in Surat made cloth of a quality good enough to be traded back home.

Chintzes became important furnishing fabrics, as they retained their strong colours, and became in vogue for rooms with an Indian theme - the English being fascinated by tales of the exotic, and this was a small, ownable piece.

They especially liked a vibrant red dye, known as “East India Madder.” From the root of the madder plant, cloth dyed with madder dates back 1000s of years - it has been found in the tomb of Tutankhamun and the ruins of Pompei.

Today The East India Company madder red is still integral to our brand and our luxury gift boxes match the original colour.