John Smedley Named Brand of the Year at Walpole's British Luxury Awards

John Smedley, the British knitwear label, has been named Brand of the Year at Walpole's British Luxury Awards. The prizes were presented at a gala at The Dorchester hotel in London, according to WWD, which reported the winners.

Walpole is the trade body that represents British luxury businesses, from fashion and jewellery to hotels and food. Its awards are decided within that industry, so they show how the trade sees each winner rather than how shoppers have voted.

Several other brands also took home prizes. Boodles, the jeweller, won Best Luxury Experience. Private White V.C., the outerwear label, won the Made in the U.K. award. Cadogan was named Sustainable Luxury Brand.

Two of the awards went to people and companies with wider reach. Gordon Ramsay, the chef and restaurateur, received the Visionary award. Mulberry, the leather goods and clothing house, won the Leadership award.

The gala was attended by 350 guests. The categories cover a range of the luxury business, from where a product is made to how a company treats the environment and how it is run.

The mix of winners shows the range of businesses Walpole represents. A knitwear maker, a jeweller, an outerwear label and a restaurant group all sat in the same room on the same night, each recognised for a different part of the work behind a luxury name.

For the people who make these goods, awards like these are one of the few public moments when a company's making, rather than its marketing, gets singled out. The prizes do not change how a garment is cut or sewn. They do give the winners a public record of what the industry chose to praise that year.