The story
Designer Tricia Guild founded the company Designers Guild in 1970, opening a shop on Kings Road in London. Her brother, Simon Jeffreys, joined the company in 1987, becoming Chief Executive.
Along with the company's main store in London, the British company sold goods including fabrics, upholstery and wall-coverings, via distributors internationally, and had showrooms in Paris, New York, Munich and Stockholm. By 2011, turnover had grown to over £50 million, and to £55 million by 2020.
Dunelm acquired the company's design collection and intellectual property, but agreed to license it back to the company, in a deal that did not include the Designers Guild shops or other assets, in 2025, after difficult trading conditions led to losses in 2022 and 2023, as the company had a large customer base in Europe and was impacted by Brexit.
The company went into administration in September 2026, with more than 90 employees made redundant. Sanderson agreed a 10 year licensing agreement with Dunelm, which allows Sanderson to create and sell luxury furnishings and interior design products such as fabrics, wallpapers and paint products, using the Designers Guild brand.
From Wikipedia’s article on Designers Guild, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3