I was born in the fifth generation of the Church household. As “Church’s” is a public company, my father, the CEO at the time, advised me that it would be best to gain experience working elsewhere before I joined the family business. So, my first step after graduating from university was work at an international real estate firm in London for five years before returning to Northampton and coming on board at Church’s when I was 27.

I would then go independent with my cousin Jonathan, establishing “Joseph Cheaney” to preserve the traditions of British shoemaking using a different approach than that of Church’s, which was beginning to lean more towards luxury. As managing director, I now mainly oversee production at our workshops and keep an eye on our overseas endeavours. Visiting our business concerns in London and overseas is something I find to be interesting on a personal level and very motivating.

My son Thomas loves all sports, so in the winter I would join him in his rugby training. I don’t play the game myself, so I cycle and run to stay fit. It feels great to hop on a road bike and race through the countryside when I have free time. I’ll generally spend about two hours cycling for 30km. When I’m not doing that, I’ll most often spend 30 minutes running 5km.

When I was a child, my father would take my younger sister and I to the Church’s workshop on Saturday mornings. That was most likely the first time I saw and touched British shoes. The first time I actually wore a pair myself was when I turned 12 years old. My father gave me Church’s leather shoes made with the Goodyear welt method. But, since I was a child, my feet grew and soon I couldn’t wear them any longer (laughs). My cousin married last September, so I gave my son Thomas his first pair of Joseph Cheaney leather shoes for the occasion. Though they were UK 3, or quite a small size, I have to say my boy looked smarter than I would have thought possible in leather shoes.

I like products that with the same mind-set as my own company, which is to say possessing classic craftsmanship and background while implementing a contemporary sense of the times within that. For instance, the Paul Smith suit I’m wearing today both upholds the traditions of British tailoring while at the same time adding some playfulness in the design and colour of the lining. I think Glenroyal is similarly wonderful in how they adhere to solid workmanship yet also offer many different forms and color variations. The price may be a bit high-end, but when a product excels in both quality and performance I know that I am going to want to get a lot of use out of it.

I pretty much always wear suit at work, so I prefer bifold wallets that fit the inner pocket of my jacket. A longer wallet would stick out of my pocket when I wear jeans on my days off, too. I chanced upon this Glenroyal bifold wallet about two years ago and have been using it ever since. It’s great because it fits comfortably in a pocket, and I like the very classic British brown colour as well. Another attractive feature is the fact that it’s made out of hardy bridle leather, which means I will be able to enjoy seeing it transform over time.

This can be said of our clothing, leather goods, bicycles, and anything else, but I think it really comes down to a combination of the durability and comfort needed for something to be used regularly for an extended period of time. The wonderful thing about both Joseph Cheaney and Glenroyal is that their products are made with the premise that will see prolonged use, meaning that the quality level is high, and that they have workshops to handle repairs and maintenance. I live in a home that was built 300 years ago, and we’ve been using the same oven kitchen in it for over three decades. The times may be trending more towards mass consumption, but I hope that we can share the appeal of getting many years of use that is inherent in brands from the UK through our products.