A touch of luxury
It was in 1975 that Geoffrey Bassett, who owned and worked in All Blinds & Shutters, a London company, opened premises in York Road, Hartlepool, in the United Kingdom. His girl friend, Dianne Lithgo (but now known as Mrs Bassett) with the assistance of three other local ladies, made curtains for the London operation.

At first, this work was carried out on standard flat machines. Now overlockers and blind stitch machines are used to give results that look just the same as hand sewing. Our work began as an outlet for All Blinds & Shutters because manufacturing outlets were so few and far between. Local by-laws meant that the front of the building had to be kept as a retail outlet so rolls of fabric were displayed in the window. If customers came in, their orders were a bonus. However, local work grew and grew so when the Italian furniture shop closed next-door we bought it.

We attribute our success to offering our customers a touch of luxury - plus the benefit of Geoff's London experience that ensures our stock includes new fashions as soon as they are available.

The store is laid out with around 20 window-sized displays to show clients the range and variety of work we can carry out. Books of samples contain fabrics ranging from the plain and simple to exclusive printed silk.

We offer no written guarantee because, on the rare occasions a customer complains, we make personal restitution and settle the occasional problem in an amicable way.

The company is one of the largest independent curtain retailers in the area. David Burmiston joined Dianne and Geoff as a director after 15 years of service, starting on a YTS scheme. We are committed to maintaining high standards (excellence is our standard) and we are looking to grow our business in other areas of the world

Geoffrey Bassett, David Burmiston, Dianne Bassett