Selvedge denim is a fabric with a specific, traceable origin - woven on a narrow shuttle loom that produces a self-finished edge, preventing fraying and giving the cloth a density and character that industrial denim cannot replicate. The Gloverall x Dawson Denim collaboration uses 14.25oz organic red line selvedge denim woven on Toyoda looms in Okayama, Japan; each garment is then cut and finished at Dawson Denim's workshop in Brighton. We're precise about that because precision is the point of the whole exercise: this is Japanese cloth and British finishing, not a made-in-England range - and understanding why that specification was chosen is understanding the collaboration.
What is selvedge denim?
Selvedge denim - sometimes spelled selvage - is woven on a shuttle loom, a type of loom that carries a continuous weft thread from one edge of the fabric to the other. This creates a self-finished edge on both sides of the cloth - the selvedge - rather than the raw, cut edge produced by the projectile looms used in industrial denim production. The result is a denser, more tightly constructed fabric that ages differently from standard denim: it fades along stress lines and high-wear areas rather than uniformly, developing a patina that reflects how the individual garment has been worn rather than how it left the factory.
The selvedge edge is visible on the outseam of a well-cut pair of jeans or the cuff of a jacket - a narrow strip of finished cloth, often with a coloured ID thread running along it. On the Dawson Denim pieces sold through Gloverall, that ID thread is red: red line selvedge is a widely recognised quality marker in denim, and on these pieces it marks cloth woven at the specialist mills of Okayama. Standard modern denim is woven on projectile or rapier looms that are significantly faster and wider than shuttle looms. The cloth they produce is consistent but lacks the density and character of selvedge. The trade-off is efficiency: a shuttle loom produces a fraction of the fabric per hour that a modern loom can, which is why selvedge commands a premium and why it is produced by specialists rather than volume manufacturers.
What is a Toyoda loom?
A Toyoda loom is a power shuttle loom developed by Sakichi Toyoda - the founder of what became the Toyota industrial group - in Japan in the early 20th century. These looms became the foundation of Japanese denim production, particularly in the Kojima district of Okayama, which became the centre of Japanese selvedge denim manufacturing from the 1960s onwards as American mills moved away from shuttle loom production entirely.
Toyoda looms produce a denim of distinctive character: dense, slightly irregular in weave tension, with a texture that reflects the mechanical character of the loom itself. The slight inconsistency is not a flaw - it is part of what gives the fabric its depth and its fading behaviour. Toyoda loom denim cannot be exactly replicated by more modern machinery; when Gloverall and Dawson Denim specify it, that specification has a direct consequence for how the finished garment looks and wears over time.
Who is Dawson Denim?
Dawson Denim was founded in 2012 by Kelly Dawson and Scott Ogden, and operates from a shop-cum-workspace in an 18th-century mews in Brighton. Kelly's background is in denim design and production management; Scott's is in mid-century furniture restoration. Their workshop runs eleven vintage industrial sewing machines salvaged from the 1950s and 1960s, and patterns are drawn by hand, on paper, in the traditional manner.
Dawson Denim's fabric has always come from the specialist mills of Okayama - selvedge woven on Toyoda and Imamura looms. What began as small-batch UK production has grown, with Gloverall's support, into a deeper relationship with Japanese manufacture. For the pieces sold through Gloverall, the cloth is woven in Okayama and each garment is cut and finished at the Brighton workshop, where every piece is quality-inspected, then signed and numbered by its maker before dispatch.
The Gloverall x Dawson Denim collaboration
The collaboration was initiated by Gloverall creative director Mat Bickley, whose background in British independent fashion - from Camden Market onwards - informs an approach to collaboration rooted in craft rather than trend. "The ethos remains: small-scale production, obsessive attention to detail, and a deep respect for craft," Bickley has said of Dawson's deepening relationship with Japanese cloth.
The current collaboration includes the Men's Dawson Denim Type II Trucker Jacket in Washed Indigo and Ecru, the Men's Dawson Denim Wide Leg Fit Jeans in Washed Indigo, and the Men's Dawson Denim Standard Fit Jeans in Dark Indigo. All are made from 14.25oz double indigo organic cotton red line selvedge denim. The Type II Trucker Jacket - the classic Western denim jacket silhouette, here with pleated fronts, flap chest pockets, and back cinch tabs - is the centrepiece: the denim workwear tradition and Dawson's exacting standards in a single garment.
Where are the pieces made?
Plainly: the cloth is woven on Toyoda shuttle looms in Okayama, Japan, and every garment is cut and finished at Dawson Denim's workshop in Brighton. The Dawson Denim pieces are not made in England, and we don't describe them that way. Every coat in Gloverall's own Heritage Collection is made in England at our factory outside London - and the same standard of honesty applies in both directions: where something is made is stated, exactly, and never implied.
How to wear a selvedge denim jacket
Type II Trucker Jacket in Washed Indigo - white or grey crew-neck or heavyweight sweatshirt - slim or straight chinos or tailored trousers - Clarks Wallabees or penny loafers. A selvedge denim jacket is best treated as an investment piece: the more it is worn in consistent conditions, the better it looks. The Toyoda loom denim will fade along stress lines and high-wear areas, developing a pattern that reflects its specific history of use - the creases at the elbows, the wear at the cuffs, the pull lines at the chest pockets. Wear it over a white or grey crew-neck with slim chinos and Clarks Wallabees for a considered, heritage-adjacent combination. Penny loafers if the occasion sits slightly higher.
Type II Trucker Jacket in Ecru - white or off-white t-shirt - raw or dark selvedge jeans - Blundstone boots or Salomon hiking trainers. The Ecru colourway is the more unexpected version and suits a cleaner, more contemporary direction. Over a white or off-white t-shirt, with raw or dark selvedge jeans and Blundstone boots: the combination works because the ecru jacket reads as a piece rather than a casual layer. Salomon hiking trainers push it in a more active, trail-adjacent direction that the jacket's workwear origins can carry. Unlike a standard denim jacket, a selvedge piece should be washed as infrequently as possible - spot-clean when needed, soak rather than machine-wash, and never tumble dry. The patina the fabric develops over months and years of wear is part of its value.
Why Japanese selvedge in a British heritage brand?
The apparent contradiction - a British heritage brand offering Japanese denim - resolves when you understand what both Gloverall and Dawson Denim value in a material: density, durability, and a traceable manufacturing origin. Toyoda loom selvedge shares those qualities with the boiled and Melton wools Gloverall's coats are cut from. Both are among the densest, most hard-wearing expressions of their respective cloth. Both are products of a specific manufacturing tradition that industrial production has largely moved away from. Both improve rather than degrade with wear. The same instinct that keeps the Original Monty in production in England sends the collaboration to Okayama for its denim. The Gloverall x Dawson Denim collaboration is not a departure from Gloverall's values - it is an application of them in a different material, with makers who hold the same ones.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is selvedge denim?
Selvedge denim is woven on a narrow shuttle loom that produces a self-finished edge on both sides of the cloth. It is denser and more characterful than standard denim, fades along wear lines rather than uniformly, and typically carries a coloured ID thread on its edge - on the Dawson Denim pieces, a red line marking cloth from Okayama's specialist mills. It is produced by a small number of specialist manufacturers, primarily in Japan.
Is selvedge denim better than regular denim?
For buyers who value durability, patina, and a traceable manufacturing origin, selvedge denim is the stronger choice: it ages with more character, holds its construction longer, and develops a wear pattern that reflects individual use. It is more expensive, requires more careful maintenance, and fades in ways that won't suit every preference. For buyers who want a consistent, low-maintenance casual fabric, standard denim is more practical. The Dawson Denim pieces at Gloverall are for the former buyer.
What makes Toyoda loom denim special?
A Toyoda loom is a power shuttle loom developed by Sakichi Toyoda in early 20th-century Japan and the foundation of Okayama's selvedge denim industry. The fabric it produces has a density and slight irregularity of weave tension that modern projectile looms cannot replicate - the mechanical character of the loom is present in the cloth itself. It fades with more depth and definition than industrial denim and holds its construction under sustained wear.
What is in the Gloverall x Dawson Denim collaboration?
The current collaboration includes the Men's Dawson Denim Type II Trucker Jacket in Washed Indigo and Ecru, the Men's Dawson Denim Wide Leg Fit Jeans in Washed Indigo, and the Men's Dawson Denim Standard Fit Jeans in Dark Indigo. All are made from 14.25oz double indigo organic cotton red line selvedge denim. Each piece is signed and numbered by its maker.
Where are the Gloverall x Dawson Denim pieces made?
The denim is woven on Toyoda shuttle looms in Okayama, Japan, and each garment is cut and finished at Dawson Denim's workshop in Brighton, where it is quality-inspected, signed and numbered before dispatch. The collaboration pieces are not made in England. Every coat in Gloverall's Heritage Collection is made in England at our factory outside London - see our Made in England page for the full range-by-range breakdown.
