Finding stylish, protective and high-quality motorcycle clothing is a continual quest for any biker, particularly if you’re a woman (be gone, pink stitching and butterfly prints). There are few manufacturers offering gear that ticks all three boxes, but Goldtop, an historic British brand that has recently been revived, is one of them. From a converted barn in Bishop’s Stortford, Goldtop supplies the UK’s coolest bikers with leather inspired by British café-racer heritage.

So, as the riding season commences, Brummell caught up with Joe Cullen (who owns the business alongside his dad, Kasey) to talk history, building a biker community, and safety-testing motorcycle gear.

What’s the story behind Goldtop? 

Goldtop began in Hull in 1951 as a manufacturer of equestrian clothing. In the same era, people were increasingly riding motorcycles for leisure, so the brand started making leather clothing for bikers and became one of the premier motorcycle-clothing manufacturers through the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s.

Sadly, Goldtop closed in the early 1990s because it couldn’t compete with the influx of foreign-made goods, but my dad and I revived it in 2012.

We’ve sourced a lot of Goldtop’s original jackets over the years to ensure that our modern iteration of the brand remains true to the original, although we do consider it a different company.

What elements of Goldtop’s equestrian heritage remain today?

We still use the original logo on our protective clothing, and the original sign from Hull has pride of place outside our store in Bishop’s Stortford. We also have original products on display throughout the store, with many classic styles now being remade in a more modern cut and specification.

You’ve had a lot of success reinventing classic Goldtop jackets. Why is there such great demand for retro style in the motorcycling world?

Retro styling has always been cool, and these days it is considered timeless. People want gear that provides the best protection, but also exudes quality and style and can be worn off the bike just as easily as on the bike, and that’s why our products are popular. We put these factors at the forefront of our design ethos.

How do you strike a balance between creating high-quality protective gear and maintaining affordability? 

Well, we start by designing things that we would love to wear ourselves. We do our utmost to ensure that all products are the absolute best they can be, and this means forever improving and tweaking products to increase quality and durability in all the construction. After we have made a product and worked out costings, we strive to give it a price that is both fair for customers and sustainable for our business.

Your garments are tested and certified with CE labelling, and jackets are AAA-certified, offering the highest level of protection in motorcycle safety. What’s involved in the testing?

All our materials go through chemical testing, and then the finished garment is tested for its resistance to bursting, tearing and general abrasion. The process is very thorough and there are many other tests at each stage of production, such as reviews of our final documentation.

We use thick high-quality leather, which means that we have the flexibility to design any jacket we want in that material, with the knowledge that it should have no problem achieving AAA rating.

Many of your gloves and jackets are made from aniline or semi-aniline cowhides. What benefits do these materials have?

Aniline and semi-aniline are the highest-quality leathers. During the tanning process, vegetable oils are mixed in, which penetrate the leather. The alternative is spraying them or dying the top of the hide, which is a cheaper technique that many other brands employ.

Imperfections in the leather show up on aniline hides because of this – they can’t simply be sprayed over – and so only the highest-quality hides can be used in aniline leathers, and thus in our jackets.

Another benefit of aniline and semi-aniline hides is that they stay very soft and supple, moulding to the shape of the wearer very quickly, while remaining very protective.

Tom Hardy wore your ’72 Easy Rider Jacket in the 2018 film Venom. What’s the story behind that?

The costume department got in touch, interested to see what our jackets were like compared to other brands. So we sent a selection of styles from our collection, and the ’72 Easy Rider Jacket ended up being the one that passed the screen-test and suited him best!

You hold regular bike meets at your store. What are they like, and who can join them?

Our bike meets are open to all – we get anyone and everyone turning up, from riders on L-plates with 125cc motorcycles, to huge 1200cc engine bikes. It’s a chilled-out place for people to come and relax and enjoy themselves, free from attitude and judgment.

What does the future look like for Goldtop?

We have so much planned for the future, with many new styles and designs in the works. We will always be a leather brand at heart, but we are also now venturing further into apparel that reflects our values of premium quality and timeless design.

goldtop.co.uk