Few British clothing brands have travelled quite as far as Lyle & Scott.
Founded in Hawick in the Scottish Borders in 1874, the company began life producing knitted underwear and hosiery. More than 150 years later, the same name can be found on jackets that change colour according to temperature, knitwear activated by sunlight and outerwear that reveals hidden patterns when it rains.
It sounds like an unlikely progression.
But look through Lyle & Scott’s history and reinvention has been part of the story for much longer than its latest technical clothing might suggest.
Lyle & Scott was established by William Lyle and Walter Scott in 1874, building its early reputation around Scottish knitwear.
By the middle of the twentieth century, however, the company was beginning to move far beyond its original foundations.
One of the most surprising chapters arrived in 1954, when Lyle & Scott began working with Christian Dior. The relationship resulted in cashmere collections carrying the Dior name and helped place the Scottish manufacturer within an increasingly international luxury market.
It is a fascinating part of the company’s history when viewed from today.
Long before collaborations became a standard part of fashion marketing, a Scottish knitwear manufacturer was already using its production knowledge to work with one of the most prestigious names in European fashion.
But another relationship would ultimately become even more important to the identity of Lyle & Scott.
During the 1960s, golf became increasingly central to the brand.
The Golden Eagle emblem emerged during this period and would eventually become one of the most recognisable logos in British menswear.
Lyle & Scott’s connection with the sport grew considerably over the following decades. Gary Player won The Open in 1974 wearing the Golden Eagle, while Jack Nicklaus wore Lyle & Scott when winning his third and final Open Championship at St Andrews in 1978. The company also supplied the European Ryder Cup team in 1981. Lyle & Scott
Golf gave Lyle & Scott something beyond sporting credibility.
It created a visual identity.
V-neck knitwear, polo shirts, colour, argyle patterns and the small Golden Eagle became immediately recognisable. Yet, as happened with several sporting brands in Britain, the clothing eventually escaped the environment it had originally been designed for.
By the 1980s and 1990s, sporting clothing was becoming increasingly important within British youth culture.
Football supporters were looking beyond conventional replica sportswear towards labels associated with golf, tennis, skiing and European leisurewear.
Lyle & Scott fitted naturally into that world.
The Golden Eagle began appearing away from golf courses and within British football culture, joining a wider wardrobe in which the original purpose of a garment mattered less than how it was being reinterpreted by the people wearing it.
That transition is an important part of understanding the company today.
Lyle & Scott had started with knitwear, entered luxury fashion, established itself within golf and subsequently found another audience through football and British street style.
Now the brand is attempting another shift.
And this one is considerably more technical.
For Autumn/Winter 2026, Lyle & Scott has expanded what it calls The Reactive Series, a collection of outerwear and knitwear designed to physically respond to the environment around the wearer.
The idea began with its Heat Reactive Jacket and has now developed into a wider range using four different reactive technologies: heat, water, ultraviolet light and low-light conditions. Lyle & Scott
The heat-reactive pieces change colour according to temperature. In the current Washed Brown/Cove outerwear, darker brown shifts towards a lighter beige as the material becomes warmer before returning as it cools. The technology has also moved into knitwear for AW26, including a crew-neck jumper that changes from Ice Blue towards white. Lyle & Scott
Then there is water.
The Water Reactive Shell Jacket appears relatively understated when dry. Once rain reaches the material, however, a Lyle & Scott monogram becomes visible across the shell. As the jacket dries, the pattern gradually disappears again. Lyle & Scott
Other pieces respond to UV exposure, changing appearance when exposed to sunlight, while the Glow Reactive technology is designed to illuminate in darker conditions. Milled
Rather than technology being hidden somewhere inside the garment, the reaction itself becomes part of its appearance.
There is something particularly appropriate about Lyle & Scott experimenting with reactive clothing.
Britain’s famously unpredictable weather becomes part of the design process.
Rain doesn’t simply hit the jacket. It reveals something.
Temperature doesn’t simply determine what you wear. It changes what you are already wearing.
Sunlight and darkness become capable of altering the garment again.
The original Heat Reactive Shell Jacket was itself described as a contemporary reworking of a lightweight jacket silhouette associated with British football supporters, connecting the company’s cultural past with its current experimentation. FashionUnited
That connection matters because the Reactive Series doesn’t feel completely detached from the Lyle & Scott people already know.
The Golden Eagle remains. Familiar outerwear, knitwear and sporting silhouettes remain.
What has changed is the fabric.
There is always a difficulty for brands with more than a century of history.
Heritage can become an enormous advantage, but it can also become a restriction. The temptation is to continually reproduce the products and periods for which a company is already known.
Lyle & Scott appears increasingly interested in using its archive differently.
As the company’s Head of Design Lewis Gowler explains, the approach is about testing new technologies while pushing familiar silhouettes into new territory, allowing the company to build on its history while still looking forward. Lyle & Scott
And perhaps that is where the Reactive Series becomes more interesting than the novelty of a jacket changing colour.
There is a line connecting many of the apparently unrelated chapters in Lyle & Scott’s history.
A Scottish hosiery manufacturer moved into luxury cashmere. A knitwear company found a new identity through golf. Golf clothing was subsequently adopted by football supporters. More than 150 years after the company was established, those familiar sporting silhouettes are now being used to experiment with responsive materials.
The products have changed considerably.
The willingness to move with them hasn’t.
From Christian Dior and championship golf to British football culture and clothing that responds to rain, sunlight and body heat, Lyle & Scott’s 152-year history suggests that heritage doesn’t have to mean looking backwards.
And perhaps the most interesting chapter is the one it is currently writing.
