Chelsea Leather Goods Shop With Free Leather Feeds: Pickett

Pickett's Chelsea store is at 149 Sloane Street, London SW1X 9BZ, and it keeps simple hours: Monday to Saturday 10am-6pm, closed on Sunday. It is a leather goods shop that still has its belts, briefcases and wallets made in England from start to finish, and anyone who owns a Pickett leather piece can bring it in for a complimentary leather feed.

The story starts on 16 June 1980, when Trevor Pickett began working at a leather company called Unicorn in Burlington Arcade. He bought that business in 1988 and launched the Pickett brand the same year. The company's own history calls him the quintessential English eccentric, and his line on the about page sums up the tone of the shops: my work is my pleasure and my pleasure is my life.

Pickett soon added a second shop on Sloane Street and later grew the Chelsea site to include retail space on Sloane Terrace. Along the way it brought in things that were hard to buy in Britain at the time, including pashminas and kilim slippers. The Mayfair flagship has since moved from Burlington Arcade to Albany, at Burlington Gardens, but Sloane Street is the one to visit if you are shopping in Chelsea or Knightsbridge.

Pickett describes its stores as an inviting emporium. A Lux Life profile written for the company's 30th anniversary went further, describing a collection of rooms that each reveal products in their own area, with visitors guided through rooms of discovery reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland. Expect bridle leather briefcases on one table, backgammon boards on another, and the brand's bright orange and dark green packaging everywhere you look.

The mix is the point. You can buy a serious work bag here, but you can also walk out with a leather backgammon set or a pair of slippers for a birthday. The Sloane Street listing notes that this shop offers a bespoke gifting service, and Gentleman's Journal once called Pickett a go-to destination for leather goods in London. It suits the browser more than the shopper with one precise item in mind.

Pickett says it is one of the last remaining stores to have its leather goods made in England from start to finish, using small specialist workshops and individual craftsmen, some of whom have worked with the company for more than 23 years. Much of the leather is British and hand-finished with traditional vegetable tanning, a process that can take up to 40 days. Most hides are cowhide, goatskin or lambskin.

The Two Pocket Traditional Briefcase, in British bridle hide with a polished brass lock, costs £995 in brown, tan or black. The J-style Single Pocket Briefcase is £645, unlined so you see the smooth natural reverse of the leather. The C11 Bridle Hide Belt, 3.2 cm wide with a solid brass buckle, is £175, and the calfskin Short Wallet with a lambskin interior is £225.

Among the games, the A4 Backgammon Set in soft grained Parham leather is £855, and the Large Backgammon Set is £1,250. Men's Kilim Slippers are £195 and ladies' £165, and each pair is unique in colour and pattern. Our pick for a first visit is the C11 belt. Bridle hide is tallow-waxed and develops a rich patina, and a belt shows that ageing faster than any bag in the shop.

One honest caveat: the backgammon sets are beautiful, but at £855 for the A4 size they are a gift for someone who will actually play. If you are buying for the look on a shelf, a belt or wallet in the same leathers gives you more daily use for the money. Scarves and handbags cannot be refunded once bought in store, so be sure before you pay for either.

Embossing is done by hand with a heated press, in gold, silver or blind. It costs £15 for a minimum of three letters, with extra letters at £5 each, and takes 2-3 working days. Gift purchases are wrapped in orange tissue and placed in a dark green box with an orange satin ribbon, although sale items are not gift-wrapped.

The best reason to come back is aftercare. Pickett offers a complimentary leather feed on all of its leather products and invites owners to drop into a store for it. Its workshop, which has been running for over 20 years, handles full restorations, and the company will also quote for repairs to leather goods from other makers. The item has to be handed in at a store, and a quote usually follows within 2 weeks.

Across the road, Holy Trinity, at 146 Sloane Street, is the parish church that shares Pickett's postcode, and Sloane Square station is about two minutes' walk south of it. From Sloane Square, follow the King's Road west to the Saatchi Gallery, at the Duke of York's HQ on King's Road, which the gallery puts at roughly 300 yards from the square. It makes a good loop with a coffee stop on the way.

If the colour or size you want is not on the shelf, Pickett lets you reserve articles at any of its stores by phone or email, so ring ahead and have it waiting. The Mayfair flagship at Albany on Burlington Gardens is the fallback if Chelsea has sold out, and it is also the shop to use if you are already near Piccadilly rather than Sloane Square.

Address: 149 Sloane Street, London SW1X 9BZ. Hours: Monday 10am-6pm, Tuesday 10am-6pm, Wednesday 10am-6pm, Thursday 10am-6pm, Friday 10am-6pm, Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday closed. Sloane Square on the Circle and District lines is the nearest station, and Knightsbridge on the Piccadilly line is roughly ten minutes' walk north.

In-store refunds are given within 2 weeks of purchase, and after that only exchanges or gift cards are offered within a month, with a receipt or gift receipt required. Personalised and bespoke items cannot be returned, and bespoke pieces take 6-8 weeks. Click and Collect at Sloane Street is free. Ask Karpo in the Karpo APP to plan a Sloane Square to King's Road afternoon with Pickett on the way.