We invited our Japanese retailer, Oriental Hobbies owner Eddie Ogura and his good friend and huge Billingham fan, Nao Obara to come to our factory to see us. Mr Obara has produced a brilliant write-up of his visit that we are pleased to share with you all.

This article has been translated from Japanese.

 The Billingham factory

The Beginning of the Journey

The flight took 23 hours from Haneda to London via Seoul. After changing to train, it was about two hours to reach Birmingham. We took a taxi from Birmingham and went on hilly roads for about 30 minutes. Looking out of the taxi window, I could see the cream-coloured building with the Billingham logo, just as I had seen in the photo. Until a few years ago, I never dreamed of actually coming to Billingham HQ. “We finally made it to Billingham,” said Mr Ogura with excitement. At the time, I had a pretty serious jet lag and was worried the condition might cause me to make some stupid mistakes during this visit.

'The Hadley Boys' | Mr Eddie Ogura (Oriental Hobbies) and Mr Nao Obara with their Hadley Pro and Hadley Original camera bags

Mr Ogura of Oriental Hobbies called me up one day and said, “Mr Obara, why don’t we ‘Hadley Boys’ visit Billingham’s headquarters in the UK?”. And that’s how this story began. Mr Ogura has an Imperial Blue Hadley Pro while I have a well-used Hadley Original. We love our Hadley bags so much that we started calling ourselves the 'Hadley Boys' jokingly when Oriental Hobbies became an official Billingham store. Up until now, I’ve written essays about my travels around the world with my Hadley as my companion for Oriental Hobbies, and also helped out at the Billingham exhibition in Yokohama, at Mr Ogura’s request, but I never expected to go so far as accompanying him to Billingham HQ in England. I thought the whole development became kind of fun and exciting.

At Billingham HQ

At 11am on 15 March 2024, when we got out of the taxi, the company director Harry Billingham and Executive Assistant Demi greeted us with smiles. We were escorted to the stairs of the newly renovated building and entered a pleasant reception room with sky-blue walls, where our heroes, Martin and Ros, the founders of Billingham, were waiting for us. After awkward self-introductions, we went on to have some casual conversations and felt at home immediately. On the table were some pieces of hard cake made by Ros. We were told to eat it with plenty of butter and it was extremely delicious. It had a rich British taste and we couldn’t stop eating. Now it’s time to tour the factory.

The factory was filled with soft natural light coming in from the ceiling 

As we entered the factory, I noticed a celebration was being held for a staff member who was going on maternity leave. I was delighted to hear that there has been a rush of new mothers recently. It was heartwarming to see all the staff celebrating together.

A party to celebrate a co-worker leaving to have a baby | A banner celebrating the 50th anniversary can be seen on the wall 

Seeing this, I felt like I understood what kind of company Billingham is. It is a company where the employees are happy. Everyone was smiling and looking like they were having fun. Billingham camera bags made in such a factory are sent out all over the world.

 The factory tour by director, Harry Billingham began with a look at the warehouse housing materials collected from around the world

The shoulder straps, which won't come undone even if the ends are cut, are made using the same method as the parachute harnesses used on the Space Shuttle

Tools for cutting leather parts

All Billingham bags are sewn with unique serial numbers so that their manufacturing history can be individually tracked

The factory is designed to streamline the production with automation, just as I read on the Billingham website. Harry said that relying solely on traditional craftsmanship is good when you need to make only a few bags but impossible to meet the current demand. That’s why they leave what can be automated to the latest equipment and make use of skilled techniques in the most important manufacturing process.

Factory worker sewing the Hadley Small Pro

The specially designed machines and jigs for cutting and sewing leather and fabrics contribute to the efficiency of production. But the most interesting thing I noticed was the frequent communication between the employees. If there were any questions, they would ask each other. And each employee actively involved in making improvements with creativity.

Factory workers dyeing the edges of leather parts

Caroline sewing on the production line

Mr Ogura, Caroline and Martin Billingham

Martin introduced us to Caroline who has been with the company for 40 years. She is a cheerful and charming person. She laughed shyly and said she’s nothing special. On the contrary, we were amazed to witness her expert sewing skills as she beautifully finished up the camera bag.

Martin Billingham, always smiling, accompanied us on the factory tour.

After the factory tour, we returned to the reception room, where Demi said she had a surprise for me. What a surprise! I was given a brand-new Hadley Original, which is no longer in production! Apparently, they had read the article I had written on the Oriental Hobbies website and thought that if there was a guy who had been travelling with the same Hadley for 20 years, they would make another one for him.

 [left to right] Demi, Harry Billingham, Nao Obara with a discontinued Hadley Original, Martin Billingham and Ros Billingham

I was so happy and excited that I lay down on the floor to demonstrate how to use a Hadley as a pillow when travelling. I explained that if you sleep with your camera bag as a pillow, nobody can steal it from you. Harry, who was watching this, also lay down on his camera bag as a pillow.

Nao Obara and Harry Billingham using Billingham bags as pillows 

Martin said to wait a moment and went into the back room to get his camera. Martin happily took a picture of Harry and me lying down with our Billingham bags as pillows. Ros and Demi burst out laughing at the unexpected turn of events. Mr Ogura gave a wry-smile.

Mr Ogura asked Martin to sign his autograph on his favourite Hadley Pro

It was Friday, so the factory closed early. We were invited to join a meal at an elegant restaurant on the hill. As soon as we sat down, Martin and Ros began their funny exchange over a menu, like a comedy duo and we all laughed like a family.

The meal was a traditional pub course menu, from starter to main course, and even dessert. Ros happily offered us whiskey. When we hesitantly asked for a single shot, everyone told us to get a double.

Mr Ogura was excited to have Martin’s autograph on the back cover of his Hadley. The lining is orange-coloured, so it stands out nicely.

Mr Obara showing his eyeball trick 

Mr Ogura asks me to do my usual trick with a plastic bottle for them. I did it without hesitation to show my appreciation for the occasion. Martin burst out laughing. Mr Ogura gave a wry smile.

[left to right] Ros, Katie, Mike, Demi, Harry, Martin, Nao Obara and Eddie Ogura 

As the sun set, the party came to an end and everyone saw us off as we got into a cab. We waved from the back seat of the taxi until they were out of sight. Mr Ogura said he enjoyed the visit so much, it felt like a dream. Yes, visiting Billingham HQ was like a dream come true for us.

I often forget the important things I feel at times like this but there are feelings I had to engrave in my mind on this day. First, I’m glad I use Billingham. Second, I must not forget the people who make these bags and their dedication to their jobs. Third, there is no doubt that Billingham manufactures valuable camera bags. The more you use it, the more attached you become. Finally, Billingham is a camera bag that will be with me throughout my life.

 The familiar Billingham logo

Our visit to Billingham HQ came about unexpectedly. I’d like to thank Mr Ogura who asked me to come along to Billingham HQ to coincide with the Birmingham Camera Show. We would like to express our gratitude once again to Ros and Martin, as well as Harry, Demi, Mike and everyone at Billingham HQ, who welcomed us so warmly.

It’s rare to have such a happy and enjoyable company visit. We hope they had a great time too. And we hope to visit again in the not-too-distant future.

The Hadley Boys!