Our story
The Handmade Christmas Co. was founded in London in 2012 with a simple idea: to create a more thoughtful and personal alternative to the traditional Christmas stocking.
Since launching our first personalised Christmas sack in 2014, our collection has grown to include gifts, decorations, crackers, hampers and family traditions, all created to make Christmas feel that little bit more special.
Today, our products have become part of Christmas for more than 700,000 customers around the world, with each personalised piece carefully hand-finished by our team in London.
Where it all began
The Handmade Christmas Co. was founded by Tom Coleman and Louis Porter in 2012. After two years of designing, testing and refining, we launched publicly in 2014 with a single personalised Christmas sack and a belief that the details of Christmas should feel more thoughtful, personal and lasting.
A growing collection
Our Great British Heritage collection introduced eight new Christmas sack designs, supported by a new website and brand identity. It was the beginning of a wider collection and the start of many customers returning to find matching pieces for their growing families.
From online to the high street
Partnerships with John Lewis and Debenhams took our collection onto the British high street. Seasonal pop-ups at John Lewis Oxford Street and Peter Jones in Sloane Square also allowed customers to watch their Christmas sacks being personalised while they waited.
Christmas across the UK
As the business grew, we moved into a larger South London studio and added personalised baubles and gift wrap to the collection. We also operated 47 seasonal pop-ups around the UK and opened an office in Orlando to support our growing US customer base.
Taking personalisation further afield
Our partnership with Target brought personalisation pop-ups to 78 locations across the United States, while our products were stocked by Selfridges in the UK. That same year, we fulfilled our 400,000th personalised product, a milestone made possible by customers around the world.
More ways to make Christmas personal
We invested in a new website and upgraded equipment in our London studio. The collection grew by more than 100 products, including personalised crackers, wooden decorations and Christmas Eve boxes, giving families even more ways to make Christmas their own.
Christmas, beautifully gifted
In a year when thoughtful gifting meant more than ever, we introduced our first collection of Christmas hampers. We also adapted and invested in our London operations, helping our team continue preparing every order safely and with care.
A dedicated home for our hampers
Following the response to our first hamper collection, we opened a second premises dedicated to preparing, storing and dispatching hampers. This allowed our original London studio to remain focused on personalised sacks, stockings, baubles, gift wrap and decorations.
New traditions join the collection
New cracker designs, craft cocktail fillings, stained-glass baubles and personalised cotton sacks joined the collection. We also expanded our Christmas Eve range and worked with artisan producers to create more than 12 new hampers.
Personalisation at Liberty
Letters from Santa, wooden decorations and Christmas Eve boards joined our growing collection. We were also delighted to offer live bauble personalisation inside Liberty’s famous Christmas Shop, while additional space and new team members supported our expanding hamper range.
Continuing to perfect the collection
Our focus remained on the details that matter, from the quality of our products and personalisation to the care that goes into preparing every order. We continued helping customers create thoughtful Christmas moments for family, friends, colleagues and clients.
Looking towards the next chapter
Drawing on more than a decade of specialist Christmas experience, we continued refining our collection and the service behind it. Our focus returned to the idea that inspired the business from the beginning: creating pieces that become part of Christmas year after year.
Made for Christmases to Come
More than a decade after our public launch, our purpose remains simple: to create thoughtful Christmas pieces that feel personal today and return as part of the celebration for years to come. From sacks beneath the tree to decorations unpacked every December, each piece is made for the Christmases still to come.