Chrysalis dates to 1985, when founder Chris Blackmore made what is credited as the first waterproof tweed shooting coat. Tweed had been the countryside’s cloth for generations, but it behaved like a sponge in a downpour. Making it weatherproof without ruining its handle and drape was a problem everyone complained about and almost nobody solved.

That one idea set the company’s course. Four decades later it still makes shooting coats, but the range now includes topcoats, rainwear for men and women, shooting vests, breeks and sports jackets, plus more recent retro workwear and military-style outerwear. Its coats reach fine stores around the world, and the company says they are worn by royalty, musicians and actors as well as farmers and game shooters.

The visit began, sensibly, with the fabric. Rolls of tweed lean against the wall like sleeping giants, in herringbones, checks and heathery mixtures that look like a Highland hillside in October. Chrysalis uses natural fibres woven in the British Isles, and standing among the rolls we could see why that matters. Good tweed has weight and a slight roughness under the thumb, and it tells you how it will age.

One of us ran a hand along a roll of heavyweight grey herringbone, the kind that goes into the long raglan-sleeved overcoats. It was dense and springy, and it felt like cloth that could take a decade of weather.

From the cutting table, bundles of pieces travel to the machinists, who work through each garment in stages. This is where the shape of a tailored coat takes form. Collars are built to stand properly against the neck, and sleeves are set so the arm can swing, reach and ease movements without the whole coat riding up.

The raglan overcoats are perhaps the best example of this practice. The sleeve runs in one line from collar to cuff, with no set-in seam across the shoulder, which gives a generous, comfortable fit and a clean, classic silhouette. A tall collar adds weather protection. It is a design that began as practical dress and is still the best answer to the question it was asked.

Detail work is everywhere. Pockets are cut deep enough to be useful, and linings are chosen to make a coat easy to slip on over a jacket or jumper. Nothing is there for show, and nothing is missing.