About Us

N. Fulcher Coachtrimmer is a long established coachtrimming company based in Hethersett and has worked for some of the biggest names in the motoring industry.

I started my working career as a bespoke tailor at one of the best Bespoke tailors in Norwich. After working for Harry Darby's for six years it was time to move on to bigger things, this is where my coachtrimming career kicked off.

I started work for Lotus cars based in Hethel just south of Norwich. I was working in the trim production department, after 6 to 8 months in the trim shop, the powers that be, realized the potential they saw in me, and I was asked to sort out the existing problems that they had with trim design and production.
Lotus then sent me off to Jaguar cars to work with John Pete in their interior trim dept to learn more about trimming with hide, then I was off to Connolly's for a few days to see how leather was taken from its raw wet state, to a finished tanned hide and to learn more about how a hide can and should be used.
After a while I was running the Engineering Trim Design and Development Dept where we worked on the interiors from concept to design and development, as well as special little projects like, working at Pinewood Studios with the special effects team on a Lotus Esprit which was used in the Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me. After encountering trim production problems with the Éclat and Elite 504 I went to Ital Design in Turin to work alongside Giorgetto Giugiaro when the Esprit was styled so that we could eliminate those past production problems.

In 1977 it was time to start up on my own and N. Fulcher Coachtrimmer was registered on the 5th October. Since that day I have never wondered where the next job was going to come from, we've been constantly flat out!

I've done all sorts of different types of work since I started up, as well as the De-Lorean project I've been over to Belgium to work on the Duchatelet Mercedes cars, I took all of my equipment across the channel and worked 12 to 16 hour days ending up at the end working solidly for three days and two nights to get three cars ready for the Geneva Motor Show. After that I was backwards and forwards to Belgium for the next 18 months training staff over there how to produce what I had done.
The pilots of the British Airways 747's and Tristars are flying in comfort thanks to me; I was approached to re-upholster the cockpit seats for the pilots, co pilots and navigators, as well as this massive under taking I have also worked on private jets, second world war aircraft and also worked for Ford's at their Boreham Wood competition department on the prototype RS200.

My tailoring skills have never left me and were used to their full potential again when I was asked to make a wedding dress, only thing was, it was no simple dress. Having made a hood for the dress designer's Jaguar some years previous, she finally approached me after having no joy in London with the top designers / dressmakers. The dress was an Elizabethan style dress that was made using fine lace, satin and had rows upon rows of pearls on the bodice with diamante and dropped pearls also. As well as this there was a 12 ft train with sequined flowers sewn on and yet more diamante and dropped pearls. The young lady who was to be married got married in the church where Shakespeare was buried, the dress needless to say did not look out of place in the lovely surroundings of Stratford-upon-Avon.

With this job you never know what's going to land in your lap! I've never been to Disneyland Paris but my work has. I received a telephone call from a design company in Suffolk asking me if I could do some trimming work for them, “not a problem“ I tell them, ”What is it?” It turns out that they were designing a display piece for the new theme park, I ended up trimming a whole set of treasure chests that are in the park somewhere! There's no prize's for telling me where they are, I don't want anybody to spoil my fun should I go someday.

Moving on from Paris we are now doing work for a local company who specializes in 1 off designed high-class furniture for individual clients. The last piece we trimmed was a 5ft by 3ft cinema table in Connolly hide to the customer's request and specified colour. We then re-trimmed it in calf-skin (especially imported from the states) because the customer decided it would look far better. Although we are currently working on a new project, this is as far as we take our domestic upholstery services; we aren't sofa specialists and will never pretend or want to be.

Anybody who walks into my workshop will see that I have a passion for motor racing, this all stemmed from working at Lotus cars and having the chance to get involved, I used to trim all the seats, some of the steering wheels for the drivers and also used to alter racing overalls and helmets to suit drivers requirements right from the days of Graham Hill and Jochen Rindt through to Johnny Herbert, Mika Hakkinen and Alessandro Zanardi.

In 1997 my son Stephen decided he wanted a change of career and I was pleased to take him on board, since then Stephen has been working his apprenticeship and now works to the same high standards that I expect, he is a huge asset to the company and will soon be ready to take over the reigns when I retire in a few years time.
My youngest son Andrew also deserves a mention, although he doesn't work for the company he has been a great help in getting this web site up and running, without him it would not have been possible. Many Thanks Andrew