Czech company sews hundreds of Union flags for Charles III coronation

Czechia will be a part of King Charles III’s coronation this weekend – and not only because President Petr Pavel is attending. A total of 800 British flags that will be used for the coronation are Czech-made.

Velebný & Fam, the company manufacturing the flags, spent three months designing and creating the special-made flags for the UK’s historic event on May 6. The Czech company has a partner in the UK that sells the flags. They will be made from polyester – a material that has more resistance to damage from weather changes.

The company notes, however, that the British flag is among the hardest to sew due to its intricate design. British flags for outdoor use on masts are approximately 1 meter by 2 meters, making them larger than Czech flags. 

The family business has a 300-year tradition of sewing and embroidering festive banners. In 2014, it won a tender to produce British flags. Velebný & Fam sews around 1,500 of them per year.

Owner of the firm František Velebný says that the textile market in Europe is gradually changing: "Manufacturers are pushing us to buy more [material]. It used to be enough for them to buy 20 or 30 meters of fabric, but now they want 200-meter rolls. For us, it's expensive and more complicated because of storage.”

Czech and UK ties have been historically close, and the Czech supply of British flags to the country underlines continued cooperation between both countries.