About us
Our history
Out of the City was founded by Sky and Richard McCann in 2004, a couple that come from a family with a long heritage in the country sports community.
Sky knows the countrywear market like no other. Her great-grandfather founded one of Lancashire's oldest and most respected gun shops in 1920, which has passed down through four generations and is still owned and run by the same family today. This is where she began her career, spending the first decade of her working life running the shooting clothing and footwear department. Spotting the potential of the internet in 2004, with the help of her husband she founded Out of the City, an online business specialising in country clothing and footwear for the most discerning buyer.
Why us?
Sky still personally oversees all of the buying today, scouring the market every year to find the very best products based on a clear ethos of balancing quality with style. Everything we sell must perform the function for which it was designed first and foremost, plus look great and represent value for money. You'll find all of the biggest brands here including Barbour, Dubarry, Le Chameau, Musto, Hunter, Schoffel and Laksen - to name but a few. And if Sky and Richard don't like it, well, we don't sell it. Simple.
We're not just retailers - we live and breathe the country life, take part in country sports, and we wear and use the products that we sell on a daily basis. We have first hand product knowledge that helps us to help you. If we've tried and tested something that we've found to be lacking, you'll no longer find it on this website.
We began life as an online only business, and although these days we have a beautiful store as well, we continue to strive for technological advancements so that we can offer you the best possible experience of shopping online. We offer 'live' stock on this website so you can immediately see whether or not an item is in stock ready for immediate despatch. Often if something is out of stock we'll be able to supply within a matter of days - just give us a call to check how quickly we can get one in for you. Throughout the order process we'll keep you up to date with emails notifying you of the status of your order and delivery, so you can sit back in the knowledge that your order is being handled by experts.
Our team are a dedicated and enthusiastic bunch. Whether it's style advice, help with fit, a problem under warranty, a question about delivery - give us a call, or if you're local pop in and see us- our staff are always on hand to offer help and advice.
Corporate Social Responsibility
RESPONSIBILITY FOR OUR SPORT
We believe that it is our responsibility to promote and protect both sporting shooting and the conservation of our countryside, and we support a number of bodies that work toward these goals in the UK. We are trade members of BASC, the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, patroned by the Duke of Edinburgh.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
We believe in the importance of a sustainable business supporting the local community and charities on a regional and national scale, and we have always invested particular interest in children's causes. Over the years we've supported numerous schools, charities and community projects in our local area, and are proud to have supported national children's charities including the NSPCC and the BBC Children in Need Appeal every year. We continue to support the government initiative to encourage young people into work and learn new skills, having recruited a number of young apprentices into the business every year for the last few years, some of whom have gone on to become our most relied upon members of staff.
THE ENVIRONMENT
At Out of the City, we are always looking for ways to reduce our environmental impact.
Recycled Packaging - Most of our orders are despatched in plastic mailing bags that are produced from 100% recycled plastics. So if you've ever wondered why we chose to have bags in such an odd colour, that's the reason!
Waste Management - We send no less than 100% of our waste paper, plastics, drink cans, pallets and cardboard for recycling. This keeps the production of other waste in the company to a minimal amount of non-recyclable materials.
Location - Our warehouse is located in Buckshaw Village, the largest brownfield redevelopment site in Europe. This entire new residential, commercial and industrial village has been built on the site of the former Royal Ordnance factory, redeveloping several square kilometres of abandoned industrial land.