St Nicolas

St Nicolas provides a vast range of fun, exciting and unique decorations that capture the imagination and create a lasting memory. We work with sites in the UK and across the world mainly in cultural, historic and religious sectors. For over 30 years we have worked with a small Christian charity in Thailand that helps women in rural areas find work within their community rather than having to leave home to work in a city. Some 300 skilled women work at home hand sewing our decorations and many have been part of the team for more than 10 years. Our ever-growing range of figures are made by this team as well as many of our building façade decorations. For more than 20 years we have also had a flourishing relationship with our partners in India who make decorations using the traditional method of zardozi embroidery. Zari – meaning gold – embroidery originated in Persia and reached India in the 12th century. This is a highly skilled technique that traditionally used gold wires and jewels to embellish courtly robes. Today zardozi work is a rare and respected craft and is recognized as one of the ‘Ancient Handicrafts’ by the Government of India. The skill is handed down from generation to generation. St. Nicolas continues to support the same family-run business in Northern India that it has since 1999. We are incredibly proud of the provenance of our products. All of our London based team visits our suppliers regularly and communicates with them on an almost daily basis. This close and long-term working relationship means that we are able to supply unique, handmade designs at competitive prices while at the same time ensuring the welfare of the artisans we are privileged to work with.