Derby's queen of hats

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For more than half a century Kara Stott lavished love and attention on the Derby millinery shop she opened at the age of 22. Now retired, she shares her memories with Jill Gallone.

Elegance, the like of which Britain will never see again, emanates from Kara Stott’s very pores. The term “lady” is now deemed old hat but Kara, 76, truly is the real thing, a product of a better time and gentler place.

Kara Stott outside her shop in the 60s

And so is her shop, Kara’s, the place she finally waved goodbye to on Saturday (September 29, 2007) after an incredible 54 years.

Other than being regularly spruced up and redecorated, it has not changed from the original design brief Kara created more than half a century ago.

“I wanted it to have a boudoir theme,” she said. “When I first walked in it reminded me of a ballroom with its parquet flooring and high ceilings. It seemed huge. I couldn’t afford expensive shop fitments, so I went to auction houses and found the two settees and mirrors.

The mirrors are something else, magnificently large curved creations. And the elegant settees fit in perfectly with Kara’s lavishly feminine pink theme.

“Little girls love my shop,” said Kara, who was born in Alvaston and went to Friar Gate House School. So do big girls. Kara’s has been part and parcel of life in Queen Street since February, 1953, when Kara, or Kathleen as she is sometimes known, went into business at the age of 22. It was a big step for the immaculate, style-conscious and artistic young woman, who had studied and taught hat making.

“I had always wanted my own business,” she said. “My grandparents used to run a picture framing and arts materials shop just round the corner from here and my mother had a sweet shop and a hat shop.”

Her mother ran Kathleen’s in Pear Tree Road.

“After the war everything was on ration except for hats,” said Kara. “That’s why we went into it. You could make hats from anything.”

At the time women, rich and poor, wore hats every day and milliners did excellent business.

“Everyone went to Kara’s,” recalled Bygones writer Pat Parkin. “It was the place to go. Very posh and very good.”

In the early days, thanks to her hat-making skills, Kara’s creations took to the hat stands.

“In later years I was too busy selling and buying them in to make them,” she said. “Apart from fascinators.”

Warmed by her mother’s success, Kara decided to branch out alone. “I wanted to go a little more upmarket and sell the very best quality hats.”

Kara headed off to London for inspiration, the latest trends and to buy hats from the designers beloved by royalty and high society. She bought London glamour to a provincial town – and the women of Derby loved her for it.

Ladies' Circle members dip into a treasure trove of hats at the Derbyshire Yeoman in 1962. They were taken along by Kara who sometimes did hat fashion shows for women's groups

“My first customer was Lady Scarsdale from Kedleston Hall, ” said Kara. “She bought a little half hat with a feather. She had long silvery grey hair piled up. After that, my shop became a regular stopping off point for her.”

It set a trend. The upper echelons of Derbyshire society flocked to Kara’s, as did any woman in need of a hat. With Kara’s eye for colour, face shapes and styles, she excelled at helping women find something to suit them. And the choice, as it still is today, was amazing.

Big or small, every colour imaginable, Ascot or wedding regalia, day wear or winter warmers, Kara had them all. In fact, she still has. “I have always loved hats – everything about them, the styles and all the shades. I enjoy choosing them. A lot of my hats are for special occasions, such as Ascot, the season or royal garden parties.

“I have supplied hats to people attending royal events, including Prince Charles’ wedding to Diana. I have to see the outfit though, then I can find a colour to match exactly.”

Kara talks quietly and carefully in a voice that is as elegant as she is. Even now, she declines to reveal the names of any famous or wealthy customers. She is utterly discreet.

And, at 76, she is as immaculate as ever. She is wearing a vivid red dress. Her lipstick matches the shade perfectly. Unusual jewellery contrasts with the outfit to make her look bang up to date.

She moves a little slower than she did 54 years ago but, other than that, little has changed. “I love it here,” she admits. “I am reluctantly retiring. My husband keeps on to me. He retired 19 years ago!”

Kara, who lives just a mile away from her city centre shop, has worked full time for the last 54 years. Time off has been a rarity and days off sick unheard off. “You aren’t allowed to be sick if you have your own business. My mother always used to say ‘if you can stand you can work’.”

Kara even went to work on the day her son, Chris, was born. “I wasn’t sure but I thought I might be in labour, so I got myself to hospital. It was near Christmas and I had Christmas off. Then it was back to work. I used to take Chris with me.”

Having your own business has its benefits when children come along, as Kara discovered. She broke the mould to some extent. Back in the early 50s, most women were still shackled to the home and it was almost unheard of to go out to work if you had children. Kara ignored convention and, thanks to support from her husband, Don, now 83, forged on with her career.

“I never liked housework but I did enjoy meeting people, dealing with pretty things all the time and dressing people up.”

Kara also enjoyed witnessing changing hat fashions. Blessed with movie star good looks, she often modelled for advertising purposes and her precious photo album is like a history of hats.

Kara Stott at Kara's in Queen Street, Derby, with Beverley Smith, who has taken over the business on Kara's retirement

“In the 50s people wore hats every day and would buy three at a go for the season. Things changed in the 60s. The mini skirt came in and a very young look. Hats became floppy and fun.

“There was a time when real fur hats were very popular, too, though, of course, they would never be sold now.”

Though hats are no longer worn as an everyday fashion item, the need for them has never gone away. So, Kara’s finds itself in the rare and privileged place of being a small, privately-owned business that has survived through thick and thin. And Kara’s will go on.

“Beverly Smith, who has been my assistant for the last 13 years has taken over the shop,” said Kara. “She’s inclined to do things the same way as me. As well as hats, she has bought in a range of matching handbags and pashminas. She also plans to sell shoes. I am pleased the shop will go on. It’s been my life. As far as I know, it is the longest surviving hat shop in Derby. ”

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