About Us

The Kilt Hire Co began hiring & selling kilts in 1991, in the town of Musselburgh, on the East coast of Scotland. Our first premises were in one of the town’s smallest shops, so small you could touch both walls at once! 

Our reputation for keen pricing and commitment to excellent customer service quickly grew, with regular customers coming back time and time again to both hire and buy.  Since those early days, we have expanded and moved premises three times in Musselburgh before finally settling in our very successful Bridge Street site.

Our Edinburgh Kilt Hire Branch Opens

In 1994 we expanded and opened our second store at Haymarket Terrace in central Edinburgh. 

Our Edinburgh store was bursting at the seams with customers and stock.  So much so that in April 1999, we expanded the store to incorporate the vacant unit next door, trebling the floor space and allowing us to not only to offer a wider selection of  kiltsand highland wear, but a superb selection of morning and evening wear as well.

Kilt Hire Warehouse

April 2002 saw a further expansion of the business and a change of philosophy from individual stores with individual stock, to a central warehousing unit, located just outside Dalkeith.  This is where all of our hired outfits are cleaned, prepared and dispatched to the branches for collection.   We also opened a small retail space at the warehouse in Hardengreen, Dalkeith, to add to our existing stores.

Our Dundee Kilt Hire Branch Opens

Our new concept store in Dundee was opened in December 2005.

We created a new, fresh and exciting store, where visitors are given a 3D visual experience.

In September 2006 our corporate image was given a fresh, modern look and we refurbished our now flag-ship Haymarket branch, giving the store a feeling of more space and a contemporary vibe in keeping with today’s modern High Street, totally different to any kilt store we have ever seen before.
This bold new move has taken us into the next century.

We are currently bar-coding all of our hire stock in the stores and warehouse using our new central server based computer system.  This allows us to co-ordinate the stock throughout the company so if the store you visit does not have available what you are looking for, we are able to source from one of the other stores or warehouse to meet your requirements.

If you are unable to visit one of our stores then that’s no problem either!  We are more than happy for you to call or book on-line and my experienced staff will guide you through our range to help you to find your ideal personal outfit.  It is our philosophy that even in the technology based, high-tech world of today, it is a personal and individual service that is a key factor to success.

In this day and age we are fighting to keep Scottish retail jobs & home worker industries alive, and by where possible sourcing products which are produced in Scotland, we hope to do our bit to help this cause.

More & more retailers are giving in & buying a large percentage of their stock from foreign lands, foregoing quality for lower prices.

Times are changing!  Customers are right to demand a better choice and easier accessibility, wherever you happen to be in the World, so while our branches are closed outwith normal working hours, and the staff are preparing for the next day (or partying!) you can now browse our extensive product range online.

I hope you enjoy The Kilt Hire Co website and thank you for dropping by.
Paul Swadzba