Thermatex is back. Made in Britain, made to order, made the same way.

Thermatex is back in production, made to order at our factory in Northamptonshire, and the website is open for orders.

What Thermatex is, for anyone new

Thermatex makes cooler rugs, exercise rugs, dog coats, dog beds and gilets from one specialised fabric. Three layers: a soft, wool-rich knitted inner, a central insulating layer of polypropylene, and an acrylic outer, from yarns spun specifically for Thermatex. The fabric draws moisture from the inside to the surface, where it evaporates rather than soaking in. A hot horse cools down and dries at the same time. A wet dog dries off in it. A rider stays warm without carrying the weight.

That is the whole idea, and it has not changed in over forty years.

Where it came from

Thermatex did not start with horses. It started with knitters, in the years when Leicester was the centre of the textile knitting world, working on a fabric that would move moisture away from the body. The horse came later, by accident, one hot summer, when someone noticed that a soaked rug did not just keep a horse warm. It cooled a hot one down.

For more than thirty years after that it was made in West Wales, and became the rug that yards across Britain and beyond reached for after work, on the lorry and in the stable. Then, in the autumn of 2024, the factory that made it closed, and for a while nobody knew whether the fabric would be knitted again.

A new home in Northamptonshire

We are Racesafe. We have designed and made body protection and apparel for riders at our factory in Northamptonshire for decades, so we know what it takes to make something in this country to a standard people will trust. We know the yards, the horses and the weather Thermatex was built for, because we live in them too. When the chance came to bring Thermatex here, with its patterns, its fittings and the knowledge of how it is made, it was not a difficult decision.

Our brief to ourselves was simple: change nothing that matters.

So the fabric is knitted to the original Thermatex specification, from the same yarns. Every piece is still cut individually and made up by our own machinists. Binding, embroidery and custom colours are still done here. The fit is the same, which means the advice is the same: order one size smaller than your usual rug size, because the fabric moulds to the horse. If you are not sure, the size guide will tell you, and if you are still not sure, ask us.

What is different

Everything is made to order, so please allow fourteen days for a standard order and up to three weeks for anything custom. You can order directly from us here, in the standard Thermatex colours or your own. And you are dealing with a business that intends to be making Thermatex for the next forty years.

The range at launch is the core of what people bought most: the Original Cooler, the Lightweight Rug, the Quarter Rug, the dog coats and beds, and the gilets for men, women and children. More will follow. We would rather add a product properly than launch a long list we cannot deliver.

Thank you

To everyone who has been waiting, asked us on social media when Thermatex was coming back, or kept using a twenty-year-old rug in the meantime: thank you. You are the reason the brand was worth saving.

If you have one of those old rugs, we would love to see it. Send us a photo. Every one of them is a better advertisement than anything we could write.