Ironically. the origin of the term ‘the real McCoy’ is greatly contested; some believe it originated from line in a poem, “Deil’s Hallowe’en” published in Glasgow in 1856 which read “A drappie o’ the real MacKay”. Others believe it began in the railroad industry with an oil-drip cup invented by Elijah McCoy; engineers liked it so much they often asked if the locomotives were fitted with the real McCoy system.
And it doesn’t stop there, some believe it was a leadership dispute between two branches of the Clan McKay, whilst others claim it was popularised by Joseph McCoy who was mayor of Abilene, Kansas who styled himself ‘the real McCoy’. And so it goes on, many others also claim their version to be the real McCoy and who knows who is right?
Fortunately for Harris Tweed their origins and IP are much more clean cut. Harris Tweed is cloth made by islanders in the Outer Hebrides and is protected by the Harris Tweed Act of Parliament 1993 which is administered by the the Harris Tweed Authority. Little wonder then that they took exception when an American retailer started selling Harris Tweed chairs that were not genuine Harris Tweed. Euromarket Designs Inc were offering these furniture pieces through its online store, Crate and Barrel.
As reported on the BBC website, The Harris Tweed Authority were quick to move and successfully stopped them offering something that was not the real McCoy.
It’s a fact of life that people try to tap into the popularity of successful brands, but these brands are successful for a simple reason – they are the real McCoy! They go to great lengths to ensure their quality and consistency, that’s why it’s worth paying for the real McCoy It’s also the reason that throughout our 60 years we have always worked with the best manufacturers of the day.
Currently, we have a full range of Harris Tweed furniture in our Glasgow furniture showroom and you can read a bit more about it in an earlier blog post which celebrated the incredible success of Harris Tweed. Every piece carries the Harris Tweed branding because it is the real McCoy, and we can confirm its incredible popularity.
As for the term, do you know where it originated?
