Feather flags might feel like a modern invention, but the idea of using tall, eye-catching banners to draw people in is hundreds of years old. In Japan, merchants and warriors alike relied on nobori banners — long, vertical flags designed to be seen from a distance.
You’d see them at busy markets, at shrines during festivals, and even on samurai battlefields, where bold symbols helped identify different clans. The principle was simple but clever: a vertical flag flapping in the breeze stands out far more than a flat sign. That hasn’t changed.
By the 20th century, Japanese craftspeople had perfected screen printing on fabric, which meant banners could be made in striking colours and last much longer. Walk down a traditional shopping street in Japan and you’d see rows of vertical flags advertising everything from food stalls to tea shops.
This use of colour and movement to grab attention is exactly what makes feather flags so effective today.
In the 1990s, Peter Williams, the founder of Sailflags, spent time in Japan and became fascinated by these traditional advertising flags. Rather than simply observing, he worked alongside experienced Japanese flag makers, learning the techniques and understanding why the design worked so well for attracting customers.
At the time, almost no UK businesses were using flags for promotions, relying instead on static banners and signs. Peter saw a clear opportunity: if these flags worked in Japan’s crowded marketplaces, they could work in Britain too.
On returning to Cornwall, Peter founded Sailflags and began making flags using the same traditional screen-printing methods he had learned in Japan. Early designs closely followed the Japanese nobori style – bold colours, simple graphics, and durable fabrics.
As technology advanced, Sailflags moved to modern dye-sublimation printing, allowing for more complex artwork, photographic designs, and a wider variety of shapes such as teardrop and feather flags. But the core idea hasn’t changed:
✔ Use bold, vertical designs for maximum visibility
✔ Make them durable for outdoor use
✔ Keep them affordable and easy to move
More than 30 years later, feather flags are everywhere — at festivals, forecourts, and trade shows — but the concept hasn’t really changed. The inspiration came from centuries-old Japanese design, adapted to modern printing, and perfected here in Cornwall.
At Sailflags, we still follow the same simple rule Peter noticed in Japan: make it bright, make it bold, and make it move.
