On The Rails

On The Rails began completely by accident: I had set myself a personal challenge to master some graphic design software but what has emerged is our distinctive design brand which now travels to exhibitions and heritage railways across the UK and even abroad. What started with one streamlined Gresley Pacific soon grew into a portfolio of locomotives, cars and aircraft—artwork that first found its way onto children’s clothes for our families, then unexpectedly into global demand during the pandemic through bestselling facemasks. We can acknowledge the support of Hornby, Railcam UK and Railriders with helping our online Etsy and Ebay outlets take off.
That early success sparked a steady expansion. Socks, tea towels, ceramics and fabrics followed—each product designed with meticulous technical accuracy and a playful, unmistakably On The Rails aesthetic. We have always had a commitment to quality printing on durable and sustainable materials which means every item is as functional as it is eye-catching. It can take many days to draw a locomotive and capture all the pipework, valve gear, lining and crests, so it is incredibly important to us that the printing can capture all of that. We were flattered when our efforts were recognized by former TV-Dragon Theo Paphitis, and On The Rails has been part of his small business network since 2022.
Crucially, the business has grown hand-in-hand with Britain’s heritage railways. Our very first stall was at a Christmas market at the Bredgar and Wormshill Light Railway in Kent, and from there we have popped up at the Epping Ongar Railway, the East Kent Railway, the Spa Valley Railway and the Bluebell Railway. On The Rails has become a familiar, colourful presence at galas and model shows nationwide, also supplying exclusive designs to preservation groups and enthusiast organisations. We have regular clients including the Epping Ongar Railway, Fifty Fund, Class 14 Company Limited, Heavy Tractor Group, Sittingbourne and Kemsley Light Railway plus other non-train organisations. Signature pieces—from velvet cushion covers to partyware to the socks we are perhaps best known for—have always been very popular across a breadth of customers including devoted enthusiasts, photographers, history buffs and young families.  If we had a pound for every time a show-goer flashes their On The Rails train socks at us during an event, we would not even need to trade! We have worked hard in the past eighteen months to build a range of items at ‘pocket money prices’ such as stickers, pin badges, magnets and keychains.
By 2025, the brand had crossed the Atlantic, debuting at America’s largest railroad show, the Railroad and Hobby Show in Springfield, hosted by the Amherst Railway Society.  On The Rails was well received by the North American (there were many Canadians too) audience – we were even interviewed on the local TV news!

On The Rails played a key role in the Railway 200 celebrations with fresh designs celebrating two centuries of innovation. We were lucky enough to be one of a few privileged traders at the event in Alstom’s Derby works, and our ‘Celebrating 200 Years of The Modern Railway’ socks, tea towels and t-shirts that we made were sure-fire hits – I particularly liked Tim Dunn getting excited about our train bunting during an Instagram Live broadcast! We’ve recently made a third batch to cope with demand.

It was another Railway 200 event, as Southeastern’s Ashford Depot, that helped us strike a relationship with the Kent Community Rail Partnership, and so we also attended birthday party celebrations at Paddock Wood and Hollingbourne railway stations. This has led to another new design, a chequerboard print of the units operated in Kent which we are using on bath towels, blankets and (of course), socks.

Today the range spans hundreds of locomotive drawings, colourful artwork, and an ever-growing line of socks, clothing, partyware, homeware and accessories.
Authentic, charming and wonderfully niche, On The Rails proves that railway enthusiasm and modern design make a surprisingly stylish pair—delighting customers wherever the rails lead.