The cheap cost of producing fabric in third-world countries contributed to the factory mostly closing during the 1980s, but small-scale production continues on part of the site.

[1] The wool industry thrived in areas used for sheep farming, like Somerset, and Taunton serge was particularly popular due to its balance between being light-weight and yet sufficiently thick.

[4] Thomas Fox, after learning the trade in Germany and the Netherlands for three years,[4] entered the business in 1768, became a partner in 1772 and sole proprietor in 1796, renaming the company and introduced the 'FOX' cloth mark.

[6] This move facilitated an increase in both quality and quantity, while cutting costs as other production was brought in-house; basket weaving, joinery, book binding and metalworking was all carried out on the site.

The site was continually growing through the nineteenth century, and at its peak employed around 3,600 people around Wellington, and produced 6,500 metres (21,300 ft) of material each day.

[4] At the Tonedale complex, dyers working for Fox Brothers developed a khaki dye which was worn by the British soldiers in the Second Boer War.

In 2009, Deborah Meaden and Douglas Cordeaux invested in Fox Brothers, allowing production to continue at Tonedale, after the company had been in danger of falling into bankruptcy.