Marcus Janssen: Chelsea Lifejackets, bagging a 'MacNab' and recognising the best of the British countryside
Country Life30 Jun 2025

Marcus Janssen: Chelsea Lifejackets, bagging a 'MacNab' and recognising the best of the British countryside

'We still see people out wearing colours which we know for a fact we haven't produced in 15 or 20 years,' chuckles Marcus Janssen, head of Schöffel, as he speaks about the company's gilets — the 'Chelsea Lifejackets' — to James Fisher on this week's edition of the Country Life Podcast.


Marcus took over at Schöffel after a career as a countryside journalist, stepping in to a role as head of a family-owned business which has been going for well over two centuries.


His love of the British countryside shines through as he talks to James about how a South African journalist ended up running a much-loved countryside brand whose roots are in Germany — and many of whose customers wear their gilets as much in the streets of SW3 as they do in the fields of Scotland or Gloucestershire.


Marcus also talks about the recently-inaugurated Schöffel Countryside Awards, run in partnership with the GWCT.


Episode credits


  • Host: James Fisher
  • Guest: Marcus Janssen
  • Editor and Producer: Toby Keel
  • Music: JuliusH via Pixabay
  • Special thanks: Adam Wilbourn


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