Nat Peal founded N.Peal in 1936, with his first store in London’s Burlington Arcade. Peal's real surname was “Leapman” which was later transposed into “Peal” - a more distinctly British name. N.Peal opened its doors for business as a men’s haberdashery in March 1936, Nat was later stationed in the Shetland islands during the war 1939-1945 and he began sourcing woollen knitwear for the store from there. By the 1950s, he was hailed the British King of Cashmere and began visiting the East Coast of America.