Trainers firm New Balance's pledge after Brexit

The sportswear manufacturer, which employs 270 people in west Cumbria, supported the president-elect following last week’s election.

As the only firm still manufacturing trainers in the US, it backs his stance on imposing tariffs on Far East imports.

But angry consumers posted videos and photos on social media showing them burning and binning their trainers.

Meanwhile, the US company has pledged its commitment to the UK, shrugging off Brexit fears.

Its chief executive Rob DeMartini said New Balance would be staying put in the UK and that the future of its factory at Siddick was secure.

Donald Trump He also said Brexit would bring the US and the UK closer together, with Britain being one of its fastest growing markets. The company employs 600 people across the country and its European headquarters are in Warrington, where it employs 160 staff.

Mr DeMartini said: “We have faced plenty of political and economic challenges before and we are committed to the UK, our European headquarters are here.

“We’re not going anywhere. We have a big business here, we have a long-standing commitment to manufacturing in the UK, that will continue.

“We won’t be pushed out or scared out by regulation or economic factors.”

The west Cumbrian plant makes 750,000 pairs of shoes a year, with 80 per cent going overseas to Europe, China and Japan with the ‘Made in Britain’ label forming a big part of the appeal to foreign shoppers.

New Balance moved to its current location, between Siddick and Flimby, in 1991.

Best known for its footwear, the brand recently secured a kit deal with Liverpool Football Club. It has also just opened a flagship store on London’s Oxford Street.

“Between the work we’ve done with track and field and the work we’ve done with LFC, we’ve really got the business moving in the right direction,” Mr DeMartini added.

The privately-owned company was founded in Boston in 1906 and has been owned by billionaire Jim Davis and his family since 1972.