Olympic athletes and TV presenters are fans of an Oxfordshire firm’s luxury leather goods.

Gold-medallists Denise Lewis, Michael Johnson and Sir Ben Ainslie plus Formula One presenter Suzy Perry have all praised the Witney-based company.

Founders Dom and Tania Reilly drew on the glamorous world of motorsport as inspiration for their range of overnight bags, handbags, wallets and purses.

Mr Reilly, head of global brand partnerships for Mercedes F1, spent many years with Williams F1 before leaving to set up the business in 2012.

Mother-of-one Mrs Reilly, who has taken over as managing director, plans to expand the number of products for women. She said: “Dom has been lured back into F1.

“He was doing the role part-time but Mercedes made him an offer which he couldn’t turn down, so I have taken over. I have always felt that is the market we should be in, because these things tend to be bought by the wife.”

Dom Reilly products feature high-tech F1 materials, designed to protect fragile objects such as watches, iPads or laptops during transit.

The range has been stocked by Fortnum & Mason and Selfridges.

The idea came about because Mr Reilly’s career in Formula One meant he did a lot of travelling.

Mrs Reilly, whose background is in banking and estate agency, said: “He could never find travel accessories he liked.

“Most seemed to be made of nylon, or plastered with logos and initials. That just wasn’t his style, so he decided to design his own.”

They moved into the women’s market after being asked to design limited edition handbags for Williams F1 boss Claire Williams, test driver Susie Wolff and Olympic swimmer Emilia Pikkarainen.

Mrs Reilly explained: “Increasingly we had ladies ask why we didn’t produce ladies’ goods. “We know women are far more passionate about leather goods and shopping, so believe they are more likely to buy multiple pieces once they see the quality and design.”

Last year, they launched a colourful collection of women’s handbags, purses and luggage labels, named after their nine-year-old daughter Grace.Olympic Gold sprinter Michael Johnson is a brand ambassador and helped design a range of holdalls last year.

Other products on the firm’s site www.domreilly.com include laptop cases, watch rolls, wash bags, iPad covers and business card holders.

Goods are hand-made in Spain by the same workshops used by luxury brands such as Dunhill and Smythson.

Mrs Reilly said her long-term plan is to open a shop in Oxfordshire. She added: “Everyone who buys from us is impressed by the quality of finish and that’s what we pride ourselves on.”