Wedgwood
Encyclopedia
Wedgwood, strictly speaking Josiah Wedgwood and Sons, is a pottery
firm owned by KPS Capital Partners
, a private equity company based in New York City, USA. Wedgwood was founded on May 1, 1759 by Josiah Wedgwood
and in 1987 merged with Waterford Crystal
to create Waterford Wedgwood
, an Ireland-based luxury brands group. After the 2009 purchase by KPS Capital, Wedgwood became part of a group of companies known as WWRD, an initialism for "Wedgwood Waterford Royal Doulton." Wedgwood is still used as a generic term to describe the company's traditional product style, especially Jasper Ware.
Josiah Wedgwood worked with the established potter Thomas Whieldon until 1759 when relatives leased him the Ivy House in Burslem
, allowing him to start his own pottery business. The launch of the new venture was helped by his marriage to a remote cousin Sarah (also Wedgwood) who brought a sizeable dowry
with her.
In 1765, Wedgwood created a new earthenware form which impressed the then British Queen consort Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
who gave permission to call it "Queen's Ware"; this new form sold extremely well across Europe. The following year Wedgwood bought Etruria
, a large Staffordshire estate, as both home and factory site. Wedgwood developed a number of further industrial innovations for his company, notably a way of measuring kiln temperatures accurately and new ware types Black Basalt and Jasper Ware.
Wedgwood's most famous ware is jasperware
. It was created to look like ancient cameo glass. It was inspired by the Portland Vase
, a Roman vessel which is now a museum piece.. (The first jasperware colour was Portland Blue, an innovation that required experiments with more than 3,000 samples). In recognition of the importance of his pyrometer
, Josiah Wedgwood was elected a member of the Royal Society
in 1783. Today, the Wedgwood Prestige collection sells replicas of some of the original designs as well as modern neo-classical
style jasperware.
The main Wedgwood motifs in jasperware, as well as in other wares like basaltware, queensware, caneware, etc., were decorative designs that were highly influenced by the ancient cultures being studied and rediscovered at that time, especially as Great Britain was expanding her Empire. Many motifs were taken from ancient mythologies: Roman, Greek or Egyptian. Meanwhile, archeological fever caught the imagination of many artists. Nothing could have been more suitable to satisfy this huge business demand than to produce replicas of ancient artefacts.
Many representations of royalty, nobles and statesmen in silhouette
were created, as well as political symbols. These were often set in jewelry, as well as in architectural features like fireplace mantels, mouldings and furniture.
Wedgwood has honored several American individuals and corporations as well, both historically and recently. In 1774 he employed the then 19 year old John Flaxman
as an artist, who would work for the next 12 years mostly for Wedgwood. The "Dancing Hours" may be his most well known design. Other artists known to have worked for Wedgwood include among others Lady Elizabeth Templetown, George Stubbs
, Emma Crewe
and Lady Diana Beauclerk.
Wedgwood had increasing success with hard paste porcelain which attempted to imitate the whiteness of tea-ware imported from China, an extremely popular product amongst high society. High transportation costs and the demanding journey from the Far East meant that the supply of chinaware could not keep up with increasingly high demand. Towards the end of the eighteenth century other Staffordshire manufacturers introduced bone china
as an alternative to translucent and delicate Chinese porcelain. In 1812 Wedgwood produced their own bone china which, though not a commercial success at first eventually became an important part of an extremely profitable business.
Josiah Wedgwood was also a patriarch of the Darwin–Wedgwood family
. Many of his descendants were closely involved in the management of the company down to the time of the merger with the Waterford Company:
Enoch Wedgwood
(1813–1879), a distant cousin of the first Josiah, was also a potter and founded his own firm, Wedgwood & Co, in 1860. It was taken over by Josiah Wedgwood & Sons in 1980.
, who was appointed CEO in November of the same year and resigned in September 2005, and had seen then succeeded by the then president of Wedgwood USA, Moira Gavin.
In 2001 Wedgwood launched a collaboration with designer Jasper Conran
which started with a white fine bone china collection and has since expanded to include seven patterns. The company today incorporates Coalport, Mason's and Johnson Brothers wares, and its parent company. Waterford Wedgwood
also owns crystal brands such as Waterford, Stuart and Edinburgh, as well as Royal Doulton
. Wedgwood continues to be headquartered on a 200 acre (0.809372 km²) site in Barlaston
.
KPS Capital Partners had purchased "certain Irish and UK assets of Waterford Wedgwood and the assets of several of its Irish and UK subsidiaries" in a transaction expected to completed in March. In March 2009, KPS Capital Partners announced that it had acquired group assets in a range of countries, including the UK, USA and Indonesia, would invest €100m, and move a number of jobs to Asia to cut costs and return the firm to profitability. In a move that had begun under the previous owners, some 1,500 jobs were cut in the U.K., leaving a few hundred workers in the U.K. producing only the high-end Wedgwood products. After the 2009 purchase by KPS Capital, Wedgwood became part of a group of companies known as WWRD, an initialism for "Wedgwood Waterford Royal Doulton."
and relaunched in a gallery at the new Barlaston factory in 1952. A new purpose-built Visitor Centre and Museum was built in 1975 and remodelled in 1985 with pieces displayed near items from the old factory works in cabinets of similar period. A video theatre was added and a new gift shop as well as an expanded demonstration area where visitors could watch pottery being made. A further renovation costing 4.5 million pounds was carried out in 2000, including access to the main factory itself, following which the Visitor Centre complex won multiple awards.
Adjacent to the museum and visitor centre are a restaurant and tea room, serving on Wedgwood ware. The museum, managed by a dedicated trust, closed in 2000 and in 2008 reopened in a new multi-million pound building. The new "state of the art" museum was opened on the 24th of October 2008.
In June 2009, the Wedgwood Museum won a UK Art Fund Prize for Museums and Art Galleries for its displays of Wedgwood pottery, skills, designs and artefacts. In May 2011, the archive of the museum was inscribed in UNESCO
's UK Memory of the World Register
.
The Minton Archive is a separate part of the collection. It comprises papers and drawings from 1793–1968 of the designs, manufacture and production of the pottery company, Minton
and of the artistic and industrial archives of Royal Doulton
. The liquidation of Wedgwood placed this collection under threat of break-up and sale.
was opened in the 1950s to serve the Wedgwood complex in Staffordshire
, England
.
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
firm owned by KPS Capital Partners
KPS Capital Partners
KPS Capital Partners is a private equity firm focused on control investments in middle-market companies through special situations transactions such as turnarounds, restructurings, bankruptcies, and corporate divestitures...
, a private equity company based in New York City, USA. Wedgwood was founded on May 1, 1759 by Josiah Wedgwood
Josiah Wedgwood
Josiah Wedgwood was an English potter, founder of the Wedgwood company, credited with the industrialization of the manufacture of pottery. A prominent abolitionist, Wedgwood is remembered for his "Am I Not A Man And A Brother?" anti-slavery medallion. He was a member of the Darwin–Wedgwood family...
and in 1987 merged with Waterford Crystal
Waterford Crystal
Waterford Crystal is a trademark brand of crystal glassware, previously produced in Waterford, Ireland, though the factory there was shut down after the receivership of Waterford Wedgwood plc in early 2009...
to create Waterford Wedgwood
Waterford Wedgwood
Waterford Wedgwood plc is the former holding entity for a group of companies headquartered in Ireland, which specialised in the manufacture of high quality china, porcelain and glass. The group was dominated by Tony O'Reilly and his immediate family, and the family of Mr. O'Reilly's second wife,...
, an Ireland-based luxury brands group. After the 2009 purchase by KPS Capital, Wedgwood became part of a group of companies known as WWRD, an initialism for "Wedgwood Waterford Royal Doulton." Wedgwood is still used as a generic term to describe the company's traditional product style, especially Jasper Ware.
The family and company history
Burslem
The town of Burslem, known as the Mother Town, is one of the six towns that amalgamated to form the current city of Stoke-on-Trent, in the ceremonial county of Staffordshire, in the Midlands of England.-Topography:...
, allowing him to start his own pottery business. The launch of the new venture was helped by his marriage to a remote cousin Sarah (also Wedgwood) who brought a sizeable dowry
Dowry
A dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
with her.
In 1765, Wedgwood created a new earthenware form which impressed the then British Queen consort Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was the Queen consort of the United Kingdom as the wife of King George III...
who gave permission to call it "Queen's Ware"; this new form sold extremely well across Europe. The following year Wedgwood bought Etruria
Etruria, Staffordshire
Etruria is a suburb of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England.-Home of Wedgwood:Etruria was the fourth and penultimate site for the Wedgwood pottery business. Josiah Wedgwood, who was previously based in Burslem, opened his new works in 1769. It was named after the Italian district of Etruria,...
, a large Staffordshire estate, as both home and factory site. Wedgwood developed a number of further industrial innovations for his company, notably a way of measuring kiln temperatures accurately and new ware types Black Basalt and Jasper Ware.
Wedgwood's most famous ware is jasperware
Jasperware
Jasperware, or jasper ware, is a type of stoneware first developed by Josiah Wedgwood, although some authorities have described it as a type of porcelain...
. It was created to look like ancient cameo glass. It was inspired by the Portland Vase
Portland Vase
The Portland Vase is a Roman cameo glass vase, currently dated to between AD 5 and AD 25, which served as an inspiration to many glass and porcelain makers from about the beginning of the 18th century onwards. Since 1810 the vase has been kept almost continuously in the British Museum in London...
, a Roman vessel which is now a museum piece.. (The first jasperware colour was Portland Blue, an innovation that required experiments with more than 3,000 samples). In recognition of the importance of his pyrometer
Pyrometer
A pyrometer is a non-contacting device that intercepts and measures thermal radiation, a process known as pyrometry.This device can be used to determine the temperature of an object's surface....
, Josiah Wedgwood was elected a member of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
in 1783. Today, the Wedgwood Prestige collection sells replicas of some of the original designs as well as modern neo-classical
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome...
style jasperware.
The main Wedgwood motifs in jasperware, as well as in other wares like basaltware, queensware, caneware, etc., were decorative designs that were highly influenced by the ancient cultures being studied and rediscovered at that time, especially as Great Britain was expanding her Empire. Many motifs were taken from ancient mythologies: Roman, Greek or Egyptian. Meanwhile, archeological fever caught the imagination of many artists. Nothing could have been more suitable to satisfy this huge business demand than to produce replicas of ancient artefacts.
Many representations of royalty, nobles and statesmen in silhouette
Silhouette
A silhouette is the image of a person, an object or scene consisting of the outline and a basically featureless interior, with the silhouetted object usually being black. Although the art form has been popular since the mid-18th century, the term “silhouette” was seldom used until the early decades...
were created, as well as political symbols. These were often set in jewelry, as well as in architectural features like fireplace mantels, mouldings and furniture.
Wedgwood has honored several American individuals and corporations as well, both historically and recently. In 1774 he employed the then 19 year old John Flaxman
John Flaxman
John Flaxman was an English sculptor and draughtsman.-Early life:He was born in York. His father was also named John, after an ancestor who, according to family tradition, had fought for Parliament at the Battle of Naseby, and afterwards settled as a carrier or farmer in Buckinghamshire...
as an artist, who would work for the next 12 years mostly for Wedgwood. The "Dancing Hours" may be his most well known design. Other artists known to have worked for Wedgwood include among others Lady Elizabeth Templetown, George Stubbs
George Stubbs
George Stubbs was an English painter, best known for his paintings of horses.-Biography:Stubbs was born in Liverpool, the son of a currier and leather merchant. Information on his life up to age thirty-five is sparse, relying almost entirely on notes made by fellow artist Ozias Humphry towards the...
, Emma Crewe
Emma Crewe
Emma Crewe was a "gifted amateur artist" who, along with Diana Beauclerk and Elizabeth Templetown , contributed designs in "Romantic style" to Josiah Wedgewood for reproduction in his studio in Rome...
and Lady Diana Beauclerk.
Wedgwood had increasing success with hard paste porcelain which attempted to imitate the whiteness of tea-ware imported from China, an extremely popular product amongst high society. High transportation costs and the demanding journey from the Far East meant that the supply of chinaware could not keep up with increasingly high demand. Towards the end of the eighteenth century other Staffordshire manufacturers introduced bone china
Bone china
Bone china is a type of soft-paste porcelain that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material and kaolin. It has been defined as ware with a translucent body containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from animal bone and calculated calcium phosphate...
as an alternative to translucent and delicate Chinese porcelain. In 1812 Wedgwood produced their own bone china which, though not a commercial success at first eventually became an important part of an extremely profitable business.
Josiah Wedgwood was also a patriarch of the Darwin–Wedgwood family
Darwin–Wedgwood family
The Darwin–Wedgwood family is actually two interrelated English families, descended from the prominent 18th century doctor, Erasmus Darwin, and Josiah Wedgwood, founder of the pottery firm, Josiah Wedgwood and Sons, the most notable member of which was Charles Darwin...
. Many of his descendants were closely involved in the management of the company down to the time of the merger with the Waterford Company:
- John Wedgwood (1766–1844)John Wedgwood (1766–1844)John Wedgwood , the eldest son of the potter Josiah Wedgwood, was a partner in the Wedgwood pottery firm from 1790-1793, and again 1800-1812....
, eldest son of Josiah I, partner in the firm from 1790 to 1793 and again from 1800 to 1812. - Josiah Wedgwood IIJosiah Wedgwood IIJosiah Wedgwood II , the son of the English potter Josiah Wedgwood, continued his father's firm and was Member of Parliament for Stoke-upon-Trent from 1832 to 1835...
(1769–1843), second son of Josiah I, succeeded his father as proprietor in 1795 and introduced the production by the Wedgwood company of bone chinaBone chinaBone china is a type of soft-paste porcelain that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material and kaolin. It has been defined as ware with a translucent body containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from animal bone and calculated calcium phosphate...
. In 1815, during Josiah II's time as proprietor, the great English RomanticRomantic poetryRomanticism, a philosophical, literary, artistic and cultural era which began in the mid/late-1700s as a reaction against the prevailing Enlightenment ideals of the day , also influenced poetry...
poet William BlakeWilliam BlakeWilliam Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
(1757–1827) spent some time engraving for Wedgwood's china catalogues. - Josiah Wedgwood IIIJosiah Wedgwood IIIJosiah "Joe" Wedgwood III , a grandson of the English potter Josiah Wedgwood.Wedgwood was the eldest son of Josiah Wedgwood II and his wife Elizabeth Allen...
(1795–1880), son of Josiah II, he was a partner in the firm from 1825 until he retired in 1842. - Francis Wedgwood (1800–1880), son of Josiah II, he was a partner in the firm from 1827 and sole proprietor following his father's death until joined by his own sons. Financial difficulties caused him to offer for sale soon after taking over the firm's factory at EtruriaEtruria WorksThe Etruria Works was a ceramics factory opened by Josiah Wedgwood in 1769 in a district of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which he named Etruria...
and the family home Etruria HallEtruria HallEtruria Hall in Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England was the home of the potter Josiah Wedgwood. It was built between 1768–1771 by Joseph Pickford.Etruria Hall was the site of the innovative research into photography by Thomas Wedgwood in the 1790s...
, but in the event and fortunately for the company only the hall was sold. He continued as senior partner until his retirement to Barlaston HallBarlaston HallBarlaston Hall is an English Palladian country house in the village of Barlaston in Staffordshire, overlooking the valley of the River Trent south of Stoke-on-Trent . It was bought by the Wedgwood pottery company in 1931, but disrepair and subsidence due to coal mining brought the hall close to...
in 1876. - Godfrey WedgwoodGodfrey WedgwoodGodfrey Wedgwood was a partner in the Wedgwood pottery firm from 1859 to 1891.Wedgwood was born in Etruria Hall, the son of Francis Wedgwood and his wife Frances Mosley. He was taken into partnership by his father in 1859, and was later joined by his younger brothers Clement and Laurence...
(1833–1905), son of Francis Wedgwood, partner in the firm from 1859 to 1891. He and his brothers were responsible for the reintroduction of bone chinaBone chinaBone china is a type of soft-paste porcelain that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material and kaolin. It has been defined as ware with a translucent body containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from animal bone and calculated calcium phosphate...
c.1876 and the employment of the artists Thomas AllenThomas Allen-Politicians:*Tom Allen , U.S. Representative for Maine*Thomas Allen , Chicago Alderman*Thomas Allen , English MP for Middlesex*Sir Thomas Allen, 1st Baronet -Politicians:*Tom Allen (born 1945), U.S. Representative for Maine*Thomas Allen (alderman), Chicago Alderman*Thomas Allen (English...
and Emile Lessore. - Clement WedgwoodClement WedgwoodClement Francis Wedgwood partner in the Wedgwood pottery firm.The son of Francis Wedgwood and his wife Frances Mosley. He was a great-grandson of the potter Josiah Wedgwood...
(1840–1889), son of Francis Wedgwood, partner. - Laurence WedgwoodLaurence WedgwoodLaurence Wedgwood director of the Wedgwood pottery firm.Wedgwood was the youngest son of Francis Wedgwood and his wife Frances Mosley. Wedgewood helped incorporate Josiah Wedgwood & Sons Ltd. in 1895. Elder brothers Godfrey and Clement were also in the business. He was the great-grandson of the...
(1844–1913), son of Francis Wedgwood, partner. - Major Cecil WedgwoodCecil WedgwoodMajor Cecil Wedgwood DSO was a British soldier and partner in the Wedgwood pottery firm.Wedgwood was the only son of Godfrey Wedgwood and his first wife Mary Jane Jackson Hawkshaw, who died shortly after he was born...
DSO (1863–1916), son of Godfrey Wedgwood, partner from 1884, first Mayor of the federated County Borough of Stoke-on-TrentStoke-on-TrentStoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...
(1910–1911). He was chairman and managing director of Wedgwood until his death in battle in 1916. - Kennard Laurence Wedgwood (1873–1949), son of Laurence Wedgwood, partner. In 1906 he went to the United States and set up the firm's New York office, which became Josiah Wedgwood and Sons USA, an incorporated subsidiary, in 1919.
- Francis Hamilton WedgwoodFrancis Hamilton WedgwoodFrancis Hamilton "Frank" Wedgwood JP and High Sheriff was a partner in the Wedgwood pottery firm.Wedgwood was the eldest son of Clement Wedgwood and Emily Catherine Rendel, daughter of the engineer James Meadows Rendel. He was the great-great-grandson of the potter Josiah Wedgwood...
(1867–1930), eldest son of Clement Wedgwood, chairman and managing director from 1916 until his sudden death in 1930. - Josiah Wedgwood VJosiah Wedgwood VJosiah Wedgwood V was the Managing Director of the Wedgwood pottery firm from 1930 until 1968 and credited with turning the company's fortunes around....
(1899–1968) grandson of Clement Wedgwood and son of Josiah Wedgwood, 1st Baron WedgwoodJosiah Wedgwood, 1st Baron WedgwoodColonel Josiah Clement Wedgwood, 1st Baron Wedgwood, DSO, PC, DL sometimes referred to as Josiah Wedgwood IV was a British Liberal and Labour politician who served in government under Ramsay MacDonald...
, the Managing Director of the firm from 1930 until 1968 and credited with turning the company's fortunes around. He was responsible for the enlightened decision to move production to a modern purpose built factory in a rural setting at BarlastonBarlastonBarlaston is a village and civil parish in the borough of Stafford in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is roughly halfway between the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the small town of Stone. According to the 2001 census the population of the parish was 2,659.-History:The old parish church of...
. It was designed by Keith MurrayKeith Murray (ceramic artist)Keith Day Pearce Murray was a New Zealand born architect and designer who worked as a ceramics, glass and metalware designer for Wedgwood in the Potteries area of Staffordshire in the 1930s and 1940s. He is considered one of the most influential designers of the Art deco style.Murray was born in...
in 1936 and built between 1938 and 1940. He was succeeded as managing director by Arthur BryanArthur BryanSir Arthur Bryan is former managing director of the Wedgwood pottery firm . He became the first non-Wedgwood family member to hold the post when he succeeded Josiah Wedgwood V in 1967. He was knighted in 1976 for services to export.-External links:*...
(later Sir Arthur) who was the first non-member of the Wedgwood family to run the firm.
Enoch Wedgwood
Enoch Wedgwood
Enoch Wedgwood was an English potter, founder in 1860 of the pottery firm Wedgwood & Co of Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent. He was a distant cousin of the famous potter Josiah Wedgwood, of Josiah Wedgwood & Sons but their two businesses were separate concerns.Wedgwood married Jane Mattinson in 1837...
(1813–1879), a distant cousin of the first Josiah, was also a potter and founded his own firm, Wedgwood & Co, in 1860. It was taken over by Josiah Wedgwood & Sons in 1980.
The company from 1986 to 2008
In 1986, Waterford Glass Group plc purchased Wedgwood plc for $USD360 million, with Wedgwood delivering a 38.7 million USD profit in 1998 (when Waterford itself lost $28.9 million) after which the group was renamed Waterford Wedgwood. From early 1987 to early 1989, the CEO was Patrick Byrne, previously of Ford, who then became CEO of the whole group. During his time, he sold off non-core businesses, and reduced the range of Wedgwood patterns from over 400 to around 240. In the late 1990s, the CEO was Brian Patterson. From 1 January 2001, the Deputy CEO was Tony O'Reilly, JuniorTony O'Reilly, Junior
St. John Anthony O'Reilly, generally Tony O'Reilly, Junior is a businessman with Irish and Australian citizenship, the third son and sixth child of Irish media magnate Tony O'Reilly and Australian Susan Cameron. He is currently CEO of the Irish mineral exploration company Providence Resources...
, who was appointed CEO in November of the same year and resigned in September 2005, and had seen then succeeded by the then president of Wedgwood USA, Moira Gavin.
In 2001 Wedgwood launched a collaboration with designer Jasper Conran
Jasper Conran
Jasper Alexander Thirlby Conran OBE is an English fashion designer. He is the son of the designer Sir Terence Conran and the author Shirley Conran.-Education:He was educated at Port Regis School and Bryanston School in the 1970s...
which started with a white fine bone china collection and has since expanded to include seven patterns. The company today incorporates Coalport, Mason's and Johnson Brothers wares, and its parent company. Waterford Wedgwood
Waterford Wedgwood
Waterford Wedgwood plc is the former holding entity for a group of companies headquartered in Ireland, which specialised in the manufacture of high quality china, porcelain and glass. The group was dominated by Tony O'Reilly and his immediate family, and the family of Mr. O'Reilly's second wife,...
also owns crystal brands such as Waterford, Stuart and Edinburgh, as well as Royal Doulton
Royal Doulton
The Royal Doulton Company is an English company producing tableware and collectables, dating to 1815. Operating originally in London, its reputation grew in The Potteries, where it was a latecomer compared to Spode, Wedgwood and Minton...
. Wedgwood continues to be headquartered on a 200 acre (0.809372 km²) site in Barlaston
Barlaston
Barlaston is a village and civil parish in the borough of Stafford in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is roughly halfway between the city of Stoke-on-Trent and the small town of Stone. According to the 2001 census the population of the parish was 2,659.-History:The old parish church of...
.
The company from 2009
On 5 January 2009, following years of financial problems at group level, and after a share placement failed during the global financial crisis of 2008, Wedgwood was placed into administration on a "going concern" basis, with 1800 employees remaining. On 27 February 2009, Waterford Wedgwood's receiver Deloitte announced that the New York-based private equity firmPrivate equity firm
A private equity firm is an investment manager that makes investments in the private equity of operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including leveraged buyout, venture capital, and growth capital...
KPS Capital Partners had purchased "certain Irish and UK assets of Waterford Wedgwood and the assets of several of its Irish and UK subsidiaries" in a transaction expected to completed in March. In March 2009, KPS Capital Partners announced that it had acquired group assets in a range of countries, including the UK, USA and Indonesia, would invest €100m, and move a number of jobs to Asia to cut costs and return the firm to profitability. In a move that had begun under the previous owners, some 1,500 jobs were cut in the U.K., leaving a few hundred workers in the U.K. producing only the high-end Wedgwood products. After the 2009 purchase by KPS Capital, Wedgwood became part of a group of companies known as WWRD, an initialism for "Wedgwood Waterford Royal Doulton."
Wedgwood Museums and the Museum Trust
Wedgwood's founder wrote as early as 1774 that he wished he had preserved samples of all the company's works, and began to do so. The first formal museum was opened in May 1906, with a curator named Isaac Cooke, at the main (Etruria) works. The contents of the museum were stored for the duration of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and relaunched in a gallery at the new Barlaston factory in 1952. A new purpose-built Visitor Centre and Museum was built in 1975 and remodelled in 1985 with pieces displayed near items from the old factory works in cabinets of similar period. A video theatre was added and a new gift shop as well as an expanded demonstration area where visitors could watch pottery being made. A further renovation costing 4.5 million pounds was carried out in 2000, including access to the main factory itself, following which the Visitor Centre complex won multiple awards.
Adjacent to the museum and visitor centre are a restaurant and tea room, serving on Wedgwood ware. The museum, managed by a dedicated trust, closed in 2000 and in 2008 reopened in a new multi-million pound building. The new "state of the art" museum was opened on the 24th of October 2008.
In June 2009, the Wedgwood Museum won a UK Art Fund Prize for Museums and Art Galleries for its displays of Wedgwood pottery, skills, designs and artefacts. In May 2011, the archive of the museum was inscribed in UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
's UK Memory of the World Register
UK Memory of the World Register
The UK Memory of the World Register, on which work started in 2009 and whose first inscriptions were made in 2010, is a list of individual documents and documentary collections of particular importance to the United Kingdom; it is the national complement to UNESCO's international Memory of the...
.
The Minton Archive is a separate part of the collection. It comprises papers and drawings from 1793–1968 of the designs, manufacture and production of the pottery company, Minton
Minton
Minton's Ltd, was a major ceramics manufacturing company, originated with Thomas Minton the founder of "Thomas Minton and Sons", who established his pottery factory in Stoke-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, England, in 1793, producing earthenware and from 1798 bone china.-History:Minton's early products...
and of the artistic and industrial archives of Royal Doulton
Royal Doulton
The Royal Doulton Company is an English company producing tableware and collectables, dating to 1815. Operating originally in London, its reputation grew in The Potteries, where it was a latecomer compared to Spode, Wedgwood and Minton...
. The liquidation of Wedgwood placed this collection under threat of break-up and sale.
Wedgwood locality
Wedgwood railway stationWedgwood railway station
Wedgwood railway station served the Wedgwood complex in Barlaston, Staffordshire, England. Although the station is not officially closed, no trains currently call at the station and it is instead served by a rail replacement bus.- History :...
was opened in the 1950s to serve the Wedgwood complex in Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
External links
- Official Wedgwood website
- Wedgwood Museum
- Save the Wedgwood Museum Campaign
- Wedgwood Society of Boston
- Wedgwood Waterford
- Jasper Conran Dining
- MacroJuice.com, highlights from the Wedgwood Museum collection.
- Wedgwood buttons, made 1785-1800, from the Victoria & Albert MuseumVictoria and Albert MuseumThe Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
jewellery collection. - National Museum of Australia Sydney Cove Medallion.