Crown Paints is a major paint manufacturer based in Darwen, Lancashire. It is owned by Hempel Group.

Crown Paints
Company typePrivate
IndustryDecorating
FoundedLate 1850s
HeadquartersDarwen, Lancashire
ProductsPaint
ParentHempel Group
Websitecrownpaints.co.uk

History edit

The origins of the business lie in the history of paint making in Darwen, which can be traced back to the late 1850s.[1] It initially traded as WalPaMur after the initials of The Wall Paper Manufacturers' Company.[1][2]

Crown have held a Royal Warrant since 1949. It remains one of only three companies to hold the Royal Warrant for the manufacture of paints.[3]

Ownership edit

The company traded independently as Crown Berger for over a century before it was taken over by Williams Holdings in 1987[4] and then by Akzo Nobel in 1990.[5]

It was sold in a management buyout backed by the private equity firm Endless in August 2008, in a deal to satisfy the European Union's concerns of a possible monopoly after Akzo Nobel's takeover of ICI.[6][7]

In June 2011, the company was acquired by Danish paints manufacturer, Hempel Group.[8]

Sponsorship edit

The company were once sponsors of Liverpool F.C. and Blackburn Rovers F.C.[9]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Paint making". Cotton Town. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  2. ^ Room, Adrian (1982). Dictionary of Trade Name Origins. ISBN 9780710201744. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  3. ^ "Search Members' Directory | Royal Warrant Holders Association". www.royalwarrant.org. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  4. ^ Rudd, Nigel (1 April 1991). "Nigel Rudd, My best deal". Management Today. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  5. ^ "Significant dates". Flint Group. Archived from the original on 1 October 2010. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  6. ^ Tyler, Richard (3 August 2008). "Akzo Nobel give up Crown Paints". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  7. ^ Feddy, Kevin (20 August 2008). "Endless backs Crown Paints buyout". Manchester Evening News. MEN Media. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  8. ^ "Hempel splashes out for Crown Paints". The Independent. 10 June 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  9. ^ Henfield, Sally (20 August 2008). "565 Darwen jobs secured after Crown Paints buy-out". Lancashire Telegraph. Newsquest Media Group. Retrieved 16 November 2008.

External links edit