Crown Paints

Last updated

Crown Paints
Company typePrivate
Industry Decorating
FoundedLate 1850s
Headquarters Darwen, Lancashire
Coolock, Dublin
ProductsPaint
Parent Hempel Group
Website www.crownpaints.com

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

Contents

History

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]

The company was acquired by the Reed Group in 1965. [3]

Queen Elizabeth II visited Crown House, the Walpamur headquarters in Darwen, in 1968. [4] The company traded as Crown Berger for over a century before it was taken over by Williams Holdings in 1987 [5] and then by Akzo Nobel in 1990. [6]

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. [7] [8] The company were once sponsors of Liverpool F.C. and Blackburn Rovers F.C. [9] In June 2011, the company was acquired by Danish paints manufacturer, Hempel Group. [10]

The company holds a Royal Warrant from King Charles III. [11]

References

  1. 1 2 "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. "Crown Paints" . Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  4. "Crown Paint – Brushstrokes of History" (PDF). p. 49. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  5. Rudd, Nigel (1 April 1991). "Nigel Rudd, My best deal". Management Today. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  6. "Significant dates". Flint Group. Archived from the original on 1 October 2010. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  7. Tyler, Richard (3 August 2008). "Akzo Nobel give up Crown Paints". The Daily Telegraph . Telegraph Media Group . Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  8. Feddy, Kevin (20 August 2008). "Endless backs Crown Paints buyout". Manchester Evening News . MEN Media. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  9. Henfield, Sally (20 August 2008). "565 Darwen jobs secured after Crown Paints buy-out". Lancashire Telegraph . Newsquest Media Group . Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  10. "Hempel splashes out for Crown Paints". The Independent. 10 June 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
  11. "Search Members' Directory | Royal Warrant Holders Association". www.royalwarrant.org. Retrieved 15 October 2025.