Bulpitt & Sons
| Industry | Manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 19th century |
| Fate | Bought out; wound up. |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Domestic electrical appliances |
Bulpitt & Sons Ltd was an electrical goods manufacturer and limited company in Birmingham, England, established as a brass founder in the late 19th century.[1]
In the early 20th century the company registered The "Swan Brand" name.[1]
In the 1920s, the company began manufacturing domestic electrical appliances including kettles and irons.[1] The firm developed the first submersible electric heating element.[1] An early example of a Swan brand copper kettle featuring the immersed heating element is in the collection of the Science Museum Group.[2]
In the 1970s, the company became a subsidiary of BSR (Housewares) Ltd., originally Birmingham Sound Reproducers, manufacturers of turntables for playing records.[1]
The rival French company Moulinex acquired the Swan brand in 1988[1] and Bulpitt & Sons (Swan Brand) Ltd was eventually dissolved on 21 May 1989, just short of a century after the company's foundation.[1] The Swan brand was acquired by Littlewoods in 2000. In 2017, the brand was bought by Swan Products Ltd[3] and since 2023 has been owned by Sutton Venture Group, operating under that company's RKW trading division.[4]
The firm's kitchenware factory and offices at St George's Works on Icknield Street, Camden Street and Pope Street at the edge of Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter dated back to 1890.[5] Some manufacturing at the site continued until 2006.[1] Property developers began stripping the interior in 2009, in preparation for conversion to office accommodation.[6] Subsequently, the building, renamed The Kettleworks was converted into residential apartments and commercial units, completed in 2019.[7][8]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Swan Products Ltd". Swan Products Ltd. Archived from the original on 24 November 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
- ^ "Electric copper kettle, with immersed element, sectioned, c. 1921". collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
- ^ "Swan - About Us". Swan. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
- ^ "Sutton Venture Group acquires Swan Products Ltd - Housewares". 31 July 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2025.
- ^ Hayman, Pete (15 May 2009). "Jewellery Quarter plans approved". cladglobal.com. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
- ^ MH (30 August 2009). "Demolition Underway at St Georges". The Hockley Flyer. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
- ^ "St. George's Urban Village case study". SevenCapital. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
- ^ Bosley, Kirsty (13 November 2017). "The history of the Jewellery Quarter's most lavish homes". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 16 November 2025.
