Does anyone know the origination of this Brand name? Did it always belong to Lee Sabini?
Morris and Forndran name
- Thread starter Cino
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Owen Bawn
Garden party cupcake scented
The brand has been around at least since the 1930s. Most of their brushes were rebranded for shops to sell under their own labels. They also made other brushes as well as jewelry boxes, cigarette cases, and other small items in tortoiseshell, horn, etc. The name didn't become prominent on its own in terms of shaving brushes till around 2010. Is that when Sabini got involved? I honestly have no idea. I remember reading everything I just wrote somewhere online a long time ago but I can't remember where. Perhaps a thread here on B&B?
My understanding from Lee is that he bought Morris & Forndran, Rooney, and one other company in the early 2000's. M&F and the other, I understand he bought for their equipment, which he moved to the Rooney plant. He resurrected the Morris & Forndran name in the 2010 time frame after he sold Rooney. The new Rooney owners apparently had little interest in shaving brushes so Lee was able to retain rights to the Rooney handle designs.
Interestingly -- and as Owen mentions (above) -- Lee tells me it was common for English makers to make brushes and other grooming items for a variety of shops (Truefitt & Hill, Trumpers, etc.). It's also interesting that at least some of these makers would sometimes outsource some of their production when demand outstripped internal capacity.
Hope this helps.
Interestingly -- and as Owen mentions (above) -- Lee tells me it was common for English makers to make brushes and other grooming items for a variety of shops (Truefitt & Hill, Trumpers, etc.). It's also interesting that at least some of these makers would sometimes outsource some of their production when demand outstripped internal capacity.
Hope this helps.
Hi, my name Scott and I have been reading this forum for a while now and thought I'd let you know what I know about Morris and Forndran. I believe they were in Finsbury park London in the early 1900s and moved to Bletchley Buckinghamshire in the late 1950s.
I was employed by them in 1976, as apprentice cabinet maker. Around 1983 a long time employee of 69 years, Jim Hill, took me under his wing and taught me his trade, which was the turning on the lathe. After Jim retired, I was turning the shaving brushes, razor handles, hammer and gavels etc for companies including Floris, D R Harris. Truefitt & Hill, Taylors of Old Bond Street to name a few.
In May 1993 Morris and Forndran closed, due to its parent company S J Rose, over extending itself, in the move of all its operations to a new location in Bletchley. So June1993 myself and the workshop manager Tony, purchased the materials and machinery from the liquidators and started Anthony Scott Ltd to carry on with the trade that was using the skills that had been passed down over the years. The company ran until 2006 but due to health issues we had to close. We met Lee Sabini at our factory where he purchased some of our materials, stock and machinery. He then took on the name of Morris and Forndran
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That is fascinating! Thank you for posting this. It really helps fill in a lot of blanks.
Thanks for the info.
Great to get some of the backstory. What was the original M&F font like? I am assuming that Lee Sabini decided on the 50s style font when he relaunched the brand along with “Blonde Badger”. I have one of the Sabini brushes - excellent quality.
It was a font like their headed paper we did not stamp much of the items with the name M&F. they were stamped with the customers name like G F trumpers. DR harris. Floris. ect. but will have a look for the stamp
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Thanks!
Great information.. Thank you!
I have a number of the Sabini era Morris & Forndran brushes.. pre-collaboration. I value them highly.
