Our story began in Manchester in 1886 with a man called Fred. Fred had two things – a bright idea and a cracking beard.

We’ve grown a fair bit over the last 128 years but we still do what Fred did all those years ago – supply materials to people who make things. We started off with just three products selling to the cotton traders and master brewers of Manchester. Now we stock more than 25,000 products and sell to customers all over the world.

Inspiring new ideas and encouraging people are values that Fred the First instilled in the company when we began. We’ve flourished thanks to these simple ideals and we’re pretty sure that’s why we’re still a family run business after all these years. We just love those people who have that urge to pick up a pencil, brush or needle and want to create. If you’re one of these people we salute you.