De Vere Holdings
c.1912 Company incorporated
1960 The management of De Vere Hotels decided on a policy of diversification and changed the name of the group to De Vere Holdings; Kilgour, French and Stanbury had already been acquired, which owned The Art Reproduction Co.[1]
1960 Acquired Oxley Engineering Co.
1961 Acquired F. R. Robinson[2] stainless steel fabricators of Preston
1961 Acquired Robert Dempster and Sons Ltd, contractors
1962 Acquired Dalziel Foundry. Planned to expand Thomas Dryden and Sons Ltd of Preston, subsidiary of Oxley Engineering[3]
1963 De Vere Holdings, having disposed of the De Vere Hotel, changed its name to Oxley Industries, reflecting the name of one of its principal subsidiaries[4]. The name of Robert Dempster and Sons was changed to Oxley-Dempster, reflecting the combining of the administration of the drawing office and design section with that of Oxley Engineering. Acquired Dalzeil Foundry Ltd and amalgamated it with Art Reproduction Ltd; the litho plate-making section was moved to Bournemouth as Reproduction Services Ltd. Acquired Broglia Press Ltd of Bournemouth and H. Daunt and Co of Nottingham; S. E. Bray and Co was an associated company.
Also owned service companies: Carseal Ltd and C. M. I. (Underspray Services) Ltd. The Royal Crescent Hotel traded satisfactorily. Kilgour, French and Stanbury Ltd, tailors, exported more to the USA.