Reed and Smith
Reed and Smith, paper makers of Exeter
1870s Brothers William Henry Reed and Albert E. Reed worked together in a Cardiff paper mill. After marrying two sisters, they both went into the paper trade - Albert in Kent and William in the West Country[1]
c.1880 William Reed started a business in the West Country (Devon).
1952 Public company; shares floated on the stock exchange; owned 4 paper mills in Devon[2]
1962 In face of poor trading in the existing business, was developing new uses for traditional products and new products but this was taking time[3]
1965 Easton and Johnson of Taunton was the engineering subsidiary of the company; it had increased exports of alluvial pump liners, doors and engines to Nigeria, Pakistan and India[4]
1973 Acquired Partridge and Love (Holdings), printers[5]
1973 Sold a further 50 percent interest in Easton and Johnson to Tozer, Kemsley and Millbourn (Holdings)[6]
1976 National Enterprise Board invested to modernise a paper mill in Somerset
1977 Acquired by the UK arm of St Regis Paper[7]
1985 After the US parent of St Regis was taken over, most of the UK operations were sold to management - this included Tillotsons, Reed and Smith, and the corrugated packaging part of Mardon Packaging[8]