Stratton is a brand of powder compacts, lipstick holders and other devices and containers for

cosmetics Cosmetics are constituted mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources, or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protec ...

, made in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. the company also made

costume jewellery Costume or fashion jewelry includes a range of decorative items worn for personal adornment that are manufactured as less expensive ornamentation to complement a particular fashionable outfit or garmentBaker, Lillian. Fifty Years of Collectabl ...

. The parent company was founded in 1860 as Stratnoid, and initially made

knitting needle A knitting needle or knitting pin is a tool in hand-knitting to produce knitted fabrics. They generally have a long shaft and taper at their end, but they are not nearly as sharp as sewing needles. Their purpose is two-fold. The long shaft ''h ...

s. It changed its name to Stratton and in 1920, merged with Jarrett and Rainsford, to form a company named Jarrett, Rainsford and Laughton Ltd., trading as Stratton and as Stratton of Mayfair. In 1923, the company began assembling compacts, using components imported from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. In 1929, the company was headquartered at its Alexandra Works, Kent Street, Birmingham, with showrooms in Hamsell Street, Jewin Street,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, EC2. By the early 1930s, it was making its own components in Birmingham, and producing half of all the compacts made in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

In November 1940, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, four of its five Birmingham factories were lost to enemy bombing. The company recovered and diverted its work to producing war supplies. By 1947, the company was operating from the Leominster Works, Lower Essex Street, Birmingham, and had showrooms at Dean Street, London, W1. In 1948, the company patented a mechanism for a self-opening inner lid for compacts. During subsequent years, it acquired rivals including Kigu and Mascot. A new factory at Warstock Road, Birmingham, was acquired. The company changed hands several times before finally closing in 1997, but the name was revived subsequently and the company using it is still in operation, again assembling imported components.

References

1860 establishments in England History of Birmingham, West Midlands Cosmetics brands {{UK-company-stub