Colefax Group

Colefax Group plc is a United Kingdom-based interiors business focused on the design, manufacture coordination, distribution, and sale of furnishing fabrics and wallpaper. Its roots lie in the decorating practice and textile business established in the 1930s by Sibyl, Lady Colefax. The company’s early identity was closely associated with traditional British interior decoration and with the design partnership that became known as Colefax & Fowler. A major early turning point came in 1938, when John Fowler joined Lady Colefax. Fowler’s involvement helped shape the company’s design identity and strengthened its connection with high-end residential decoration. In 1944, the business, under Fowler’s management, took a lease on 39 Brook Street in Mayfair, London. The address served as an important base for the business for decades, remaining associated with Colefax & Fowler until December 2016. That same year, Sibyl, Lady Colefax sold the business to Nancy Tree, who later became known as Nancy Lancaster, for a sum reported in the approximate order of £10,000. The modern group is broader than the original Colefax & Fowler operation. It owns or represents a collection of furnishing and decorative-surface brands, including Colefax and Fowler, Cowtan and Tout, Jane Churchill, Larsen, and Manuel Canovas. These brands serve the premium and luxury segments of the interiors market, with product ranges centered on decorative textiles, upholstery and drapery fabrics, wallcoverings, and related design materials. Their distinct design languages allow the group to address both traditionally styled and more contemporary interior schemes while retaining a focus on quality, pattern, color, and professional design use. Colefax Group operates internationally through offices and commercial activities in the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Germany, and Italy. Its distribution model is oriented toward the specialist interiors trade and design professionals as well as customers seeking high-end decorative products. The portfolio structure gives the group access to multiple heritage names and design traditions rather than relying on a single label. The company’s historical significance comes from the continuity between a celebrated British decorating business and a wider international group of furnishing brands. Colefax Group is therefore best understood as an interiors-house and corporate brand rather than as a single consumer product label. Public reference material identifies its core activity as the design and distribution of furnishing fabrics and wallpaper, while the available material does not provide sufficient detail to state current revenue, ownership, executive leadership, stock-market information, or a precise incorporation date.

Colefax Group developed from the decorating and furnishing business founded in the 1930s by Sibyl, Lady Colefax. Lady Colefax was an influential figure in British interior decoration, and the business initially reflected the close relationship between decorating services, interior design, and the supply of fabrics and other decorative materials. In 1938, John Fowler joined the business. The partnership became known as Colefax & Fowler, a name that became central to the company’s identity and to its reputation in British interior decoration. Fowler subsequently managed the business and was instrumental in its development during the mid-twentieth century. In 1944, Colefax & Fowler took a lease on 39 Brook Street in Mayfair, London. The premises became a long-standing home for the business and remained associated with it until December 2016. Also in 1944, Sibyl, Lady Colefax sold the business to Nancy Tree. Tree later became known as Nancy Lancaster, following her marriage in 1948. The reported consideration was in the order of £10,000. The change in ownership marked an important transition while preserving the business’s association with high-end British decoration and design. Over time, the business evolved from its original decorating-house roots into a broader group focused on furnishing fabrics and wallpaper. Colefax Group assembled a portfolio of specialist brands, including Colefax and Fowler, Cowtan and Tout, Jane Churchill, Larsen, and Manuel Canovas. Each name contributes a different design heritage and aesthetic position, allowing the group to participate across a range of premium interior-design projects. The group’s international footprint expanded beyond the United Kingdom. Reference material identifies offices in the United States, France, Germany, and Italy, in addition to its British base. This network supports international distribution and relationships with the professional design and interiors trade. The available reference material does not specify an exact founding year, the dates of each brand’s addition to the group, current senior management, financial performance, or detailed recent strategy. Accordingly, the documented history is strongest for the origins of Colefax & Fowler, the 1938 arrival of John Fowler, the 1944 Mayfair lease, the 1944 sale to Nancy Tree, and the group’s current portfolio and international office presence.

• 2016

  End of the 39 Brook Street tenancy

  [1]Colefax Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The long-standing Colefax & Fowler association with 39 Brook Street ended in December 2016.

• 1944

  Move to 39 Brook Street

  [1]Colefax Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Under Fowler’s management, the business took a lease on 39 Brook Street in Mayfair, London, a location associated with the company for more than seven decades.

• 1944

  Sale to Nancy Tree

  [1]Colefax Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Sibyl, Lady Colefax sold the business to Nancy Tree, later known as Nancy Lancaster, for a reported amount in the approximate order of £10,000.

• 1938

  John Fowler joins the business

  [1]Colefax Groupen.wikipedia.org

  John Fowler joined Lady Colefax, and the business became known as Colefax & Fowler, strengthening its identity as a prominent British decorating and interiors concern.

• 1930

  Business founded by Sibyl, Lady Colefax

  [1]Colefax Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Sibyl, Lady Colefax established the decorating and furnishing business that later developed into Colefax & Fowler and ultimately formed the historical basis of Colefax Group.

A premium and heritage-led interiors group supplying designer furnishing fabrics and wallpaper through a portfolio of internationally recognized decorative brands.

• Furnishing fabrics and wallpaper

  Colefax and Fowler

  Colefax and Fowler is the heritage name most directly connected with the group’s origins. It grew from the decorating business founded by Sibyl, Lady Colefax and developed after John Fowler joined in 1938. The label is associated with British interior decoration and with furnishing materials used in residential and other high-end interiors, including decorative fabrics and wallpaper.

• Furnishing fabrics and wallpaper

  Cowtan and Tout

  Cowtan and Tout is one of the specialist decorative brands within the Colefax Group portfolio. It contributes furnishing fabrics and wallpaper to the group’s premium interiors offering and supports the company’s international reach, particularly through its presence in the professional design and decoration trade.

• Furnishing fabrics and wallpaper

  Jane Churchill

  Jane Churchill is a design-led furnishing brand owned by Colefax Group. Its place in the portfolio broadens the group’s range of decorative textiles and wallcoverings, giving interior designers access to a distinct brand identity within the broader premium and luxury market.

• Furnishing fabrics

  Larsen

  Larsen is a specialist furnishing-textiles brand in the Colefax Group portfolio. It adds another design perspective to the group’s range of fabrics used in interior schemes, including applications such as upholstery, drapery, and other decorative purposes.

• Furnishing fabrics and wallpaper

  Manuel Canovas

  Manuel Canovas is a furnishing and decorative-surface brand within Colefax Group. Its inclusion gives the group a European design presence alongside its British heritage names and contributes fabrics and wallpaper for premium residential and professional interior projects.

1. 1Colefax Groupen.wikipedia.org