Founded in May 1986 by John Palmer and John Watkins - individuals with over 50 years' experience in the glass trade between them, Glass & Mirror quickly became the leading supplier to the framing trade throughout Southern England, East Anglia and the West Country. Right from the start, Glass & Mirror offered a full service with glass, mirror and backboard in stock sheets or cut-to-size - delivered on their own fleet of vans.

The Company began with two vans and six staff servicing around 200 accounts and grew very rapidly. Today Glass & Mirror look after nearly 3000 accounts with eleven trucks and vans and over 40 employees - delivering between 30 and 40 tons daily to the framing trade.

During these 20 years:

  • We became the UK's leading distributor of speciality glazing materials for framing. Distributing Denglas®, SCHOTT® & TruVue® products, and more recently we have introduced our new ‘own brand’ range called ‘The GM Range’. See our new price list for details

  • We added 3rd and 4th glass cutting lines plus shrink wrapper, new automatic shape and circular cutting lines to offer glass, mirror and back boards individually cut to size and/or shape. Recent additions include a state of the art £30K glass washing line from Germany.

  • We introduced the idea of a range of standard sized competitively-priced bevelled mirrors; 2mm, 2.5mm and 3mm backing board in stock and cut sizes; a full range of plastic glazing material from 1.25mm-3mm - including UV filtering and diffused reflection.

  • We have moved to bigger premises at Stewart House and acquired a new warehouse, directly opposite our main site, to cope with the rapidly growing demand for our speciality glass and services.

  • We Offered regular Seminars covering training in glass handling, cutting, safety and technical advice on specialised glazing materials for security and conservation framing.

  • We expanded our northern operations during 2003, with the introduction of our new Oldham facility, which services the framing trade from the Midlands to the North of England, including Scotland.

Twenty years on, Glass and Mirror's commitment to providing an unequalled service for the independent framer remains unchanged.