Historic pottery company Moorcroft goes out of business

The directors of 128-year-old Moorcroft Pottery have announced that the firm has stopped trading, leading to the loss of 57 jobs.

In an announcement on the Stoke-on-Trent company's website the directors said that it was with "profound sadness" that as of April 30 it had ceased to trade. It has appointed insolvency business Moore Recovery to help with voluntarily liquidating the company.

They said Moore would contact creditors in due course but did not give an explanation for the firm's closure. However, industry commentators have blamed an increase in energy costs.

Indeed in March, Moorcroft warned of the threat of redundancies, stating their energy costs had gone up almost £250,000 over the past two years.

Chris Hoofe, GMB organiser, urged the government to act, adding high energy costs were "crippling" the sector.
"The closure of Moorcroft is devastating news for workers and their families, but unfortunately it's not a surprise," he said.

Great Pottery Throw Down judge Keith Brymer Jones said no business could sustain such an increase."It's incredibly sad news," he told BBC Radio Stoke. "We've been crying out for support for the ceramics industry and Stoke-on-Trent as a whole for years. It's never been considered a major industry in this country."

Moorcroft Pottery traces its roots back to 1897 and has been based at its current site in Sandbach Road since 1913.

According to its website, the firm's founder, William Moorcroft, was able to produce pottery from its current site thanks to the support of London department store Liberty. After winning a number of prestigious international awards, Moorcroft was appointed as Potter to HM The Queen in 1928.

The firm's royal patronage continued when the late Queen Elizabeth II added Moorcroft designs into the Royal Collection. The brand was also popular with US presidents and British prime ministers, according to the firm.

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