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The Waterford history
The Waterford company history timeline
In 1938 the company laid plans to build a modern facility near Barlaston.
The plant, which featured the first electric pottery kilns used in Britain, began production in 1940.
1940: A new Wedgwood factory, near Barlaston, begins production.
In 1947, while Europe was still in ruins after the Second World War, a small factory was set up in Ballytruckle, a suburb of Waterford, one and one half miles from the site of the original Penrose glasshouse.
By the end of the 1950s, the company employed more than 2,000 people at the Barlaston plant. (All production had been transferred from Etruria to Barlaston by 1950.)
Newer and better furnaces were built in 1951 and Waterford Crystal began its amazing second phase, which, ultimately, was to take the company to the summit of the world's crystal industry.
The first ever league game of the club took place in September 1953 against Bolton, resulting in a 3-1 victory.
A move to a larger site in Johnstown, nearer to the city centre was necessary due to increased growth. It was in 1955 that Waterford Crystal made its first profits.
By the 1957/58 season, after four years in existence Villa and with the first schoolboys now maturing into adulthood the club finally entered its first Junior League team.
At the time, word of mouth was its best form of advertising by visitors to Ireland, and in 1958 it was decided to no longer do business through the New York agent and to go it alone.
One of the club’s finest hours arrived in 1959, as a gallant Villa side became the first Waterford side to land the Munster Minor Cup.
By 1962 Villa had progressed so much in such a short space of time that the club gained entry into the Munster Senior League.A host of players during this glorious era would progress to League of Ireland level.
1963: Sir Arthur Bryan becomes the first non-Wedgwood to serve as managing director.
The Villa reached the Munster Junior Cup Final in 1963, when a Buddy Purcell hat-trick was enough to see off the challenge of Geraldines of Limerick in the semi-final atOzier Park.
Another significant achievement at that time was the presence of several Villa players – Gene Roche, Buddy Purcell, Teddy Madigan, and Frankie Mountain – in the first Waterford panel to win the Inter-league Oscar Traynor Cup in 1964.
The 1965/66 title was the beginning of a hugely successful spell for the club domestically.
The club eventually won the league title for the first time in the 1965–66 season, (under manager Paddy Coad) setting a then league record of 13 straight league victories.
The demand for Waterford Crystal remained huge and Waterford Glass Ltd. became a public company in 1966.
The new holding company, Josiah Wedgwood Ltd, listed as a public company (although still controlled by the Wedgwood family) on the London Stock Exchange in May 1967 allowing the public, for the first time, to purchase shares in the company.
They won the Shield once again in 1968–69 season.
The 1970’s began auspiciously for the Villa with the capture of the Ardagh Cup for the leading sides in Waterford in 1970.
Johnstown was no longer large enough to cope and so in 1970 a new factory was opened in Kilbarry.
Johnstown was no longer large enough to cope and so in 1970 a new factory was opened in Kilbarry. It was in July of 1973 that Waterford Crystal completed the Kilbarry plant at 425,000 feet, almost 10 acres – the largest manufacturing unit of its type in the world.
After the oil crisis of the winter of 1973 – ’74, Waterford planned another factory, this time for lighting ware, for which the demand was so great that it was impinging on the normal production.
By 1975, Wedgwood had nearly 9,000 employees in 20 factories.
Indeed in the 1975/76 season the club got off to a scintillating start losing just once in their first eleven games but were gradually taken over by Johnville and Bohemians.
Reilly R., & Savage, G. The Dictionary of Wedgwood. (Antique Collectors’ Club, 1980).
The 1980’s were far from being a successful period in terms of winning silverware for the Villa, although luckily the sense of spirit and fun of the club was maintained throughout this era.
In the 1980's computer technology improved the accuracy of the raw materials mix, known in the crystal industry as the “batch”. Pure raw materials are consistently blended for much greater accuracy than was possible a century or two ago.
In May 1982, the Club changed its name to Waterford United.
Villa Premier Team 1984
By completing arousing 3-1 win over Tramore Rangers; Villa bridged what seemed like an eternal 20 year gap and returned to the Premier League for the first time since 1985.
The latest furnace design, one that uses natural gas instead of oil, was introduced in November 1986 and saved the company £2 million on its annual oil import bill.
In 1986 Wedgwood was the subject of a hostile takeover bid from the London International Group, the owners of Royal Worcester and Spode at the time.
Introduced into production in 1987, diamond wheels have assisted Waterford craftsmen in creating even more exciting and intricate patterns.
1988: Waterford Wedgwood posts an operating loss for the year, the first of five straight.
Willis, G. Wedgwood. (Pyramid Books, 1989)
Their stay there was short, gaining promotion and winning the First Division title the following season 1989–90.
His first attempt was refused, but by early 1990, the struggling company was ready to deal.
The 1990’s was the period that saw the regeneration of the Villa FC both on and off the pitch.
The facilities of the club also underwent a radical improvement commencing in the late 1990’s, with Neil Kelly and George McDonald being the driving forces behind the developments.
When Waterford Wedgwood lost IR £1.2 million on IR £71 million sales in 1991, Don Brennan of Morgan Stanley replaced Kilroy as chairman.
A significant milestone was the formation of 4th division team in 1991/92, which brought back together many of the older members of the club.
Waterford Crystal launched the Marquis brand in 1991.
Villa 4th Division Team 1992
New products were introduced from the finest crystal facilities in Europe in 1992, all manufactured to the same exacting standards as Waterford.
In February of 1993, Waterford Crystal received a grant from the Industry Research and Development Initiative for new glass melting technology.
In 1993 profits increased again, to IR £10 million, and Waterford Wedgwood's share price grew to 60p.
The old adage about good things arriving in pairs was never more accurate than in the 1993/94 season of Villa FC, when the club put an end to a barren run in the Junior League to win not one, but two league titles.
1994: O'Reilly is named chairman.
In 1995 Waterford Wedgwood acquired Stuart & Sons Ltd, the UK's leading manufacturer of crystal glassware.
1997: Company gains majority control of Rosenthal AG, a German-based porcelain maker.
In 1998 Waterford Wedgwood further increased its stake in Rosenthal to about 85 percent.
Sales for the privately held company were about US$52 million in 1998 and were growing rapidly.
Revenues for 1999 increased 20.4 percent over the previous year, nearing the US$1 billion mark and almost double the figure of five years earlier.
1999: Waterford Wedgwood acquires United States-based All-Clad Metalcrafters Inc., a maker of premium cookware; designs the Waterford Crystal New Year's Eve Ball used in New York's Times Square to mark the new millennium.
The “Villa 2000” fundraising scheme saw the club generate the capital to develop an all-weather playing surface, erect security fencing, seed a new grass training area by the turn of the century.
Perhaps Waterford Crystal’s greatest promotion to date has been the Times Square New Year’s Eve Millennium Ball – an estimated 1.2 billion people watched with awe and amazement as the six-foot diametric crystal ball was lowered down the pole during the New York year 2000 countdown.
In his first season he led the club to promotion to the League of Ireland Premier Division in the 2002–03 season.
In March 2003 Waterford Wedgwood announced a restructure of its earthenware operations with the closure of its two Johnson Bros factories, the total outsourcing of Johnson Bros earthenware production to Asia, and the concentration of Wedgwood fine earthenware production at Barlaston.
The League of Ireland changed from a winter league to a summer league for the 2003 season.
Villa 1st Division Double Winners 2005
2006/07 a hugely successful season for Villa
In 2006 Waterford United were relegated to the First Division.
However, on 20 February 2007 it was announced that Waterford United had been invited to participate in the Premier Division for the forthcoming season.
FAIJunior Cup Semi Final 2007 Villa V St John Bosco
A share issue in September 2008 to raise £122 million to pay down debt raised only half the required funds and on 2nd December 2008 the company announced that it had breached loan covenants with its banks.
Villa FC Ardagh Cup Winners 2008
He was there at the start of the club and was there through thick and thin for the club until his untimely death in 2008.
During the difficult financial crisis in 2008, the Waterford Wedgwood Group and associated companies were unable to secure additional financial revenue to maintain the operation of their global business.
Three extensions to the deadline for payment were negotiated, but on 5th January 2009 Waterford Wedgwood plc was placed in the hands of administrators.
On 30th January 2009, it was announced that Waterford Crystal was in receivership.
Another historic achievement was the winning of the National Danone Under 11 Cup in 2009.
Since its opening in June 2010, over one million people have visited the Retail Store and enjoyed guided factory tours of the manufacturing processes.
In May 2011 Henderson was sacked after a run of poor form.
Waterford United finished 5th in the 2011 League of Ireland First Division.
Three days in May 2012 will also go down in club folklore, as Villa won the U17, U19, and 1st Division cup in this 72 hour period to spark wild celebrations!
The Blues were favourites to lift the Title in 2013 but during the season O'Brien resigned due to poor form.
In July 2015 WWRD was purchased by the Fiskars Corporation which brings us up to current day.
After a disappointing start to 2015 Griffin stepped aside into a new role in the club and Roddy Collins was appointed as manager on a two-and-a-half-year deal.
With two games left in the 2016 season and Waterford in 6th it was announced Roddy Collins would leave the club.
On 2 January 2017, the Club announced the new managerial team for the coming season.
The club has developed a strong fanbase over the 2017 season and this was coupled with promotion to the League of Ireland Premier Division.
After Waterford beat Wexford 3–0 and Cobh Ramblers were defeated 3–0 by Cabinteely Waterford were officially crowned league champions and promoted back to the Premier Division for 2018.
Behind the scenes at our Fall/Winter 2019 Photo Shoot
On 4 June 2021, with the club bottom of the table, it was announced that Lee Power had sold the club to R&S Holdings Ltd, fronted by UK entrepreneur Richard Forrest who had bought the remaining stakes in the club having previously bought 33% earlier in the year.
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The Waterford competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenfield Senior Living | 2001 | $23.0M | 750 | 24 |
| Friendship Village of South Hills | - | $16.0M | 350 | - |
| Primrose Retirement Communities | 1989 | $490.0M | 7,500 | 109 |
| Abbey Delray | - | $9.6M | 50 | - |
| Oakdale | - | $1.6M | 30 | 4 |
| WestMont | 1982 | $10.0M | 170 | 69 |
| Salado | - | $13.0M | 175 | 1 |
| SWANSEA | - | $1.2M | 30 | - |
| Pinewood Inc. | 1964 | $5.0M | 5 | 2 |
| Monroe, Ohio | - | $2.1M | 125 | - |
The Waterford history FAQs
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