History & Heritage
1919
OUR STORY BEGINS
Established as a family business in the City of London by Julian Cowan, Cole & Mason was initially founded as a giftware company and quickly and successfully expanded into general hardware and housewares.
1946
THE CAPSTAN MILL
A wooden mill artfully turned by hand, the Capstan mill was an instant hit and is still in production today, having had only a few small modifications made to the original design.
1975
OUR FIRST ACRYLIC MILL
We launched the worlds first acrylic mill, the "505" in 1975. David Cowan, son of founder Julian Cowan, was inspired by a friend's dining room's acrylic doorknobs; and so an icon was born - and is still available to buy today.
1981
THE DUO MILL
We patent the first mill mechanism to store both salt and pepper together, pairing classic inovation with timeless style.
1986
THE QUEEN'S AWARD
We were awarded the Queens Award for Export Achievement for 1986, cementing our place in British design history, with recognition of our business success internationally.
2001
OUR FIRST ELECTRONIC MILL
The Manhattan Mill is introduced to make cooking a breeze. Using the automatic button at the top, it allows the chef to use one hand to grind and the other to stir or pour.
2010
the derwent
Our premium range of grind select mills give the chef complete control with 6 pre-set grind levels for pepper and 3 pre-set grind levels for salt, to provide precise adjustment of the grind from fine to coarse. Our Derwent Mill was introduced to much fanfare as it teams both internal innovation with contemporary styling, available in five metallic shades.
2019
CELEBRATING 100 YEARS
We celebrated a century making award winning mills and kitchen accessories by creating a limited edition mill, named the Knightsbridge, after one of our original ‘Peter Piper’ mills, which was manufactured by Park Green & Co in Knightsbridge, London.
2023
THE LONDON MILL
Our new collection builds on a century long status as the Experts in Seasoning, and is an ode to the city of London, the birthplace of Cole & Mason. Inspired by the capital's Art Deco and industrial British architecture, 2023 brings some of our most beloved British design icons into the 21st century.
The new London mill is the ultimate fusion of heritage, design and contemporary aesthetic results in a collection that is more innovative than ever before.