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Denby pottery under threat, have you bought some to support them?

499 replies

Stopsnowing · 22/03/2026 06:37

My mum had Denby and it was indestructible. But now I hear they are under threat and have put out an SOS.
https://www.denbypottery.com/pages/save-denby?_gl=113xe0u1upMQ..gs*MQ..&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhobLsPGykwMVbpBQBh2sNhibEAAYASABEgJiavD_BwE&gbraid=0AAAAAD88OOOIrq_FVCUS-mNNXnw6tUk
had assumed they would be around for ever but have now treated myself to a set that I was planning to get way in the future after I had the kitchen redone.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
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PissedOffNeighbour22 · 22/03/2026 08:24

I’m not a Denby fan but my DH is and has had a few pieces that are many years old. It would be sad to see them go under.

The aforementioned supermarket brands are appalling quality and a waste of money really. The ‘pattern’ has washed off and they don’t stack properly as the edges are wobbly looking. We didn’t have the money to buy Denby when we got the cheap plates though.

Batteriesoptional · 22/03/2026 08:25

Sickoffamilydrama · 22/03/2026 07:49

Sadly manufacturing in Britain is too expensive not to mention regulator pressures.

We just put our 78 year old family business into voluntary administration.

The cost of materials and labour had massively increased but customers were unwilling or unable to pay a higher price and regulators that literally measured items differently and then spent weeks signing them off all compounded to make it no longer viable.

We were one of only two manufacturers in Britain and actually the world for some of our products, our competition went into administration two years ago and was bought but that probably won't happen with us meaning that ultimately customers will have to pay more as the remaining manufacturer will have a monopoly.

I am sorry to hear this. While I don’t live with my head firmly in the sand, I hadn’t given much thought to the parlous state of British manufacturing until reading Patrick Grants book, which I have just finished. We need to reframe our thinking around “expensive”, look at the totality of what it means to your locality and the economy to loose your business and the jobs it created vs. always deferring to a lower price which not only sends capital overseas but in exchange for goods that are not always of a comparable quality.

OP - thank you for posting. I never appreciated how pretty some of their designs are, I’ve bought a couple of pet bowls.

Myblueclematis · 22/03/2026 08:26

Oh my, that brings back some memories. I got married in 1977 and started buying Denby then. We started off Denby Cotswold and continued adding to it over the years. I loved it but the cups were a bit on the thick side and quite shallow to drink tea from, we had the mugs for coffee.

I only got rid of what I had in the loft which hadn't been used since the early 90s about a year ago. I gave it to a charity shop so I hope someone bought it and will treasure it if Denby are going to be no more.

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Myblueclematis · 22/03/2026 08:27

Myblueclematis · 22/03/2026 08:26

Oh my, that brings back some memories. I got married in 1977 and started buying Denby then. We started off Denby Cotswold and continued adding to it over the years. I loved it but the cups were a bit on the thick side and quite shallow to drink tea from, we had the mugs for coffee.

I only got rid of what I had in the loft which hadn't been used since the early 90s about a year ago. I gave it to a charity shop so I hope someone bought it and will treasure it if Denby are going to be no more.

Would add, the Denby lasted a lot longer than the marriage. 😆

OvernightBloats · 22/03/2026 08:28

One of my luckiest charity shop finds about 10 years ago was finding some Denby. 2 side plates, 2 bowls and 2 dinner plates sold together for under £5! The person who priced them must not have known how expensive they were.

Still using them now. They are so sturdy. Only one item is chipped even after years of wear. Also have another plate which was given away free outside a house along with other items. Lucky find there as well!

PuppyMonkey · 22/03/2026 08:30

My Greenwich set of plates and bowls is still going strong after 30 years. TBH once you buy a set, you don’t need to replace it. That’s the point of Denby.

Of course, It’s a shame for the company and I feel sad to see it go, but tbh I could say the same about, for example, the local newspaper I used to work for which used to employ about 400 people and now only employs a handful of journalists and advertising bods. Is there a campaign to get people to buy more local newspapers and save this dying insustry? Can’t say I’ve seen it.

Everybodys · 22/03/2026 08:30

OrdinarySloth · 22/03/2026 08:10

People keep saying “you could go through ten supermarket sets for the price of Denby”. Maybe that’s true, but the environmental cost of that is appalling. Obviously if you can’t afford Denby then you have no choice, but if you can then I think choosing the supermarket options is as bad as buying fast fashion from Shein or Temu (both environmentally and in terms of how the workers will be treated).

The “people don’t have space for it” is a weird argument as well. No, people these days don’t have room for fancy occasion china. But there’s no reason Denby can’t be used as everyday crockery. It’s what we do, and what the others we know with Denby do.

Edited

I'm not sure the argument in the first paragraph has much practical resonance these days.

Let's agree that people are much less likely to have Denby/similar sets as they're 'starting out' now, and that younger people who've left home are more likely to be in private rentals thus moving more than they used to. If they get married, they probably live together first and so crockery is a less popular wedding present now.

So you go through your earlier adult years not getting any Denby, because you can't afford it and there's never a time when people have reason to give it to you. You use your Ikea/supermarket/chazza stuff because that is what's accessible. This is a norm.

Eventually, if things go well, you'll reach a point where you can afford the likes of Denby and you're also sufficiently securely housed that you don't need to worry about having to transport all your stuff every couple of years. But you probably already have as much crockery as you need. For people like me who truly don't give a fuck about what matches, you perhaps could do it a plate at a time... but most people seem to like matching. I notice most of the Denby havers in here are talking about sets rather than doing it piecemeal, which says something.

IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads · 22/03/2026 08:30

CallingOnTheMegaphone · 22/03/2026 06:41

I'm not surprised, it's pretty old-fashioned looking and expensive for what it is. You can get lovely dinner sets in most supermarkets now, so who is going to shell out for Denby?!

Edited

It’s much better quality than supermarket crockery. My deeper colours, and denser clay. We had supermarket crockery for years, and it chipped, crazed and cracked very easily. One day we decided to use our “best” wedding Denby for everyday, and I think we’ve chipped 1 plate in 15 years. We definitely havn't been treating it better, probably worse as we’ve had children.

IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads · 22/03/2026 08:31

ChubbyPuffling · 22/03/2026 08:15

Victims of their own success I guess, we had our wedding china in "Greenwich" in 1999 .

Apart from adding pasta bowls and a salad bowl, we have not needed to buy any more. Not broken/chipped anything , the only plates/bowls/mugs/teapot/sugarbowl, cream jug, milk jug/salt+pepper/casserole/meat plate&gravy boat/serving plates& bowls that we have, so has been in daily use for 26 years.

We have a full set of “Reflex”, a wedding present a year later.

WhereIsMyLight · 22/03/2026 08:32

We got a Denby set as a wedding present 10 years ago. A relative told me to get a set for when we entertain but we don’t really entertain. So we have two sets. The Denby just sits in the cupboard and gathers dust. We are a clumsy family so I don’t want to use the Denby set everyday because a replacement if one does get broken is quite expensive. The set we have was discontinued quite quickly and whilst I still like it, it’s already hard to find the replacements.

Jamspeas · 22/03/2026 08:33

Love Denby! Timeless and classic. I've both Linen and Halo sets and love the simplicity and quality of the pieces. Hope they get some help.

Sortingmyself · 22/03/2026 08:34

Thank you OP for highlighting this, I haven't been paying much attention to the news recently 😬 so I'm glad I came across your thread!

We've had green regency for 25 years (wedding present). The usual plates, bowls etc but also lasagna dish, massive serving bowl, other serving bowls, egg cups, condiment set and it still looks great. Lasagna dish has a few marks and 1 pasta bowl has chipped, but everything else is pristine!

I've just ordered a few extra plates and bowls to top our set up via tesco vouchers...just worried now that the kitchen cupboard won't take the weight of it all!!

QueenofLouisiana · 22/03/2026 08:34

My Denby is older than me! It’s an early 1970s Bokara set, so not to everyone’s taste but I love it. (Photo from eBay so you can enjoy its retro beauty)

We use it daily.

Denby pottery under threat, have you bought some to support them?
IAxolotlQuestions · 22/03/2026 08:35

I love my Denby - but I have no need for any more right now. Unless I go buy some big bowls for ramen…

Creamcrakered25 · 22/03/2026 08:35

We have my parents 1960s set, Arabesque! It's the dark brown with circles so not to everyone's taste, but the mid size plates are perfect for daily dinners - modern day standard dinner plates are huge so this helps our portion sizes lol. We use the big plates for roasts , Christmas etc. it is absolutely indestructible and I love that 4 generations of our family have eaten off it! We do have a small dresser for the casseroles and platters, which I want to paint to show the Denby off better. It's sad they are struggling but I've seen Thier modern patterns, which are lovely but so easily copied nowadays by less expensive outlets. Not sure on current quality though! Love mine though!!!

likelysuspect · 22/03/2026 08:35

WhereIsMyLight · 22/03/2026 08:32

We got a Denby set as a wedding present 10 years ago. A relative told me to get a set for when we entertain but we don’t really entertain. So we have two sets. The Denby just sits in the cupboard and gathers dust. We are a clumsy family so I don’t want to use the Denby set everyday because a replacement if one does get broken is quite expensive. The set we have was discontinued quite quickly and whilst I still like it, it’s already hard to find the replacements.

You can always find replacements for things on ebay etc

What design was it?

Ineffable23 · 22/03/2026 08:36

TiredCatLady · 22/03/2026 08:15

Denby stuff is fantastic - virtually indestructible. My MIL has a set that’s nigh on 50 years old, used everyday and still chip free (despite my other half’s best efforts). Those saying it’s expensive compared to the “nice dinner sets in supermarkets”, the latter are literally throwaway crap quality.
I had a John Lewis set bought at the start of covid which chipped within months and went in the bin by the end of 2024 with several pieces missing and all but two cups horribly chipped. That was £60 down the drain. The £25 Tesco ones don’t last a year.
I now have a Denby set (saved up for it) and it’s my everyday set. I’ll probably buy some spares as I’d be utterly gutted if they went under.

I find this a bit odd - I had an inexpensive Tesco set and it lasted 8 years, and would have been alright for longer but for the fact I broke 2 plates. One literally dropped on the floor and one left on top of an on electric hob. Not really Tesco's fault. I only bought one 12 piece set, so when they died I was then really struggling for plates!

My next (still inexpensive) set is from Dunelm. I have just bought 3 sets and popped the final set up in the loft, so I can have 8 out and 4 spares in case of breakages or if I have a massive party.

It is unfortunate as Denby is gorgeous, but the entire batch of 3x twelve piece sets is the same as a single lot of 4 dinner plates if they don't have a sale on.

My parents have Denby and the other thing I miss is the "medium" plates but I don't have enough cupboard space for those anyway.

FlorenceBlack · 22/03/2026 08:37

I was in their outlet store last week and chatting to the assistant. She said the hardest decision you have to make with Denby is initially choosing the colour/ style because once you’ve started buying it you’re committed, knowing that it will never wear out or date. I started buying ours after seeing how indestructible MIL’s set is, and will genuinely be gutted if they do go under.

PuppyMonkey · 22/03/2026 08:37

BTW we got our Greenwich from the actual Denby factory shop (only live ten mins away) - from the section where they put all the reject plates etc. Some had the tiniest speck of green on the white side so they were considered not up to standard for general sale. You used to be able to buy these for a knockdown price. Smile

likelysuspect · 22/03/2026 08:37

QueenofLouisiana · 22/03/2026 08:34

My Denby is older than me! It’s an early 1970s Bokara set, so not to everyone’s taste but I love it. (Photo from eBay so you can enjoy its retro beauty)

We use it daily.

That is beautiful

10namechangeslater · 22/03/2026 08:40

Too expensive for me could never buy

likelysuspect · 22/03/2026 08:41

They've got some incredible sets on ebay, the Arabesque is one of them

bonjourtristesse16 · 22/03/2026 08:41

I love my Denby, had it for eons.

Just my thoughts though.

This is a marketing ploy.

Although it was founded in 1809, Denby is no longer family-owned.

It was first listed as a public company in 1970 with the current iteration being Hilco Capital an "investment" firm who took over in 2009

They filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators due to rising energy and employment costs

They're not that sentimental about their 500+ employees who could potentially lose their jobs, are they?

Just may well be tugging on your heartstrings!!

10namechangeslater · 22/03/2026 08:43

GenieGenealogy · 22/03/2026 08:00

People who want to buy good and buy once. People who don't want disposable, cheap dinner sets.

Some people just cannot afford it

EmeraldRoulette · 22/03/2026 08:43

I actually need some new crockery

Before I heard this news, I was thinking I should replace stuff

People are saying that it's very heavy
That is an issue

How heavy is it?

I would just get some in the sale and I only need a few bits because I live on my own and these days entertaining just doesn't seem to happen for various reasons

I can't say I have a really sturdy place to put them so it would just be the bottom shelf of the cupboard.