Sykes & Son Ltd are Celebrating 265 Years of Business

Today we celebrate the 265th anniversary of the business we now know as Sykes & Son Limited, which was originally founded by John Willis, a member of The Worshipful Company of Glaziers and Painters of Glass.

The first evidence we have of work completed by John Willis comes from the St Clement Danes Church Warden Accounts, which show that on the 12th April 1759, Mr. Willis was paid the princely sum of £6.1s.00d for mending and cleaning the Church windows. Using average earnings as a guide this is equivalent to £9,500.

The business traded from Essex Street, and the adjoining courtyards, within the Parish of St. Clement Danes, London WC2., continuously from 1759 until 2020, when we relocated to our new Bloomsbury head office. We now stand as the UK’s oldest building contractor.