Emma Bridgewater CBE left OHS in 1979 and has since gone on to become one of the UK’s most recognisable designers of homeware as well as one of the country’s foremost entrepreneurs.
February 18, 2015 – Stoke-On-Trent, United Kingdom: Britain’s Kate (C), Duchess of Cambridge, is accompanied by Emma Bridgewater (L) and her husband Matthew Rice (R) as the Duchess visits the ‘Emma Bridgewater’ pottery factory to view the production of a mug that the company has launched in support of East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices. (Oli Scarff/WPA Rota/Nunn Syndication/Polaris) ///
She set up her ceramic company in 1985, which soon became a world-wide phenomenon thanks to its famous polka dot design, amongst others. According to Emma, she devised this distinctive pattern after searching the shops for some china for her mother’s birthday, which would capture the warm and welcoming spirit of her mother’s North Oxford kitchen. When she couldn’t find what she wanted, she set about making her own, from scratch, and thus her formidable business empire started.
The company is now one of the largest pottery manufacturers based entirely in the UK, with most of its products made in the Emma Bridgewater factory in Stoke-on-Trent.
In addition to her business interests, Emma has also served as President of the Campaign to Protect Rural England and a Patron of the Heritage Crafts Association.
Emma has been the parent to an OHS student and served as an OHS Governor, and we remain grateful to her for the unstinting support she has always given the High School.
