Our Heritage

The Kirk family establish a jewellery business in 1798 which was later to acquire Boodle and Dunthorne.

The Boodles story begins in Leicester with a young man called Henry Wainwright. In 1878 he became apprenticed to his uncle, William Wainwright, who had a watchmaking business in Leicester. There, Henry learned the skills of the jewellery trade.

Two pocket watches designed and made by William Wainwright. William Wainwright is the Great-Great-Great-Great Uncle of the youngest generation of the family running Boodles today.

Liverpool had become one of the wealthiest cities in the world thanks to its place at the heart of British trading. Goods from around the globe passed through the city, and an affluent merchant class emerged.

Henry Wainwright saw an opportunity in the city of Liverpool and worked as the manager of Kirk & Co, a prestigious jewellery firm at 7 Parker Street in Liverpool. Kirk & Co made chronometers for the Admiralty and sold jewellery designed for the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh. Henry became the owner of the firm’s Liverpool branch in 1898. When his sons Herbert and Harold joined him, the family business became known as H Wainwright & Sons.

In 1910 the two sons broke away from their father and bought the stock, premises and good will of another old-established firm of jewellers, named Boodle and Dunthorne. It was purchased from the executors of Mr Boodle and Mr Dunthorne who died leaving a rather dilapidated but beautifully appointed and well-stocked jewellers, specialising in rare objects d'art, silver, jewellery, antiques, special timepieces and gold pocket watches.

A telegram receipt for several items purchased from Boodle & Dunthorne .

In 1921 Henry and Herbert – Harold had been killed in the Great War - open Boodles House on the desirable corner of Lord Street and North John Street in Liverpool. This is still Head Office today.

Boodle & Dunthorne were commissioned to design and make a silver-gilt switch box for presentation to King George V on his visit to open the Birkenhead library.

Despite adversity, Boodles thrived thanks to Anthony’s entrepreneurial flair and desire for expansion. He opened the company’s second shop in Chester in 1965 and a third in Manchester in 1980. Anthony Wainwright joined his father and grandfather in Boodles in 1939. After serving in Burma during the war he returned to take over the business in 1945.

As part of a regional offering, Boodle & Dunthorne designs and makes the solid silver stand for one of Princess Elizabeth's wedding cakes.

Boodle & Dunthorne makes the gold trophy for record breaking Grand National winner Mr What. Ridden by the Queen Mother's jockey, it won by 30 lengths at odds of 18-1.

Boodle & Dunthorne opens its second shop, in a premium location adjacent to the Grosvenor Hotel, in Chester. The shop would later be extended significantly.

Liza Goddard, star of the British television screen in the 1970’s is chosen as the lead part in a Boodle & Dunthorne TV advert. Photographed here during filming in the Liverpool shop.

The company's first London shop was opened opposite Harrods. This was to be a crucial stepping stone towards the expansion of Boodles, both nationally and internationally.

Mr and Mrs H A Wainwright present the 'Boodles Trophy' to HRH The Prince of Wales, whose polo team beat the Boodles team by 5 - 4 1/2 at Cirencester Polo Club.

Following the death of their father, Nicholas and Michael Wainwright take full control of the company. They open further shops in London, assemble a leading design team, and focus on the development of the brand.

World renowned architect Eva Jiricna is appointed to transform the Boodles shops into exciting and contemporary retail spaces. Lightness and transparency of materials characterise the new shop interiors. Photography by Matej Slavik.

The 1st Boodles tennis tournament took place at Stoke Park. Since 2002 it has attracted many of the world’s leading tennis players including Henman, Sampras, Agassi, Murray, Djokovic and Nadal.

Boodle & Dunthorne becomes simply BOODLES.

The first Boodles Boxing Ball takes place at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London. Princes William and Harry are accompanied to the ball by young Kate Middleton.

Opening of the first shop on London’s Bond Street, and the realisation of a long held dream for the British fine jeweller.

The first Boodles Wonderland Collection is launched at the Haymarket Hotel in London. The collection is inspired by a combination of the imaginary and the living world in all its beauty.

Boodles are invited to display the Raindance Ring in the permanent jewellery exhibition of the V&A Museum in London, as an example of an 'iconic British jewellery design'.

On Sunday 23rd March 2014 at 9pm, the exclusive world of Boodles was unveiled for all to see in a Channel 4 'Behind the Scenes' documentary from the award winning producers of ‘Inside Claridges’ and ‘Inside Rolls Royce’. ‘The Million Pound Necklace: Inside Boodles’ follows the creation of an exquisite Emerald Greenfire suite from loose stones to design, creation and launch.

Boodles collaborates with The Royal Ballet to produce 'Pas de Deux', a collection of high jewellery inspired by the movement and shapes that are formed by two dancers working in partnership. Head of Design Rebecca Hawkins spent many months backstage at the Royal Opera House in order to design the collection.

Boodles reveals 'The Poetry of Landscape', a collection of exceptional jewellery inspired by aspects of Britain's natural landscape, climatic conditions and seasonal change. British landscape photographer Martin Morrell was commissioned to capture a range of these natural British scenes to accompany the collection.

To celebrate Boodles 220th Anniversary, Patek Philippe produced a special version of their World Time Ref. 5230G-012. Two independent family businesses; shared values, shared passion. For twenty-five years, Boodles and Patek Philippe have enjoyed a long-standing partnership in the watch industry; unparalleled design and craftsmanship have formed the cornerstone of their shared philosophy.

It is exactly 20 years since the renowned Raindance ring was created, and 10 since the V&A Museum’s jewellery curator chose the classic ring, complete with nine brilliant cut diamonds, as an icon of British jewellery design to showcase in their permanent exhibition. To celebrate the anniversary, Boodles is delighted to reveal the ‘Raindance’ ring set in platinum, with rare fancy pink and white diamonds, to match our signature pink!

The partnership with British garden designer, Thomas Hoblyn, to create our very own Boodles ‘Secret Garden’ at Chelsea Flower Show.

In 1962 Anthony Wainwright circumnavigated the globe in just 16 days. Thanks to a photo album of this remarkable trip that was found almost 30 years after he died, our high jewellery collection for 2021 ‘Around the world in 16 days’ was born.

Boodles is proud to announce that we are using Single Mine Origin (SMO) gold in all our jewellery.

Welcome to Peace of Mined; a story of provenance. The diamonds in this collection are completely traceable. A few months ago, they were still in the ground.

Boodles was invited to be part of the iconic gallery’s 100th anniversary celebrations. The exhibition showcased the brand’s 225-year story and demonstrated how Liverpool helped to shape its growth.

Boodles is honoured to have been awarded ‘British Luxury Brand of the Year’ at one of the industry’s most prestigious awards ceremonies, the Walpole British Luxury Awards.