Our History

VISCOSE PROCESS FIRST DISCOVERED BY CHARLES FREDERICK CROSS

The viscose process was first discovered by Charles Frederick Cross, who patented his discovery in 1892 with the aim of developing the viscose process for textiles.

The Viscose Spinning Syndicate was formed in 1894 under the chairmanship of Mr A. Pears, of Pears soap fame. The company operated until 1902, when the spinning rights for viscose were acquired by the late Samuel Courtauld, then Chairman of a small company manufacturing natural silk.

This business later became part of the vast Courtauld empire. In 1902, the Viscose Development Company Limited was formed to operate all non-textile uses of the viscose process, absorbing the original Viscose Spinning Syndicate.

In 1916, the company began constructing a factory at Woldham Road, Bromley. Completion was delayed by the First World War, and the site was not occupied until 1920.

EARLY EXPERIMENTS IN CELLULOSE TUBING BEGIN

In the early 1930s, the company was engaged in the manufacture of moulded plastics at Bromley, Kent. This section of the business continued until 1954. It was here that early experiments in the manufacture of cellulose tubing began, with the printing process developed later.

Experiments were also carried out into the manufacture of cellulose sponges using various methods. A little later, a new company, Sponcel Limited, was formed in conjunction with the French company Novacel.

Work began on the Swansea factory in 1948/49, and operator training started at temporary premises in Llansamlet. Production began at the new factory in 1949/50.

VISKASE LIMITED FORMED

In 1951, experimental work began on the production of dried tubular casing for use in sausage manufacture. From this innovation, Viskase Limited was formed as a joint venture between Sponcel and the Viskring Corporation of Chicago.

In 1951, a Viscose joint venture was formed with the American company Viskring Corporation of Chicago. Although this business is no longer trading, our core plastic-free shrink sleeve product, known as Celons in the USA, continues to be sold through two distributors: Kaufman Container Company and Walter H Jelly Limited.

VISPLAS DIVISION ESTABLISHED

In the early 1960s, the Visplas division was established to produce Visplas capsules: polythene stretch capsules aimed at the table wine market, which had traditionally been served by lead and tin foil capsules.

In 1969, another division, Viskproof, was established to produce Viskproof capsules. Both the traditional cellulose closure and the polythene Visplas capsule were used as secondary closures, primarily as tamper-evident solutions.

BIRTH OF VISCOSE GROUP LIMITED

In 1973, Viscose Group Limited was born. Production of cellulose tamper-evident bands, now known as plastic-free shrink sleeves, continued.

DEVELOPMENT OF SHRINK SLEEVES

In 1985, the management team bought the cellulose process from Spontex. Between 1985 and 1990, Spontex manufactured the cellulose product on behalf of VCL. In the 1980s, Viscose also began supplying aluminium crowns, and in 1987 PVC shrink sleeve production started at the Viscose head office in Crawley.

OPENING OF NEW FACTORY

In 1990, the company opened a brand-new factory, which remains the home of its manufacturing operation in Swansea, South Wales. This led to the introduction of several new products, including heat-shrink sleeves. Production of both plastic-free shrink sleeves and heat-shrink tamper-evident sleeves remains on site today.

SOLD TO PRIVATE INVESTORS AND CONTINUED GROWTH

In 2011, the company was sold with the support of Finance Wales and private investors. This marked the beginning of a new growth journey, with many products added to the Viscose portfolio. Sales of our tamper-evident plastic-free shrink sleeves developed into a global market across multiple sectors.

2020s – TO CURRENT DAY

Adapting Through COVID-19

During the COVID-19 pandemic, our office team successfully transitioned to remote working, while our production staff continued operating on site as key workers. As a critical supplier to the food and pharmaceutical supply chains, maintaining uninterrupted service was essential, and our team rose to the challenge.

2020-2021 – Expanding Our Product Range

We broadened our offering by introducing bartops and cork products, including natural and technical corks. This expansion strengthened our position as a one-stop shop for customers’ packaging and closure requirements.

2023 – New Leadership Team

At the end of 2023, Emma Blackmore was appointed Managing Director. Alongside Emma, a new senior management team was established, bringing fresh ideas, renewed focus and a clear vision for driving the business forward.

2023 – Bringing Warehousing In-House

We successfully brought our closures warehousing operations in-house from a third-party warehouse, giving us greater control over stock management, order fulfilment and customer service.

2023 – Solar Panel Installation

The installation of solar panels in 2023 marked a transformational step in our sustainability journey. Today, approximately 40% of our electricity requirements are generated by our solar array, with surplus energy exported back to the grid. The project has significantly reduced our environmental impact while improving energy efficiency across the business.

2023 – New Slitter Investment

We invested in a brand-new Diamond duplex slitter and rewinder. The machine has increased capacity from 200 metres per minute to 600 metres per minute, helping us reduce lead times while cutting waste by 10-15%.

2024 – Launch of Our Online Shop

Our online shop launched in 2024 and has been transformative for the business. The platform enables us to stock a wider range of products and deliver orders to customers more quickly and efficiently. Sales through the online shop doubled in its first full year, demonstrating strong customer demand and engagement.

2025 – Launch of Tethered Plastic Caps

In 2025, we launched our new tethered plastic screwcaps, available in 1810 and 1881 sizes. This addition marks a significant step forward in the evolution of our product range and reflects our ongoing commitment to innovation in plastic closure solutions.

2025 – Down-Packing Services Launched

In 2025, we launched down-packing services for plastic-free shrink sleeve customers. Designed for convenience, our 1,500ml tubs are portable and resealable, allowing flexible use over time while keeping contents securely stored and preserved between uses.

2025 – Contract Sleeving Launched

To make the shrink sleeving process even easier for customers, in 2025 we launched a complete contract sleeving service. We can manufacture and apply sleeves directly to customer products, providing a convenient end-to-end packaging solution that saves time and simplifies production.

2025 – Expansion into Australia

In 2025, we appointed Tamper Evident Australia as a new Australian distributor for our plastic-free shrink sleeve range. This partnership represents an important step in expanding the international reach of our sustainable packaging solutions.

2025 – Investment in Flexographic Printing Technology

In 2025, we made a major investment in our Swansea facility with the installation of a new Mark Andy Evolution Series E5 flexographic printing press, replacing our previous solvent-based gravure printer. This state-of-the-art equipment represents a significant step forward in both production capability and sustainability. By moving from gravure to flexographic printing, we have substantially reduced the environmental impact of our operations through the use of water-based inks, lower energy consumption and significantly reduced setup and production waste. The new press delivers full-colour printing with faster setup times, enhanced print consistency and greater production efficiency. Print speeds have increased from approximately 70-75 metres per minute to 170 metres per minute, while setup waste on a six-colour print job has been reduced from up to 400 metres to just 50 metres: an improvement of up to 87%. These advancements enable us to offer faster lead times, reduced minimum order quantities (MOQs), more competitive production runs, and consistently high-quality shrink sleeve and decorative sleeve printing. The increased flexibility of the press also allows us to print on a wider range of materials, including PLA, PET and rPET, expanding the sustainable packaging options available to our customers. As part of a wider programme of investment, we have also introduced new welding and slitting equipment to further improve efficiency, increase production capacity and support future growth. These investments reinforce our commitment to delivering innovative, sustainable and scalable tamper-evident packaging solutions to customers across the food, beverage and pharmaceutical sectors.

2026- OK compost HOME certification

In Q3 of 2026, our transparent and transparent printed plastic-free shrink sleeves OK compost HOME certification from TÜV AUSTRIA.  This is a significant milestone for us, giving our customers independent reassurance that our certified sleeves meet recognised criteria for home composting conditions.

Today, Viscose is regarded as one of the UK market leaders in tamper-evident sleeves, decorative shrink sleeves and the distribution of caps and closures. With more than 130 years of experience, Viscose is known for its manufacturing expertise, product knowledge and exceptional customer service.