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Kent & Sons at 104 High Street, Colchester, John Kent’s original cash book pictured between 1860 and 1878
John Kent: founder, owner and partner, 1838-96
John Kent’s original cash book
Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee in 1887
Edwin F Blaxill – John Kent’s partner from 1867
Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897
A lease was taken out on 3A High Street in 1906
Anna Blaxill: proprietor in 1896 and partner 1897 to 1900
The pre-First World War delivery service
Ben Kent: managing director 1897-1935
The delivery fleet in the 1930s
Staff outing in the late 1930s was a Thames boat trip. A train was hired to take staff to London
A delivery lorry in 1938
E Alec (Alderman) Blaxill: Mayor 1909-10 and 1937-38
Queen Mary visited Colchester in 1938 when E Alec Blaxill was mayor. He is seated to her left
Alec E Blaxill: MD,1935-52
Donald Blaxill: joint MD
John Kent: joint MD
Mary Blaxill, wife of chairman Dr Bernard Blaxill, opens the Layer Road site
The opening of the Layer Road showrooms in 1966
Christopher Blaxill: MD from 1963 to 1989
Harold Whybrow: general manager in 1954
John S Kent: KB’s first sales director
Simon Blaxill: MD since 1989
175th anniversary: deputy prime minister Nick Clegg visits, accompanied by Colchester MP Sir Bob Russell
The launch of the KB Lincoln branch in 2020
The launch of the KB Newark branch virtually due to Covid in 2021
The launch of the KB Royal Tunbridge Wells branch in 2021
The launch of the KB Kettering branch in 2022
The launch of the KB Thurrock branch in 2022
The launch of the KB Sevenoaks branch in 2022
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Exciting Announcement: Kent Blaxill is Rebranding as PaintWell!
You may hopefully recall that Kent Blaxill was acquired by PaintWell in November 2022, forming the leading independent paint and decorators' merchant in the UK. After almost nine months of successful collaboration, we're delighted to share some significant news with you. We've decided that the time is right to adopt the PaintWell brand across our business, starting with our website.
Visitors to www.kentblaxill.co.uk will now be redirected to www.paintwell.co.uk, where they can enjoy an improved online experience with access to a wider range of products, improved customer service, and next-working-day delivery. We hope you like it!
Accessing your trade account remains the same at www.kentblaxill.co.uk - no problems there. Additionally, all our Kent Blaxill store locations can now be located at www.paintwell.co.uk.