Stuart Crystal To Close

The demise of UK company Stuart Crystal - the last of the major crystal manufactures in the West Midlands - announced at the end of November 2001 will leave a huge hole in an industry which is still largely reliant on centuries-old craft skills. It does not, however, mark the end of crystal making in Stourbridge, where a number of much smaller firms such as Staffordshire Crystal, Tudor Crystal and Kinver Crystal, are sill in business. The expertise of Stuart may still, however, find a new home with a number of highly skilled workers at the factory involved in an attempt to form a company which, if it comes about, will concentrate on manufacturing more specilized pieces of glass, rather than volume production.