George Frederick Lovell, born in 1862, began his career in the confectionery trade at the age of 15, eventually establishing his own confectionery works in Newport. In the early 1900s, he expanded operations to Manchester and opened a chain of sweet shops. A respected figure in the industry, he became president of the Confectioners’ Association in the United Kingdom in 1913.

During the First World War, shortages of key ingredients like sugar made confectionery production difficult. In response, the company repurposed much of its Newport factory for munitions manufacturing and other war-related materials. The scale of this operation led to the acquisition of additional premises, including the Newport Taxi Co. After the war, the business returned to confectionery production.

Thank you to Mark Falzon for sharing this information and photographs with us.