Wilkin & Sons: The Tiptree-based jam makers who served the Queen and James Bond

Across the world, millions of people will have heard the name Wilkin and Sons. The Tiptree-based company have been making thousands upon thousands of jars of jam and preserves right back to the 1800s, and remain one of Essex's oldest and most famous businesses.

Wilkin & Sons has been based in the village since 1885 and has been producing jam and other fruit preserves ever since. The company is now recognised globally with its products sold in more than 60 countries worldwide, and it even has a Royal Warrant to provide preserves for the royal family.

In 2010, the Tiptree Jam Factory received a private visit from Queen Elizabeth II, and the brand had previously been featured in the James Bond novel From Russia With Love, where 007 sampled Little Scarlet strawberry jam.

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Throughout its time in Essex, the company has seen enormous successes and has always been profitable. However, that changed recently, when the company's annual statement for 2023 saw it make a loss of £1.8million due to "unprecedented" rises in energy costs.

But while this is not the news the company wants, its bosses remain optimistic about the future. With this in mind, we thought we'd take a look back at the history of this enormous Essex business, from humble beginnings to hosting a sitting monarch.

From arable to fruit farming

The Wilkin and Sons operation dates back as far as the early 1700s on a farm called Trewlands in Tiptree. The operation was mainly arable farming, working the land and growing crops. But by 1865, the farm had transitioned into fruit. They would grow the produce, transport it by horse to Kelvedon railway station and then onto London to hit the markets.

Following inspiration from the then Prime Minister, Arthur Charles Wilkin formed The Britannia Fruit Preserving Company which began making the very first Tiptree preserves in 1885, which were then shipped as far as Australia. Over the next decade, more than 200 tons of fruit was produced, half of that used for making jam.

The success proved lucrative for the village of Tiptree too, as by 1891 four hundred pickers were employed, earning between 12p and 40p per day. Factory workers made the jam and earned up to £1 per week. The profitability of the business also led Wilkin and Sons to expand their land, buying and farming areas as far as Dagenham and Suffolk.

In 2024, their estate features farms in Tiptree, Tollesbury and Goldhanger. It wasn't all smooth sailing, with Mr Wilkin recorded as having to sell a horse to pay men's wages at one point. But by 1900 he was very active in the Old Age Relief Fund which was helping the poorer people of the district.

Getting jams out through the world wars and a recession

In the years leading up to The First World War in 1914, Wilkin and Sons had grown exponentially. The company had more than 800 acres of land which produced 300 tons of fruit every season. But all that changed when the war began. Mr Wilkin recorded that business went to "a standstill" with large works closed and "much unemployment".

Towards the end of the war, things still looked bleak, with Mr Wilkin reporting shortages of goods such as wheat, sugar and other foods. However, when the war ended, production ramped up again, and by 1922 Wilkin and Sons had more than 100 houses, eight farms, a windmill, a blacksmith's forge, their existing factory and more than 1,000 acres of land.

During the Second World War, production managed to continue when the business was under the control of the Ministry of Food, with Mr Wilkin managing to keep original recipes for the fruit jams when they were made. Since the 1950s, Wilkin and Sons have seen steady periods of growth along with the village of Tiptree, whose population have only increased with time.

Wilkin and Sons now say they are making more fruit than ever before. In 2010, their 125th year, they achieved record sales despite the global recession. To mark this, Queen Elizabeth II visited the factory. Additional celebrations included a play in the mulberry orchard, specially commissioned to relate the life of John Joseph Mechi, silversmith, inventor and experimental farmer at Tiptree Hall. A Tiptree garden was created by Writtle College for the Chelsea flower show, it too reflected on the life of Mechi.

'Despite our first ever loss, the future is not doom and gloom'

In his statement detailing the business' performance in 2023, Wilkin and Sons chairman Walter Scott said the company had seen its highest-ever sales, with £10 million worth of exports, highlighting a new business partner in Mexico. He said there were "rays of light" among the more troubling business reports, but stated nearly all issues come back to energy costs.

He said: "Virtually all of our troubles can be laid at the door of energy costs. Not only have these risen exponentially, but we have also been hit by unprecedented rises in the costs of raw materials. This too can be laid at the door of energy costs; both glass and cap manufacturers are energy-hungry, as is packaging. When coupled with the increase in labour costs a not very pretty picture emerges."

Mr Scott said the entire company had worked "extremely hard" to mitigate the problems and said it has invested in its own solar panels which it was hoped would offset some of the energy costs they face by producing their own electricity. He added the costs recently had been "dreadful".

He added: "All of this goes to remind us that we are in possession of one of the most iconic brands in the country, and perhaps the world. I am sure that we can emerge from these 'energy doldrums' as a fitter, leaner and stronger organisation."