End Of An Era

Mention Port Sunlight to most of the older generation of Merseysiders and they will say soap or Levers Brothers. The story of Lever Brothers started back in the late 1880s with William Hesketh Lever. He left his successful Lancashire grocery business and moved to the Wirral to build a soap factory. Lever thought the soap would sell best if it were cut into hard bars and package in colourful wrapping. He called his soap Sunlight and the factory was named after it. Lever became the first Lord Leverhulme. He built a superb housing estate for his factory workers and called it Port Sunlight. Even today this is a much sought after place to live. Sadly, in 12 months time, after some 110 years, the production here of the good old bar of soap will cease. Its brands which include Lifebuoy and Lux will still be available, but will be produced in overseas factories. It seems that most people now have turned from hard soap to newer products, such as liquid soaps and shower gels. Lever's sister company, Elida Faberge, produces these on a large scale. This decision marks the end of an era in Merseyside's industrial history. The good thing is, Unilever are not closing down they are just restructuring its worldwide operations. What started from a single factory site in the Wirral, has grown over many years, to be an international detergent empire.