About Us

At Bromleys Art Supplies, we're a true family business. Right now, you'll find two generations of Bromleys  hard at work, and during the school holidays, you might even catch the third generation getting involved in the action!

New Look, Same Great Service

Having operated proudly under the name Ken Bromley Art Supplies for many years, we embarked on a significant rebranding journey starting in 2022. Our aim was to infuse a modern aesthetic into our identity while preserving the friendly, family-oriented persona that defines us. The decision was made to streamline our name to Bromleys Art Supplies, a move that gives us a cleaner, contemporary look while staying rooted in our heritage. It's a reflection of our commitment to timeless values with a touch of modern sophistication. 

What We Do

As a small family business, everyone is invested in the company and cares deeply about giving customers the best possible experience.  Being small means that we are also agile, so can update our processes and systems as needed in response to changes or feedback.

A family business means a strong shared ethos. For us, this is rooted in creating art and enabling others to create art by providing the best materials, advice and experience. In every generation of our family, there have been artists and we want to share our passion with our customers.

Whatever your medium, we can help you bring your artistic vision to life. When you shop with Bromleys you’re not only getting the best materials but also benefiting from the advice and experience of our staff - many of whom are artists themselves, all passionate about helping others.

Using a combination of the latest technologies and unparalleled customer service, we provide artists with an easy way to find all the materials they need, including fuss-free purchase and quick delivery. We understand how important it is to get your materials quickly when inspiration strikes!

Our Team

Every member of our staff, past and present, has a passion for art that translates into the very best advice and service for our customers. We love art and creativity and care deeply about helping artists of all levels to achieve great results.

The Bromleys Art Supplies Team

Introducing the staff at Bromleys who are here to take your orders, give assistance & advice, pick, pack and send out your parcel with care.

Back Row: Liz, Susan, Steven, Craig, Tony, Eugene, James, Graham, Jan, Alex, Leslie. Front Row: Deb, Laureen, Melinda, Richard, Liana, Tanith. (Missing from the photo, Pauline & Andrew) 

When you shop with Bromleys you’re not only getting the best materials but also benefiting from the advice and experience of our staff -  many artists themselves, all dedicated to helping others find the materials and tools to bring your artistic visions to life. 

Located in Horwich, Bolton we moved to our new warehouse in 2011 and have been making the most of the extra space ever since, constantly expanding our product ranges. We also have a small shop attached to the warehouse where you can come and browse and even try some of the materials we have on offer.

Our History

Bromleys has a heritage going back to World War II, when Bletchley Park-based Ken Bromley invented the innovative  ‘Perfect Paper Stretcher’ as a response to the wartime shortage of gummed tape. This enabled Ken to continue watercolour painting, trading his works for pints of beer in local pubs! 

This smart solution remained an invention popular with artist friends, family and customers, who eventually began to request watercolour paper to go along with the stretcher board. This led to the creation of the ‘Paper by Post’ service, offering flat packed sheets of paper at ½ and ¼ imperial size, a first for the industry. 

Bromleys Art Supplies expanded a generation later when Richard, Ken’s son, began stocking paint, brushes and accessories alongside the  ‘Perfect Paper Stretcher’ and ‘Paper by Post’ service, soon growing a loyal customer base.

Based in Horwich, Bolton, we have grown  from a couple of rooms above a travel agency to the large warehouse we are currently located in, via premises in a former greengrocers and boys brigade building! 

Our mail order catalogue has evolved quite a bit over the years. From its humble beginnings as an 8-page, 2-colour brochure that we printed in-house on our own machine, it has blossomed into the vibrant 88-page, full-colour catalogue that you see today. Quite the transformation, wouldn't you say?

Our Website

We've always been big on embracing technology to drive our business forward. Way back in 1997, we took our first dive into the online world with a very basic website – lists of products with minimal images and no online purchasing capabilities! It wasn't until around 2001 that we introduced a basic shopping cart, and it took until 2008 before we could  finally accept online payments. Since then, we've been on a journey of continuous improvement, with several website updates over the years. Each iteration has brought added functionality and improved user experience. 

Our latest website, launched in March 2023, is our best yet, but we're not stopping there. We've got a whole list of exciting new features in the pipeline, so stay tuned for what's next! If you have any comments, feedback or suggestions about our website - we would love to hear them. Email us and let us know.