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70 Years of Herbal Pet Care

Welcome to our special webpage to celebrate our 70 year anniversary.

It is incredible to think seven decades ago my grandparents Murray & Dorothy Ellis were pulling together their initial ideas for a business. Their passion for both herbs and health planted the seeds to create Dorwest and the development of those unique herbal formulations, some of which we still use today.

In some ways, it could be thought quite radical in that era of Britain to be creating herbal treatments and supplements, but of course the knowledge of the benefits of plants for health conditions is actually the basis of all modern medicine. It wasn't until the 1960's and 70's when Dorwest really came into its own and starting specialising in the veterinary market. This injection of energy, knowledge and passion came from my parents Mary & Tony Boughton. They transformed Dorwest Herbs and grew it into the company we all know and love today.

It is clear to see how important ethics and honesty were to my grandfather at the very beginning and I am proud those threads of honesty, quality and trust still run through the core of everything we do. From ingredient sourcing right through to our customer service, it is this which I believe has ensured Dorwest has stood the test of time.

My husband, Ben, and I have found delving through the archives such a humbling experience and are pleased we can share this with you over the next few pages and hope you enjoy it! You can also find more about our heritage on our website in our special 70th Birthday area.

As the third generation I am proud to stand alongside Ben and the rest of our incredible team and continue doing what we always have done and to quote my grandfather Murray Ellis,

'No gimmicky advertising or jumping on bandwagons – just quality herbs and a business built on friendly foundations'

Here's to the next 70 years!

1948; Murray Ellis founder of Dorwest Herbs 1958; Bulletin no 31 on Bladderwrack, one of the many bulletins in the Dorwest archive on specific ingredients
1957; A very early poster for Dorwest, when it was still known as Dorset Herb Farm 1968; Mary busy on the trade stand at the Harrogate Show in Yorkshire

THE DREAM TEAM

In the late 60's Mary met her future husband Tony, and a few years later they decided to combine their passions for both herbs and dogs. By specialising this way and entering new markets they created the Dorwest we all recognise today.

1975; Mary & Tony win most orignal and atractive trade stand at the Bristol Show 1960; Archive product labels for Kep Seaweed Tablets and Garlic Tablets, two products we still produce today!
1973; Crufts Best In Show winner was Alansmere Aquarius owned by John Evans and Alan Hall who were proud Dorwest customers and this marks the first year exhibiting at the show 1976; The Queen visits the Dorwest stand at the South of England Agricultural show 1986; Tony at the Midland Counties Championship Dog Show

THE 1970's - 1980's

During this period Tony ensured that Dorwest became a front runner in the Show Dog scene, 1973 marks the first Dorwest trade stand at Crufts (Then held at Olympia, London) and soon attending every championship dog show in UK'. Mary ran the mail-order and administrative part of the business and also worked on the legislation. It was in the early 70's that our Medicine Licences were issued by the VMD after many years of hard work!

Authorised Veterinary Medical Product 1984; Leaflet on Mixed Vegetable Tablets 'Six Wonderful Herbs in one' 1979; Company feature on Dorwest in the Dorset Evening Echo
1994; Mary celebrating following the successful launch of Keepers Mix and also winning best trade stand at Crufts! 1992; Dorwest at Crufts Dog Show 1989; Tony on the trade stand at Crufts, whilst it was still being held at Earls Court, London
1987; Tony Boughton with Brian Cleveley at Discover Dogs show 1995; Trade Stand award at the East of England Show.

THE 1980's - 1990's

This period was a hive of activity, Tony was busy on the show scene with the able help of some others along the way such as Arthur, Clair and Sandy. Followed by Brian & Carmel who went on and ran the trade stand for many years. New products were launched such as Keepers Mix, Valerian Compound and even a Secret Jollop!
An important change during this time was the creation of Dorwest's own GMP licensed production facility with Heather & Brian Bishop at the helm!

1994; Illustration of Keepers Mix our newly launched herbal conditioning supplement 1995; The creation of Dorwest Production was covered in the Dorset Echo. Photo is of Heather Bishop who is our Production Operations Manager 1991; Mary and Roly Boughton with the President of the BSAVA at their congress in Birmingham.
2005; Mary Boughton was honoured to be awarded an MBE  her services to business 1995; Photo of Mary & Tony with their pets Ozric the German Shepherd, Sidney the Dachshund and Linford the moggy 2003;  Launch of Easy Green supplement, perfect for raw diets!

THE 2000's

Tony & Mary's son Roly joined Dorwest just before the new millennium, with daughter Jo joining a few years later. Both helped to support their parents as the business expanded and reached into new markets including veterinary practices, wholesalers and export. Mary was awarded an MBE for her services to business in 2005.

2010; Tony & Mary Boughton with their children Roly & Jo who at the time were both working at Dorwest
2017; One of our office dogs Hilda has a little snooze on the job whilst modelling for our 'Licensed to Chill' campaign 2016; Dorwest in our usual spot at Crufts, the trade stand was all newly updated following the rebrand and new logo

2010 - 2017

Such exciting things happened during this period, most notably was the company rebrand which was completed with ultimate respect for our heritage whilst giving us a much needed facelift! Kyle Cadmore became the new Show Manager and a face we have all come to recognise on the trade stand. Jo was appointed Managing Director in 2011, Mary & Tony having now taken a back seat in the running of the business and Roly deciding to take his career in a new direction. Jo's husband Ben joined in 2015 and now they manage and run Dorwest together ensuring Dorwest remains a family owned and run business.

NOW AND THE FUTURE

Dorwest have an incredibly strong team committed to ensuring our customers and their pets continue to receive the very best products and service. This year is also our 45th year at Crufts Show and we are thrilled that this marks the launch of The Dorwest Foundation, our commitment to giving back to charity. We could not have done any of this without our loyal customers who really do drive us forward.

2017; Team Dorwest, enjoying the Dorset sunshine in their new home in Poundbury, Dorchester 2016; Directors Jo & Ben Boughton-White meet HRH Prince Charles when he came to view the construction of the new Dorwest premises which are built on Duchy land
2018; Nasty niffs are a think of the past, with the launch of Neutradog in 2018 and the launch of Turmeric Tablets as part of the 70th celebrations at Crufts