Smith’s Crisps started life in a garage behind the Cricklewood Crown pub. Frank Smith and his wife cooked the crisps and sold them to the pub clientele. Soon Smith was selling them across London from his pony and trap, and within a year, they had taken on 12 full-time staff to keep up with demand. Smith’s great innovation was to add a twist of salt to the bag of potato crisps, giving them a flavour boost that left the competition standing. The potato snacks were such a success that Frank Smith and his business partner, Jim Viney, were able to open their first factory, in Brentford, in 1927.
The crisps were initially cooked in gas-fired cooking pots. (These were replace, in 1945, by a new continuous cooker process.) They were packed by hand and distributed by Nestlé Confectionery vans.
Other factories followed, among them ones at Bristol, Great Yarmouth, Heaton and Fforestfach.
In 1931, Frank Smith introduced the potato crisp to Australia, but the business struggled and he had to file for voluntary liquidation in 1932. George Ensor came to the rescue and Smith’s Crisps (Australia) was founded later that year. Up until 2003, the snacks were known by their British name of “potato crisps”, but the pressure of contemporary vernacular meant that they were eventually relabled “potato chips”.
Museum of Crisps 
Pretty sure that first picture is Lincoln factory.
The whole facade still exists;
255 Newark Road
Lincoln
LN5 8XN
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Ah thanks, Andy!
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My mother worked at the Great Yarmouth factory in the packing dept. She enjoyed the job but said no one wanted to sit near her on the bus home because she stank of crisps!
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That’s an amazing bit of history! Thanks for sharing it 🙂
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The factory on Caister Road, Great Yarmouth, built in 1935 was their second factory in the town. The first was opened in 1929 on Granville Road, Southtown, Great Yarmouth.
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Where in Portsmouth was the smith’s crisp factory in the 1930s
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Met my wife at the Lincoln factory in 1955 we where married for 57 years
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I worked in the Head Office Gt West Road in 1957 till 1959 as receptionist/ telephonist great memories
Mr Scott was Man,Dir Mr Houslop Personel I remember lots more if anyone is interested
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That sounds amazing – I’d love to hear more. Can you email us at chip@museumofcrisps.com – it’d be really interesting to do a blog post for the museum on your memories. Liz for Museum of Crisps
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