Arthur Johnson Ltd. was established in 1803 by the Cohen family, later known as B.S. Cohen, and the more famous firm of E. Wolff and Sons, dating back even further to 1796. There were three separate factories at Central London, City, and Neasden. It was decided to close down the first two and expand at Neasden, which was comparatively new. This factory at the time was one of the largest in the world, and was named Britannia Works. Later factories were opened in Australia and South Africa.