A lost Liverpool factory is still remembered fondly as a place where people made friends for life.
Lily Cups and Containers employed generations of people across Liverpool from its factory and offices on Barlow's Lane in Fazakerley. The company made disposable cups and plates out of paper and later plastic, which were largely sold to the catering industry and companies across the country that had their own tea and coffee machines.
This year marks 40 years since the factory's closure in 1983, with a group of workers still meet regularly in Liverpool city centre to catch up and reminisce. Rob Davies, whose late dad Bill Davies worked as a sales representative for Lily Cups, organises the reunions which former colleagues and their families are welcome to attend. Rob can be contacted at: robertwdavies@aol.com
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Former employee Mike Penn, 78, worked at Lily Cups in the accounts department from 1963 up until 1972. Mike told the ECHO: "It was quite a big employer in the area of Fazakerley.
"I think a lot of people have a fondness for Lily Cups in the area, everybody seemed to know everybody. I think it was just the way it was because you were working so close together.
"Nowadays, a lot of people work at home in front of the computer so you don't have the same contact and closeness with people. I think the key thing is that closeness – that's what made is so nice to work there. "
Mike said he learnt a lot from the people he worked with at Lily Cups which helped him later on in his career as a probation officer.
He added: "It was an important part of my life as a person, not just giving me money coming in each week. Even when it shut down we kept meeting up, not everybody, but 30-40 of us would go out for Christmas.
"Over the years, numbers have declined sadly and unfortunately, but we still keep going which I think is brilliant."
Cups were originally manufactured at the Barlow's Lane factory by Geemanco from the mid-1930s, before the company was taken over by Robinson Holdings Ltd. In 1957, Robinson's set up Lily Cups and Containers which entered into a licence agreement with Lily-Tulip Cups from America under which it obtained technical know-how and machinery.
An article in the ECHO dated July 6, 1970 said the company had expanded rapidly by this time and employed over 800 people. In 1972, Lily Cups, which formed part of the Dickinson Robinson Group, changed its name to DRG Cups Limited.
Harry McDowall, 87, also worked in the accounts department at Lily Cups from 1959 up until its closure in 1983 and still attends the reunions today. Harry said: "During the late 1950s we started under licence from Lily-Tulip Cups Corporation.
"We brought in machines to make vending cups, vending machines became popular at that time. The [cups] could go all over the world technically, anywhere with vending machines."
Frank Shellien, 76, from Fazakerley, worked as an export sales administrator for DRG Cups during the 70s up until 1981. Frank said: "I've always said to people that it was the best job I ever had. It was a great experience.
"It's great to be able to reminisce with those people that can remember those days."
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