The history of Custom Bellows goes back to 1895, when the company was founded in Birmingham, England by Harry Glanvill, a man who recognised the potential of what was then the fledgling photographic industry.

From the outset, the enterprise was a family affair. Harry ran the company with his wife - Florence - an expert maker of fire bellows, who turned her skills to the photographic trade. The business grew steadily, and as time went by new applications for bellows - in industrial situations for example - were identified and developed.

In 1934, when Harry Glanvill died, Florence continued to run the business with her son Harry jr. The Glanvill family connection remains with the company even today.

There have been many significant milestones in the company's development. In 1936, for instance, Custom Bellows was asked to design and produce bellows for a new Kodak product, the Brownie camera. Over 1 million bellows were made in the following two decades.