In February 1961, Ronson started production in Newport, in buildings left empty when the Saunders-Roe aircraft work was cancelled. It opened with 35 staff making shavers, hairdryers and shoe polishers. From 1967 the factory made lighters.1
1Grants were offered to bring new employers to the Island after the aircraft project was cancelled and jobs were lost.
Most of the people on the production lines were women, many of them 16 when they started. Much of the work was piecework, timed by “time and motion” men. By 1979 there were 430 people on site, and the Island’s MP later told Parliament the factory’s productivity had been the highest anywhere.2
2Stephen Ross MP, House of Commons, 14 December 1982 (Hansard).
Ronson announced the closure in January 1981, with the loss of 327 jobs. New owners carried on with a much smaller workforce until June 1984, when lighter making moved to North Shields. The buildings were later demolished.3
3Dates come from Isle of Wight County Press reports, Hansard and workers’ memories, which don’t always agree. The project records both.
Nearly 600 people worked there over the years, yet many people now don’t know the factory existed. Flame Keepers set out to change that. Between April and October 2026 we recorded in-depth interviews with five women who worked on the lines, and gathered photographs from former workers’ albums.4
4Interviews recorded in Newport, Ryde and Sandown by Simon Perry for Meeja.
In May 2026, Ronson Reunited brought former workers together at Independent Arts in Newport. Many brought photographs, pay cards, lighters and letters to share.
