Vitax traces its history back over 130 years to the establishment, in 1880, of GH Richards Ltd, manufacturer of a range of garden and horticultural products. Shortly after the Second World War GH Richards was acquired by Synchemicals, a London-based business which dealt in garden sundries. Amongst the Synchemicals team at the time was Mr F H Gooding, a chemist with the insight to understand how chemicals, used intelligently, could increase crop yields. By the end of 1940s he owned the company and under his leadership it continued to expand its portfolio of garden and professional amenity products. In 1988 Synchemicals moved from London to larger, purpose-built premises in Coalville, Leicestershire and in the same year it acquired Vitax, a manufacturer and blender of fertilisers. The decision was made to adopt Vitax as the corporate brand for the whole business. Today Vitax remains a vibrant, privately-owned business, constantly seeking to expand its product portfolio and improve services to its customers. Whilst Coalville remains the headquarters of the organisation, the vast majority of its production and warehousing operations are now located at a state-of-the-art facility in Skelmersdale in Lancashire.