Barker & Co, coachbuilder
Barker & Co was a coachbuilding firm based in London that produced custom car bodies for luxury marques such as Rolls-Royce, Bentley, and Daimler. The company operated from several locations across London, including a factory in Willesden and showrooms in the Mayfair area.
The firm was founded in 1710 by a Royal Guard officer and spent its first centuries building horse-drawn carriages before moving into automobile bodies in the early 1900s. Financial difficulties brought the company into receivership in 1938, after which it was taken over by Hooper & Co.
Barker & Co became known for building car bodies entirely to a client's personal wishes, which made owning one of their vehicles a statement of individual taste. Each commission was treated as a separate project, with craftsmen working closely with the buyer to produce something that no one else would have.
None of the original workshops are open to visitors today, as the London sites where the firm once operated have long since changed use. Vehicles built by the company can occasionally be found in museums focused on historic cars or at specialist auctions and shows.
Barker & Co built bodies not only for British marques but also for American and European manufacturers such as Duesenberg, Cadillac, and Mercedes-Benz. Among their commissions were also racing cars, which shows how far the company's reputation reached beyond the world of luxury saloons.
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