Who Is Barry Roberts?

Barry Roberts is a British Chief Executive and Creative Director working across jewellery, silver, restoration, media and the development of distinctive British companies and brands.

His work is organised through The Company of Extraordinary Companies, which brings together a portfolio of independent houses and specialist activities while allowing each to retain its own history, character and direction.

The work ranges from the continuing development of Roberts & Co. to the revival and stewardship of historic names including Sampson Mordan & Co., Links London and Leuchars, alongside English Art Works and a growing body of cultural and editorial work.

The Company of Extraordinary Companies

The Company of Extraordinary Companies is the structure through which Barry directs a portfolio of distinctive British companies, brands and specialist activities.

Its purpose is not to make every house look or sound the same. Each has its own identity, history, audience and direction. Barry’s role is to provide broader executive and creative direction while allowing those individual identities to remain distinct.

The work currently includes Roberts & Co., Sampson Mordan & Co., Links London, Leuchars and English Art Works, alongside related cultural work and developing ventures.

The underlying principle is deliberately simple: extraordinary companies should be allowed to remain extraordinary in their own way.

What the Work Looks Like

Barry’s work crosses several distinct businesses, each with its own purpose and identity.

Roberts & Co. is the fine-jewellery business established in 2007. Sampson Mordan & Co. and Leuchars bring historic British names into contemporary development, while Links London is being developed as an independent British jewellery house, distinct from the former Links of London company.

English Art Works provides specialist restoration and workshop capabilities across jewellery, silver and pieces of British craftsmanship.

Alongside these businesses are several different forms of cultural and developmental work. Roberts London is an independent editorial and media platform. Benevolence is a values-led project in development. Extraordinary House is a much newer experiment, gradually establishing a world and identity of its own.

Barry’s role is not to turn each company into an extension of his personal identity. It is to give each one the direction and space required to become distinctive in its own right.

What Does Barry Roberts Actually Do?

Barry works as Chief Executive and Creative Director, combining the commercial direction of the businesses with their creative development.

In practice, that means deciding what each company should become, what it should make, how it should present itself and where it should go next. The work ranges from jewellery and silver to restoration, publishing, media and new business development.

Some of this is concerned with established businesses. Some involves returning historic British names to active commercial life. Other parts are deliberately experimental and remain in development.

The common thread is not a particular product or industry, but the work of developing distinctive companies with enough character to stand on their own.

Historic Names and New Ideas

Much of Barry’s work sits between continuity and change.

Some of the companies have histories stretching back generations. Others are contemporary businesses or entirely new ideas. The approach must be different in each case.

A historic name comes with its own design language, reputation and cultural context. Something new must establish those qualities for itself. The objective is not simply to recreate the past, but to understand what made a company distinctive, preserve what remains relevant and decide what a credible future might look like.

That work sits alongside newer experiments for which there is no inherited model and the direction must be discovered through the work itself.

Roberts London and Media

Roberts London is the editorial and cultural side of Barry’s work: a continuing study of living and working in London.

It developed from earlier publishing around jewellery into a broader interest in the city, its people, places, businesses and culture. Roberts London now operates independently from the individual companies, allowing each house to establish and develop its own media voice.

Barry writes, presents and hosts across this work, using media to explore the people, places and ideas surrounding the wider portfolio.

What Is Barry Roberts Working on Now?

Current work is focused on the continued development of the companies, strengthening their individual identities and preparing them for their next stages.

This includes ongoing work across Roberts & Co., Sampson Mordan & Co., Links London, Leuchars and English Art Works, alongside the continuing development of Roberts London and Benevolence.

Extraordinary House is a newer experiment. It is being developed gradually, exploring how a detailed cultural world might grow around a contemporary idea and eventually become something in which people can participate beyond the screen.

Not every part of the work is at the same stage. Some businesses are established, some historic names are being revived or developed, and some ideas remain deliberately experimental.

Chief Executive and Creative Director

Barry Roberts is Chief Executive and Creative Director of The Company of Extraordinary Companies, working across a portfolio of distinct British companies, brands and developing ventures.

His work spans jewellery, silver, restoration, media and brand development, combining commercial direction with creative responsibility.

Some of that work draws upon the history and character of established British names. Some is entirely new. Each is approached on its own terms, with the aim of developing businesses distinctive enough to speak for themselves.

The work continues.