About

Lance began his journey into the world of antiques and mirrors in the mid-1980s, after landing himself a job in a London antique shop. This business had only recently launched a range of reproduction mirrors, for which they had seen the potential in selling not just one antique mirror but hundreds of reproductions, so long as they could produce them in various sizes and to a standard that echoed the originals.

When Lance joined the business, his thoughts about antiques was those of little or no interest but taken under the nurturing wing and watchful eye of the owner, he was encouraged to learn and understand and a seed was planted. Soon, the seed grew and Lance took it upon himself to learn everything from the ground up, for which today, he is eternally grateful and cites as the foundation for all he does and has achieved.

In 1990, Lance decided it was time to take the next step and go it alone and set up his own business, Lance Roberts Period Mirrors. Once he had found a suitable space to build the workshop, he started making the mirror frames from scratch. By controlling the build process from sourcing the raw materials to completing gilding or paint finish he ensured the quality at every stage.

By the mid 90’s he had established a reputation for working with local builders and interior designers to supply them with the pieces, they needed to complete renovations or rebuilds.  

By the end of the decade, the workshop was fully established and working at full capacity, running as the build premises and the showroom and lacking space. Something had to change. 

In 2000, after a decade of selling from the workshop premises, Lance finally decided it was time to take the plunge and find a shop to act as the main point of contact to show off his craft and display his wares. This would free up much-needed space in the workspace, allowing him to make larger pieces and expand on his range as well as bringing the products closer to the market in London. He would have a focal point for the public and trade to view, purchase and order pieces. 

Eventually, the right location was found in Wimbledon and he began the process of transforming the premises into the Aladdin’s Cave it is today.

It was also time to embrace the growing technology that was to become the internet we know today and make a catalogue of products available online and so it was that the first version of the company website was launched in early 2000. 

Since its opening, the shop premises has grown and evolved to not only display the wonderful array of period reproduction mirrors but also a vast selection of giftware and various objects of desire, which will shortly be added to the new catalogue/website. As has always been, the shop stocks a genuine collection of antique mirrors as well as continuing the passion Lance has for creating and designing modern pieces, that will become the antique mirrors of the future.

The business has dealt with the Covid 19 crisis by taking the time to evaluate the landscape and make plans for the post-pandemic world. In late 2021, the company website was re-launched and the online catalogue images were brought up to date. In 2022, Lance and the team plan to market the business through new channels and to add more of the products that he has developed and produced in the workshop and these will be added to the website as well. 

As he moves into the fourth decade of his journey, the seed planted in that London antique shop back in the mid-80s still underpins the ethos behind “Lance Roberts Period Mirrors”-  produce handcrafted, faithful, quality products at a realistic price.