Henry Vacuum
The Story of a British-Made Icon
Hi, I’m Henry!
You might know me as the smiling face hiding in the cupboard, waiting patiently for someone to spill something, shed something or generally make a mess.
But there’s something you might not know about me…
I’m made right here in Britain.
Every Henry vacuum starts his journey at Numatic’s home in Chard, Somerset, where hundreds of people work behind the scenes to design, build, test us before we head off into the world.
So, I’m not just British by personality.
I’m British by birth, too.
From Somerset to the world
My journey might start in Chard, but I don’t stay there for long.
Henry vacuums are sent to over 100 countries around the world, so there are quite a few of us getting stuck into crumbs, dust, pet hair and mysterious floor debris far beyond Somerset.
Not bad for a vacuum who started life with a hand-drawn smile.
And I’m not travelling alone. Over the years, the Henry family has grown too, with friends like Hetty, George, and Charles joining me to tackle all kinds of cleaning jobs.
What goes into making a Henry?
Making a Henry isn’t simply a case of putting a few parts together and giving him a smile.
There’s a whole team behind every machine.
From the people designing and engineering the products, to those building and testing them, every Henry goes through a journey before he ever makes it into a cupboard.
And that’s one of the things that makes being British made so important to me.
My journey doesn’t begin with a box arriving at a warehouse. It begins with people, skills, experience and plenty of hard work right here in Chard.
After all, somebody must make sure I’m ready for everything from everyday crumbs to the inevitable biscuit that gets dropped five minutes after the floor has been cleaned.
Made to keep going
I’m also rather proud of how I’m made.
I’m designed with longevity, serviceability and durability in mind, because I don’t fancy being replaced after a couple of years.
I’m here for the long haul.
My motor is designed and tested for long-lasting performance, made to last approximately 25 years!
Give me a new bag, look after my filters and replace the odd part when needed, and I’ll happily keep getting on with the job.
It’s all part of Numatic’s approach to making products that are built to last, rather than simply built to be replaced.
Which is handy, because I’ve got quite a lot of cleaning to do.
45 years of Henry
I first appeared in 1981, which means I’ve officially been smiling for 45 years.
That’s a lot of years. A lot of floors. A lot of dust. And, I imagine, a lot of hair bobbles that mysteriously disappeared down my hose.
To celebrate my 45th birthday this year, I got to spend it with more than 10,000 of you across the UK.
And it wasn’t exactly a quiet birthday.
5 locations. A 2-metre Henry vacuum. Thousands Henry fans.
Let’s just say I’ve had worse birthdays…
So, Happy National Manufacturing Day!
National Manufacturing Day is a chance to celebrate the people, skills and technology behind the products we use every day.
And I’m proud to be one of them.
Because while you might see one Henry or one of my friends smiling away in your cupboard, there’s a whole team of people in Somerset behind us.
People who design us.
People who build us.
People who test us.
People who keep us going.
And people who help send us from Chard to more than 100 countries around the world.
That’s quite a journey for a vacuum cleaner that started with a simple smile.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, someone’s just dropped a biscuit.
