Today, Bowers & Wilkins is a large company, with distribution chains and customers all over the world. But the beginnings go back to when John Bowers was hand-assembling loudspeaker systems for local customers in Worthing, West Sussex, in the back room of an electrical business he ran with his friend Roy Wilkins.

Following a donation from an elderly lady named Miss Knight, John Bowers founded on 1966 B&W Electronics Ltd. She was so impressed with his knowledge of classical music and so delighted with the loudspeakers he made for her that she left him £10,000 in her will to invest in her business.

That same year saw the development of Bowers & Wilkins' first loudspeaker: the P1. The cabinet and filter were genuine Bowers & Wilkins, but the loudspeakers came from elsewhere. The profits from these loudspeakers enabled John Bowers to invest in calibration equipment.

In 1968 the DM1 and DM3 Home Monitors were launched to offer potential customers a more affordable option. The Home Monitor idea has survived many generations of superb, affordable loudspeakers all the way to today's award-winning Bowers & Wilkins 600 Series.