Artist Anne Schwegmann-Fielding, in collaboration with Bellway Homes, presents a memorial to Eric Kirkham Cole on the former EKCO works site, once Southend's biggest and most famous manufacturer.

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From humble beginnings in a garden shed in 1922, Eric K. Cole went on to establish the EKCO factory in 1930 on a former cabbage patch field in Priory Crescent, Southend. What started as a radio manufacturing firm, grew to be an international brand producing the must-have electronics and gadgets of the time.

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At its peak the company was the main employer of the town, employing over 8,000 people in Essex. Eric took great pride in his employees and was a pioneer in paid holidays, workplace pensions and apprenticeship schemes.

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The sculpture is a dedication to EKCO employees. “Our Eric” stands on the plinth, but his suit makes it clear that more than just a brand, Eric built a community.

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             Download the brochure to find out the story of the Ekco factory and to identify

all the photos that appear on Eric's suit: