In 1993, Lou Mitchell opened the doors of The Continental Bronze Co. in San Dimas, CA. Lou had owned a plastic fabrication shop for over 30 years and had done quite a bit of work for trophy stores in that time. When he bought some plating equipment to tinker with as a hobby, some of his trophy store customers found out and asked if he’d bronze shoes for them. Within a couple of years, Lou’s hobby had grown into a small but steady side business and he enlisted the help of his daughter Annie to create an image for the fledgling company and help with business development. It was at that time they decided to change the name to The Bronzery and took a leap of faith by setting up a website on the newly emerging internet.
The website proved to be the boost the company needed and by 1996 the business was starting to take off. Sadly, in January of 1997, Lou was diagnosed with terminal cancer and died on March 11th of that year. Before his death, he asked his daughter Annie to take over the company and told her, “You can do it and don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t.” Those words had a lasting effect on Annie. She focused her full attention on the business and enlisted the help of her husband who quit his job to join the company. Together they worked to improve the quality of the plated finishes, created beautiful bases and began plating items other than baby shoes. They responded to customer requests by adding laser engraving capabilities, custom bases and expedited turn-around times. Annie believes strongly in quality and customer service and consistently impresses upon the staff the importance of both. There are less expensive options out there, but if you love something enough to have it bronzed, you should only have to do it once and it should perfect- which is why we offer a lifetime guarantee. We’ve come a long way but our core principles will never waiver. We believe Lou would be proud!