Before John Jackson - the son of founder George Jackson - introduced fibrous plaster to the UK, making decorative plasterwork was a slow process. Cornices and other fancy elements were made on site by throwing plaster at a wall or ceiling and running a profile along it. In contrast, fibrous plaster - plaster of Paris reinforced with layers of hessian - is handled in a factory, making a model then a mould and taking casts of these on site to install them.

In the first quarter of the twentieth century, over half of all ships were built in British shipyards, and the firm's fibrous plaster transformed the interiors of ocean liners, including the Mauretania, Lusitania and Queen Mary. More recently George Jackson has created arches, columns and ceiling centrepieces and roses, as well as cornices for SS Great Britain, Cafe Royal on Regent Street and Chelsea Barracks.

Jackson's first workshop was just north of Soho but the business has been on a Sutton trading estate since 2007. It is the biggest decorative plasterer in the capital. Alongside traditional fibrous plaster and composition work, the company now also produces GRG and Jesmonite, and its recent projects have included Burberry's flagship store, Celtic Manor, and bespoke architectural features such as spiral staircases, working closely with architects and interior designers who continue to draw inspiration from its historic mould collection.

Today George Jackson is a family-owned and family-managed business, part of the Haley Group. It is led by David Serra and co-director Xana Haley.