Christo spent a year travelling round India on his Enfield motorbike and discovered the culture, people and treasures of this remarkable country.

He started selling the treasures he’d brought back from frequent visits to India in a small antiques market in Church Stretton.

Christo started to develop a range of sandstone, all hand carved by highly skilled craftsmen in Rajasthan, using classic English designs from the 18th Century.

Wonderful partnerships were formed between the company and the main Indian suppliers. All our products are made mainly by hand in small family run workshops across Rajasthan, who Christo visits several times a year and knows personally.

The first exhibition at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show with a stand designed by Julian Faulkner. We received the first of many Merit Awards for Outstanding Presentation of the Stand. This was the first public showing of the Kadai, where it formed the base for an impressive water feature.

Having seen traditional Kadais used as cooking bowls in India with the fire underneath, we started experimenting with one at home and came up with the idea of putting the fire inside the bowl instead. 

We returned to RHS Chelsea and decide to launch the Original Kadai as a fire bowl. Later in the summer we added grills to a Kadai and realised it also made a fantastic barbecue. 

By the time we went to RHS Hampton Court Flower Show in July, we had perfected the design for the Recycled Kadai, hand-made from oil drums by our family run workshops in India.

We continued to develop the Kadai range: providing both a high stand for barbecuing and a low stand for using as a fire bowl.

The Kadai Firebowl was introduced at two trade shows along with a growing range of other associated outdoor living products, all from India. Gradually, our stockist network started to form across the UK.

For a few years we had been designing a range of accessories to complement the Kadai. The Charcoal Maker was entered into the first Chelsea Flower Show product of the Year Award as a new innovative product and won!

By now the Kadai team, originally four, was rapidly growing with over ten people. The third entry for Product of the Year went to Chelsea Flower Show, the Kadai Planter.

There was small tweaks and finnesing to make Kadai the go-to brand for Firebowls; the warranty was increased to five years and the Kadai stands were developed and improved. Also, there was over 200 stockists in the UK and across Europe.

 After years of trading under Wilstone House & Gardens, the two companies split and now work together to bring the best possible products to both customer databases. Including the hand-crafted and sustainable Wilstone Garden Range, that was launched on both websites.

The Kadai brand has continued to grow, with an expanding product range for the Kadai Firebowl and garden. The Kadai continues to bring pleasure to small gatherings and outdoor spaces all over the world.