About Us

Picture Hanging Systems Ltd design, manufacture, supply and install all kinds of systems for hanging pictures. We have been constantly evolving for over 25 years and our range of products continues to grow. We began life on the fringes of the picture framing trade as System Marketing Ltd in 1982.

In 2003, we changed the name of the Company to Picture Hanging Systems Ltd. We didn’t do this purely to confuse people but because it better describes our main area of activity. System Marketing Ltd. still exists but does different things.

The business started because Robin Burt who was running it at the time, discovered that Maison Boyer were looking for a UK distributor for their products which at that time they were still making in a workshop just off Place Pigalle in the centre of Paris.

This is about the things we make and sell

[You might not be interested in all this, but you don’t have to read it]

Anyway, it seemed that Boyer had been making this picture hanging equipment, virtually unchanged, since 1879. We have copies of some wonderful catalogue pages from the early Edwardian era with illustrations like a conjurer’s manual showing how it all worked. They still use the same product code, C521, for their 25kg hooks as they were using in 1909 maybe earlier for all we know.
Although they had installed their system to most of the high profile museums and galleries in France, they had not been very adventurous in their export efforts.

We introduced the basic system, omitting some of the more eccentric appliances, to the UK market and found that Curators and Managers of museums and galleries here were as delighted to use it as we were to sell it. Their lives suddenly became much easier. Instead of having to screw individual paintings to the wall, they could now display them on a temporary basis in a professional manner. They also had to buy a lot less Polyfilla and paint. We have now evolved our own Beta system which takes in all the strengths of the Boyer system. For a full explanation see the hanging systems page.

We then turned our creative talents to another project. Don’t ask why it is called The Avanti System, it just is. In the way that there is a clearly defined market for the Boyer system, there was a demand for something more versatile and ‘designerish’ for use in both domestic and commercial interiors. Slick, stainless steel cables and recessed wall channel were the starting point. The system also works on the ceiling and on the top edge of panels. You will have to look on the product pages if you want the details.

So as to have a range to satisfy most demands, we introduced The Locator System. This, because it is very discreet, is very popular for use in homes and offices. Most recently, we have introduced variations to the Locator range, the traditional Brass range, which includes brass poles, chains and all the sort of things you would expect to find in country houses, country house hotels, public buildings and some exhibition areas where our other systems would not be aesthetically appropriate. The Victorian range is based on the classic wooden picture rails found in many homes of that period

So, what else?

The Locator Hanging & Lighting System is a wall mounted rail which hangs and lights your pictures. It feeds low voltage lights which can either be used for general illumination or to highlight individual pictures, which can be hung using Locator cobra hangers, from the same rail. Ideal for adding to a finished room without the need for re-wiring.

That’s what we do, this is how we do it

We love to be able to answer all your questions preferably by email to help you get the right system.

Based in Tunbridge Wells, but operating all over the country, we work from our office / workshop, all in one place.
If you would like any advice or information we have not included on this site, please contact us by email.