Filofax

Filofax is a company based in the UK that produces a range of well-known personal organiser wallets. The organisers are traditionally leather bound and have a six-ring loose-leaf binder system. The design originated at Lefax, a United States company based in Philadelphia who exported products into the UK. The company also markets a range of personal leather goods and luggage under the “Filofax” brand.

Example of a Filofax organiser
These organisers are available in over fifteen countries in the following sizes: A4, A5, Slimline, Personal, Pocket, Mini, Compact and Pocket Slimline.

The name originates from an abbreviation of the phrase “file of facts”. This name for the product was first coined when the UK company was founded in 1921. The popularity of the Filofax personal organiser grew enormously during the early 1980s due to its association with Yuppie Culture, where it was regarded as a “must-have” accessory, in the days before electronic organisers.

The company was known as Norman & Hill until the mid-1980s when it renamed itself after its most popular product. For much of its life it was based in South Woodford, East London. In the early 1980s it moved to Barkingside, Essex. It was bought by David Collischon. In the early 1990s it moved its offices back to London and subcontracted its warehouse operation to Crick in Northamptonshire.

Famous devotees of the Filofax products include Lord Lichfield, Diane Keaton, Woody Allen and Len Deighton.

Filofax is part of the UK-based Letts Group. In 2006, Phoenix Equity Partners led a secondary buy out of the business. The deal provided an exit for private equity firm Dunedin Capital Partners. In 2012 the company was acquired by HSGP Investments