They are among the oldest businesses in the North West, all of which have been running for at least a century and in some cases hundreds of years.
Many are still owned by the same family, with the expertise that has made them such a success having been passed down through several generations.
They include pubs, restaurants, breweries, ice cream makers, sweet manufacturers, jewellery shops, chemists, department stores and more.
Many have fascinating stories behind them, from sibling rivalries to young love and daring adventures.
One featured on a Channel 4 show, one holds a royal warrant and another’s signature tipple was once named Britain’s favourite beer.
This is not a definitive list of the oldest businesses across the north west of England but it includes many of the region’s best known and best loved family firms which are still running today.
How many of these businesses do you know and were you aware of the history behind them?
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9. Tomlinson's Chemist
Tomlinson's Chemist, in Market Square, Lytham, has been running since 1850 and the interior remains remarkably unchanged, with many pharmaceutical relics from the 1900s still visible in the shop. Pictured here inspecting some of those antiquities is dispenser Victoria Watson. | National World Resell Photo: National World
10. Frederick's Ice Cream
Frederick's Ice Cream is a popular family firm which was established in 1896. It is based on Bolton Road, in Heath Charnock, Chorley, where the ice cream is made and the flagship ice cream parlour, pictured, is located. The business also has ice cream parlours in central Chorley and Wigan. Frederick's was founded by Mattia Federici and his brothers after they left their small home village in north-west Italy to come to England. Mattia's son, Matthew, married May Amelia Massa, whose family had been making ice cream in the Chroley area since 1892. When they tied the knot in 1936, they were given the shop as a wedding gift, and the company is still run by their descendants. Frederick's today produces more than 112 different flavours of ice cream, with new ones being developed all the time, and it has won many awards over the years. | Google Photo: Google
11. The Boar's Head
The Boar's Head, on Wigan Road, in Standish, is said to have opened in 1271. It claims to be England's second oldest pub. | Paul Greenwood Photo: Paul Greenwood
12. Forsyth
Forsyth Music Shop is a Manchester city centre institution. The family business was founded in 1857 by brothers James and Henry Forsyth, who had settled in Manchester to help Charles Hallé set up The Hallé orchestra. Forsyth has been located at its current home on Deansgate since the 1890s. It originally specialised only in pianos before diversifying to supply sheet music and other instruments. It is still run by the same family, having been handed down through five generations. | Google Photo: Google