Hugh and Rosemary Ash opened Filter Supplies (WA) on the 20th of November 1967.
After stints working at both Coventry Motors and BHB Cranes Hugh saw the emergence of filters as original equipment on both cars and heavy equipment as a market that would only grow in time. In
the 1940s and 50s not every vehicle had a replaceable oil, fuel and air filter as is the case today. The original Holden 48-215 had no factory fitted oil filter! Oil bath air cleaners were the height of sophistication.
In his time at Coventry Motors Hugh was instrumental in bringing Donaldson Filters into Western Australia. Hugh drove the project of fitting the very first Donaldson Cyclopac elements to the fleet of Main Roads vehicles that were traversing the State preparing the outback for a mining industry in it’s infancy.
Having taken the step to leave a good job at BHB Cranes to set out on his own and to open Filter Supplies Hugh and Rosemary found an ex Fish & Chip shop on the corner of Canning Highway and Henley Street in which to set up. Business was slow at first but with Hugh’s high profile within the aftermarket replacement parts sector things soon became busy. Hugh would deliver the stock in the back of the family’s HR Holden station wagon while Rosemary manned the phone and looked after the accounts. Soon there was staff brought on board and in a short time the old Fish & Chip shop was too small.
The next premises was a suburban shopfront at 47 Monash Avenue Como, which was expanded many times over the following decades until it finally became too small in 1989. At that time the current premises in which you are standing was custom built to handle the still growing business. At that time no-one thought that Filter Supplies could ever outgrow the 1000sqm warehouse but sure enough in 2014 the decision was made to expand the site to the 2000sqm of warehouse space we currently enjoy.
Filter Supplies (WA) is the largest, and oldest independent filter specialist in Australia. Whilst we have come a long way from the humble beginnings in 1967 we are still the same family business, here to help clients large and small with the same work ethic that Hugh and Rosemary still demonstrate today.