Francis Frith made his fortune at an early age with a successful grocery buinesss in Liverpool. Having sold this, Frith became interested in the new science of photography and soon became acompetent photographer. He published prints from his tours of Egypt and Palestine, which proved so popular that he was able to use the profits from his photographs to found Frith & Co. in 1859. Frith was quick to see that photographic souvenirs of popular coastal holiday spots would be good buiness. The company prospered, producing millions of picture postcards.