Founded by John Fearon and James Bassant, the company has grown by an average of 20% year-on-year. With distributors in 34 countries around the world, export sales now account for nearly half of all sales, proving that the very best UK-designed products can still succeed abroad as well as at home.

To accommodate the growing business Astro has invested heavily in recent years. In 2008, it relocated to a 35,000 sq ft (3,200 sq. m) new headquarters in Harlow incorporating state-of-the-art equipment including CNC rapid prototyping.

The company started in business in 1997, and has quickly grown to become one of the UK's premier designers and producers of contemporary lighting.