In 1939, John Boardman Ltd was registered as a private company with £100 capital. It was a manufacturer and dealer in cutlery and metal household utensils, and household, domestic, and business ironmongery.  A connection with John Boardman & Co has not been found. No office was listed, but the subscribers were Percy Toothill, Figtree Lane; and George W. Taylor, Laird Avenue (Sheffield Telegraph & Daily Independent, 7 March 1939). 

Percy Toothill (1876-1962) was the grandson of a cutlery manufacturer and the son of a well-known accountant in Figtree Lane.   Percy joined the family accountancy firm and was occasionally involved in the liquidation of cutlery companies. Why he decided to register a small cutlery firm, however, is unclear – especially since George W. Taylor was not a cutler either (in 1937 he had been a subscriber to a refrigerator contracting company). J. Boardman Ltd proved short-lived and seems to have disappeared by the start of the War.