Glossop was a product of the wealth of the cotton industry. Glossop's economy was linked closely with a spinning and weaving tradition that had evolved from developments in textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution. Before the First World War, Glossop had the headquarters of an international paper empire, the largest calico printworks in the world, a large bleach works and six spinning weaving combines with over 600,000 spindles and 12,000 looms and two niche manufacturers: grindstones and industrial belts. In the 1920s, these firms were refloated on the easily available share capital—thus were victims of the Stock Market Crash of 1929. Their product lines were vulnerable to the new economic conditions.