The son of a pottery manufacturer, Arnoux had joined Minton in Stoke-on-Trent the year before and was largely responsible for the experimental work on new lead glazing. He was also successful in attracting a string of European sculptors and designers whose talents kept the company streets ahead of their competitors.
This enabled an early knowledge of stonewares and highfired felspathic glazes, which were used long before the low-fired lead glazing methods adopted in the Western world.