To trace the birth of Jaguar, we must go back to the northern seaside town of Blackpool. Here a young motorcycle enthusiast by the name of Bill Lyons, not yet 21 years of age, met William Walmsley, who was building a rather stylish sidecar which he was attaching to reconditioned motor cycles.  Young Lyons immediately displayed the two traits that would be his greatest qualities for the next 50 years or so. His business acumen shrewdly espied a good commercial opportunity and his eye for style appreciated the attractive appearance of these normally mundane creations. He felt there was great potential if the activity could be organised along business lines and production increased to make the operation viable.  As soon as William Lyons came of age, the Swallow Sidecar Company was formed in September 1922, with a bank overdraft of £1,000.  Humble first and second floor premises were obtained in Blackpool and, with a handful of employees, production commenced. A young Arthur Whittaker was taken on to help with sales but proved better at buying. He remained with the company for around 50 years becoming one of the shrewdest buyers in the business.

Pioneering the use of Aluminium, the very stylish sidecars were immediately popular and production expanded rapidly.  Then in 1927 Herbert Austin introduced his baby car, the famous Austin Seven. Intended to bring motoring to the masses, the tiny Sevens were cheap, easy to drive and reliable, but lacked individuality.  Lyons saw another opportunity. He created a most stylish two-seater body which was mounted on the Austin Seven chassis. An order for 500 was obtained from one of the main London garages and production commenced.  It was the beginning of a long and fruitful relationship between Lyons and Bertie Henly, who operated Henlys, one of the country's leading garages.  At £175, or £185 with a hinged hardtop, the splendid little Austin Seven Swallow proved highly popular and the company introduced a Swallow body for the larger Morris Cowley chassis. The range then increased significantly with the introduction of the Austin Seven Swallow Saloon in late 1928.  Priced at £187 10s, the Saloon was not expensive but it looked it. At a time of economic hardship, many people were having to lower their expectations, yet the Swallows, by aping the style of the more exotic or luxurious machines of the era, softened the blow and allowed owners to 'keep up appearances'.  Such features as the polished radiator cowl and Ladies Companion Set elevated the Swallows above the average.  With sales of the cars and sidecars continuing to increase, it was decided to move to the Midlands, traditional heartland of the British motor industry. Thus, the young company was moved 'lock, stock and barrel' to Coventry.

At the annual London Motor Show of 1929, three new Swallow models appeared for the first time. These were based on the Fiat Tipo 509A, the Swift Ten and Standard Big Nine. Most important of these was the Standard for it was the beginning of a significant relationship, as we shall see.  The Standard Swallow was a rather larger saloon and sold for £245. Again the body style offered a more extravagant treatment than the manufacturer's own product and an extrovert range of colour schemes.

In 1931 the larger Standard 16 hp six-cylinder Enfield chassis received the Swallow treatment and this introduced the company to the 2054 cc sidevalve engine, which admirably suited Lyons and Walmsley's purpose for the next ambitious step forward.  Meanwhile a model of rather more sporting pretensions was introduced with the addition of the Swallow version of the Wolseley Hornet. Offered just as a two-seater at first, a four-seater was added a year later in 1931 and, a year after that, the bodywork could be supplied mounted to the even more sporty Hornet Special chassis.  The Swallow company had now been in existence for a year short of a decade and it had been an exciting time of steady expansion and sound success. But the ambitious Lyons was far from satisfied and a further bold step forward was needed.