ALBRIGHTON, Shropshire — David J.C. Austin, the chairman who transformed David Austin Roses from a family-run nursery into a globally recognized horticultural brand, died July 22 at his Shropshire home. He was 67.
His family announced that he had been diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare and incurable neurological condition that causes rapid brain deterioration. The company confirmed Austin died surrounded by loved ones, less than eight years after the December 2018 death of his father, company founder David C.H. Austin.
Carrying Forward a Family Vision
Born in 1958, Austin joined the family business in 1990, working alongside his father as the elder Austin’s pioneering work breeding English Roses gained international acclaim. Over three decades, Austin served as managing director and later chairman, guiding the company through major expansion while preserving its core mission: breeding fragrant, garden-worthy roses that bloom repeatedly.
Under his leadership, David Austin Roses grew from a regional nursery into a global exporter, supplying English Roses to gardeners, florists, and landscapers worldwide. Colleagues credited Austin with protecting his father’s founding philosophy—that a rose should combine the beauty and fragrance of old garden varieties with the repeat-flowering reliability of modern hybrids—even as the company scaled internationally.
A Family’s Tribute
In a company statement, Austin’s children—Richard, James, and Olivia—remembered their father as a gardener first.
“That was at the heart of who he was,” they said, describing a man who carried his father’s vision forward “with humility and an unwavering sense of responsibility,” always placing the roses, the family business, and its employees ahead of himself.
They described him as kind, modest, and playful, with a genuine enjoyment of life, and said he faced his illness with courage and dignity. “Above all, he was our Dad,” they said, “and words cannot express how much we will miss him. We couldn’t be more proud of him.”
The family also thanked those who cared for Austin during his illness and supported them throughout.
Tributes From the Horticultural World
Austin’s death drew condolences across British horticulture. The Royal Horticultural Society expressed deep sadness at the news. BBC Gardeners’ World presenter Monty Don paid tribute, saying Austin left behind “a legacy of millions of exquisite roses that will live on” and offered sympathy to the family.
Hundreds of gardeners and rose enthusiasts posted messages on the company’s social media accounts, many recalling personal encounters with Austin at flower shows or crediting the roses he helped bring to market with transforming their gardens.
The Company Moving Forward
David Austin Roses said it would continue operating under its experienced leadership team, working closely with the next generation of the Austin family. The company reaffirmed its commitment to partners and rose lovers worldwide, signaling continuity for a business that has now lost both its founder and the son who expanded it into a global brand.
Austin’s death closes a long chapter of direct family leadership at a company built on his father’s decades-long pursuit of the perfect rose. Yet with a third generation of Austins—his children Richard, James, and Olivia—already connected to the business, the family’s stewardship of the English Rose appears set to continue, even as it enters a new era without the two men most responsible for building it.