David Mellor was born in Sheffield in 1930 and died in 2009. He first trained at the Sheffield School of Art from 1946 to 1948, and continued his studies at the Royal College of Art in London until 1954. After graduating, Mellor returned to Sheffield.

Iconic designs by Mellor include Embassy cutlery, flatware and tea sets, plastic cutlery and flatware for Cross Paperware Ltd and the innovative Minimal cutlery set of 2002. In 1973 Mellor was commissioned by the Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire to produce a silver handmade bowl to celebrate the bicentenary of Sheffield Assay Office.

Today, David Mellor's son, Corin, continues to design and produce metalwork from the award winning Round Building in Hathersage, near Sheffield.