ROHL and Perrin & Rowe get compared as though they were rivals, so let's clear this up right away: they're siblings. Both belong to the House of Rohl, a family of luxury fixture brands that also includes Shaws fireclay sinks and Victoria + Albert bathtubs. The real question isn't which brand "wins" — it's which line suits your home.
Here's how the family fits together, where the two faucet lines differ, and how to mix them without the house looking pieced together.
One family, several brands
The House of Rohl grew out of the import business Ken Rohl started in California in the early 1980s — he's widely credited with introducing the pull-out kitchen faucet to North America. Over the decades, that business grew into a curated portfolio of makers, each kept deliberately distinct:
- ROHL — the flagship North American brand, curating collections from long-established European workshops, most prominently in Italy. Styling runs from classic Italianate all the way to fully modern.
- Perrin & Rowe — an English manufacturer, founded in London in the late 1970s, that still builds its taps and showers in England. This is the heritage line: Edwardian and Georgian styling, bridge faucets, porcelain levers.
- Shaws — handmade fireclay sinks from Lancashire, England, with roots reaching back to the 1890s.
- Victoria + Albert — freestanding tubs and basins cast from a volcanic limestone composite.
- Riobel — the Canadian member of the family, based in Quebec, with a more contemporary catalogue.
In Canada the two are usually merchandised side by side — exactly why shoppers assume they compete. They don't; they cover different design territory on purpose.
ROHL: the Italian-led luxury umbrella
Think of ROHL less as a single factory and more as an editor. The brand selects collections from artisan European workshops — the majority Italian — and brings them to North America with local support, replacement parts, and North American plumbing specs.
Construction is what you'd expect at this tier: solid brass bodies, ceramic disc cartridges, and crisp machined detailing. What sets ROHL apart within the family is range: there are ornate traditional collections, but also transitional and outright minimalist designs, in a finish palette that runs from polished chrome and nickel through brushed and matte tones. If your kitchen is modern but you still want heirloom-grade metalwork, ROHL is normally where you land — you can see that range across our kitchen faucets and bathroom faucets collections.
Perrin & Rowe: English-made heritage
Perrin & Rowe is the opposite of an umbrella — it's a single-minded English manufacturer that casts, machines, polishes, and assembles its own product in England. The design language is unapologetically traditional: Edwardian collections with rounded profiles and lever or cross handles, and the more ornate Georgian styling for period homes. The piece everyone recognizes is the bridge faucet — hot and cold supplies joined by an exposed horizontal bridge, often with white porcelain levers. Nothing else in a kitchen says "English country house" quite as clearly.
The construction philosophy is weight and hand-finishing: heavy castings, substantial handles, and signature finishes that lean classic — polished nickel above all, plus chrome and living finishes like unlacquered brass that develop a natural patina over time.
The honest trade-offs: Perrin & Rowe doesn't do minimalist, so this isn't the line for a contemporary home. Bridge faucets are two-handle by nature, which means giving up single-lever convenience at the kitchen sink. And because everything is made in England, less common finishes can carry longer lead times.
Shaws and Victoria + Albert: the rest of the family
Shaws makes fireclay farmhouse sinks by hand in Lancashire. Each sink is formed and fired individually, so slight variation from piece to piece is normal — part of the appeal, not a defect. Fireclay's dense, glassy glaze shrugs off scratches and staining better than most sink materials, though it's heavy enough to need proper cabinet support, and a dropped cast-iron pan can chip any ceramic surface. You'll find Shaws alongside other farmhouse styles in our apron-front sinks collection; if you're weighing fireclay against stainless, our guide to stainless steel sink gauge covers the other side of that decision.
Victoria + Albert builds freestanding tubs from a volcanic limestone composite that feels warmer to the touch than acrylic and holds bath heat well, with a naturally matte finish that suits classic and modern bathrooms alike. Browse the shapes in our freestanding bathtubs collection, and see how the brand stacks up in our ranking of the best freestanding tub brands in Canada.
How the lines compare at a glance
| ROHL | Perrin & Rowe | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it's made | Curated European workshops, largely Italy | Its own factory in England |
| Design language | Broad: traditional through modern | Heritage English: Edwardian and Georgian |
| Signature pieces | Italian kitchen and bath collections across styles | Bridge faucets, porcelain levers, cross handles |
| Finish character | Wide palette, classic to contemporary | Polished nickel, chrome, living brass finishes |
| Best fit | Transitional and modern homes | Period homes, farmhouse kitchens, traditionalists |
Mixing them in one house
The brands share a quality tier and a coordinated finish palette, so mixing them is the intended use. A few pairings that consistently work:
- The classic kitchen: a Shaws fireclay sink under a Perrin & Rowe bridge faucet is the defining House of Rohl combination — the look most people picture when they say "English farmhouse kitchen."
- Traditional kitchen, transitional baths: Perrin & Rowe in the kitchen with ROHL's cleaner-lined collections in the bathrooms keeps build quality consistent while letting each room suit its own era.
- The tub as centrepiece: a Victoria + Albert tub takes a floor-mount filler from either faucet line — pick whichever matches the room from our tub fillers collection.
- One finish story per room: polished nickel and chrome are the most consistent threads across the family; living finishes patina individually, so they read as complementary rather than identical.
One practical caution: finishes made in different factories can vary subtly under the same name, especially brass and bronze tones. If two brands will sit in the same sightline, compare samples before ordering.
So which line should you choose?
Let the architecture decide, not the badge. Both sit at the same premium tier, so you're really choosing a design language: Edwardian character, a bridge faucet, a proper period look — that's Perrin & Rowe. A transitional or modern home, or one brand to carry several styles across the house — that's ROHL. And if the budget doesn't stretch to either, Riobel offers the same family's sensibility in a more accessible, contemporary catalogue.
Frequently asked questions
Is Perrin & Rowe made by ROHL?
No. Perrin & Rowe designs and manufactures its own products in England. Both belong to the House of Rohl portfolio, and ROHL has historically distributed Perrin & Rowe in North America — which is why older listings are sometimes labelled "ROHL Perrin & Rowe." Same family, separate makers.
Are ROHL and Perrin & Rowe the same quality?
They sit at the same tier: solid brass construction, ceramic disc cartridges, and hand-finishing. The difference is design language and origin — curated Italian collections versus single-factory English heritage — not a step up or down in quality.
Do finishes match across House of Rohl brands?
The palette is coordinated, but finishes produced in different factories can vary slightly. Chrome and polished nickel are the most consistent; brass, bronze, and living finishes vary the most. For fixtures sharing one room, compare actual samples rather than relying on the finish name.
Can I pair a Perrin & Rowe bridge faucet with a Shaws sink?
Yes — it's the signature pairing of the whole family. Just plan the details: apron-front sinks typically take a countertop-mounted faucet behind the bowl, so confirm the counter has room for the required holes and that the spout reach suits the bowl before you order.