Showering was born in Shepton Mallet in Somerset, England, where his father was an innkeeper and brewer.
In the 1940s, the company developed a process to produce perry—a form of cider made from fermented pear juice—and created a low-alcohol sparking drink that was christened Babycham.
After disputes with French champagne producers, including a court case in 1978, H P Bulmer Ltd v J Bollinger SA, which held that marketing of a similar sparkling cider was not confusing, the reference to champagne was eventually prohibited by EU rules on protected designation of origin.
Output in Shepton Mallet reached 108,000 bottles an hour in 1966, and new plants were opened in Ireland and Belgium.
Showerings became a public company in 1959, and acquired William Gaymer, Vine Products, Whiteways, Britvic, and John Harvey & Sons.