By 1859 he was apprenticed to a draper, but he instead took a job at Farmer & Rogers, which specialised in women's fashions.

The company became synonymous with this new style to the extent that in Italy, Art Nouveau became known as Stile Liberty after the London shop.

The company's printed and dyed fabrics, particularly silks and satins, were notable for their subtle and "artistic" colours and highly esteemed as dress material, especially during the decades from 1890 to 1920.

Arthur Liberty married first Martha Cottam in 1865, from whom he obtained a divorce in 1869 on the grounds of her adultery[4] and second, Emma Louise Blackmore in 1875.

He left a manor house, several cottages and a large area of farmland near his birthplace in Buckinghamshire.