Albert Champion, who manufactured and sold spark plugs for General Motors, founded the Flint Faience & Tile Company in 1921. The decorative tiles were fired in the same kilns as spark plugs, initially as a way to keep the kilns consistently hot in between production runs. Repeated cooling and reheating of the kilns used to create porcelain spark plug caps would damage the kilns. Recognized for their colorful hues and elaborate designs, the tiles remained popular but in 1933, GM closed the tile operation citing increased demand on the kilns for spark plug production.