Guy Black first got into the restoration game as an apprentice with Weslake & Co. in the late 1960s. Weslake & Co. was renowned for its expertise in piston-engine technology. Having received the best training in this specialised field, he decided to start his own company Lynx Engineering in 1970. Its primary focus was the restoration of historic racing cars, but it soon grew into a large automotive development company.
The interest in aviation restoration came after Guy sold Lynx Engineering and developed a collection of historic military aircraft and tanks in partnership with Angus Spencer-Nairn. This collection soon became one of the largest private collections in Europe and today is best recognised as the Historic Aircraft Collection. Guy also established Retrotec Ltd as a way of managing the quality and standards of each aircraft's restoration.