Hitchin
Introduction
Conditions were ripe for the success of multiple (chain) retailing in the late 19th century, including provision dealers and grocers such as Home & Colonial Stores, Maypole Dairies, Lipton’s, Sainsbury’s and David Greig. From a base established in Brixton, south London, in 1888 David Greig expanded to include around 220 shops. These were located throughout London and the Home Counties, with some scattered at far west as Wales and Torquay.
Hitchin
The company made a fairly successful transition into the supermarket age after the Second World War, though never on the scale of its more confident rival, Sainsbury’s. After being taken over in the early 1970s, its freehold properties were sold off: a classic case of asset stripping. Within a few years the name had vanished from the high street . . . . but not in its entirety. For even today the words ‘David Greig’ and the monogram ‘DG’ can be spotted occasionally on façades and mosaic floors, while the company’s plump thistle logo – a nod to the family’s Scottish antecedents – might be seen on the pilasters, consoles and stall risers of shopfronts. Some rare and precious tiled interiors also survive. One of the best is now the Georgian restaurant ‘Kartuli’ at 65 Lordship Lane, Dulwich. Another, at 177 Streatham High Road is a Caribbean restaurant, and is a Grade II listed building.
Lordship Lane. According to the Tiles and Architectural Ceramics Society, the tiles for David Greig shops were manufactured by H & R Johnson.
The Story of David Greig
The date of the establishment of the David Greig chain is considered to be 1870, when the founder’s mother opened a small provisions shop at 32 High Street, Hornsey, north London. His father, David Murray Greig (1841-1931), originally from Leith in Scotland, worked as a cabinet maker for the shopfitter Frederick Sage & Co of Grays Inn Road. While the shop in Hornsey was initially in the charge of Mrs Greig, by the time the Census was taken in 1881 D. M. Grieg was himself described as a ‘provision dealer’. He had evidently joined in her enterprise. Fine decorative tiling survives at either end of the shopfront of 32 High Street, and the historical significance of the shop is commemorated by a green plaque.
![DSCN0043[1] crop](https://buildingourpast.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/dscn00431-crop.jpg?w=142&h=300)
Deptford
Around 1890 Greig opened a second shop at Loughborough Junction, near Brixton. This was probably the small shop at 232 Coldharbour Lane where a wooden ‘David Greig’ fascia with ‘Brilliant cut’ gilded lettering has recently been uncovered beneath a modern sign for a futon workshop. It was followed by a third branch, a shop selling poultry and pork on the opposite side of Atlantic Road. Many other David Greig shops subsequently opened in the Brixton area, and beyond.
![DSCN0030[1]crop](https://buildingourpast.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/dscn00301crop.jpg?w=179&h=300)
Deptford
Lordship Lane
Although he could draw on the skills of his joiner father, David Greig probably engaged in building work, as well as specialist shopfitting, from the 1890s. Exteriors were often clad in polished pink granite, as indeed were Sainsbury’s shops. Like other provision dealers, David Greig’s shops featured large sash windows with marble slabs to either side of the doorway; those who traded additionally in dry goods, like Lipton’s, generally had a fixed window to one side and a sash to the other. Two long counters ran the length of the shop to either side of a central gangway with a black-and-white chequered floor. A shop of this exact type survived completely intact until very recently on Deptford High Road. To the rear was the cash booth and a cold store. The walls and counters were clad in decorative tiles in rich ochre and oxblood colours, and the thistle motif was prominent. By the time of the First World War if not earlier, own-brand goods with the ‘thistle’ label – including groceries – were sold in David Greig’s shops.
Hitchin
By the 1920s David Greig’s architects’ department was headed by Philip Woollatt Home (1877-1947) who had designed kitchenless houses for Brent Garden Village in 1909-11 and was in partnership with William Hollis until 1912.
Home’s name crops up in relation to David Greig stores in several locations throughout the 1920s and 1930s, including Exmouth Market, London (1924), Windsor (1927), Basingstoke (1930) and Clacton (1932-33). He may have been responsible for installing Greig’s pioneering experiment in self-service in 1923. Home also designed the Hitchin branch, with its faience front, in 1929.
Around 1928 David Greig’s headquarters moved from Ferndale Road, Brixton, to ‘The Scotch House’ at 145 Waterloo Road. This imposing listed modern building was designed by Payne & Wyatt, with a façade on the model of Selfridge’s store. It fell victim to façadism around 1979-80, with all but the front elevation being demolished to make way for a new development. Part of Greig’s depot to the rear on Webber Street was photographed prior to demolition.
The most celebrated building associated with David Greig’s business is the store at 23 St George’s Street, Canterbury, designed by Robert Paine & Partners and built in 1954. It is listed (at Grade II) as a ‘butcher’s shop’, though described at the time as a ‘grocer’s shop’. Significant alterations were made when the premises were taken over by Superdrug around 2000. A rather wonderful painting of 1954 by Gordon Davis depicts the construction of the shop, with its distinctive row of ‘floating’ gables, in a quarter of the city which had suffered particularly badly from bomb damage during the war.
Canterbury
Canterbury in 2009
Moving into the world of the supermarket, David Greig had to expand its merchandise beyond its traditional specialisms. In 1962 it amalgamated with Colebrook & Co, a chain of butchers and fishmongers with shops throughout the south and Midlands. Expansion and modernisation were clearly on the agenda and in 1963 the company advertised in The Times for a ‘qualified architect to assist in development and maintenance of shop property spread throughout Southern England. Age about 30.’ I have not identified the successful candidate.
In 1972 David Greig was taken over by Wrensons Stores, a Birmingham supermarket group led by Martin and Peter Green. The price was £10 million. At this time David Greig had 156 shops with an annual turnover of £30 million that can be compared with Tesco’s £300 million and Sainsbury’s £262 million. Wrensons was subsequently renamed David Greig. Before long six freehold stores (Bromley, High Wycombe, Maidenhead, Ramsgate, Torquay and Plymouth) had been sold for £1.9 million, and the Waterloo Road headquarters was on the market at £3.25 million.
Lordship Lane
In April 1974 a controversial bid was made for the David Greig Grocery Group by Combined English Stores (CES). The initial bid of £12,250,000 million later dropped to £8.5 million, yet CES shareholders voted against the acquisition. This was immediately followed by a successful bid of £6 million from Fitch Lovell (Key Markets), largely recouped – in the usual dubious but time-honoured way – by selling shop property worth £3.4 million. By the end of 1976 only 85 David Greig shops remained. Despite talk of opening new shops under the David Greig name, before long the chain was extinct. The survival of so many examples of David Greig’s shopfitting 40 years later can only be ascribed to its superb quality.
Hitchin
Samuel Deacock’s Dairy, Leather Lane, London. Where Mrs David Greig worked as a girl.
Building Our Past 
my father who worked for Greigs told me that the reason why the family had to sell up in the 1970s was due to inheritance tax. The family also had a house in Maidstone also called The Red house and a farm in Four Elms both in Kent. This was a company that truly looked after their staff. I can recall as a child an annual inter branch 5 a side football tournament and a Garden Party at the house in Maidstone. There was Also an informal arrangement arranging that there would never be a Sainsburys and Greigs in the same town. Greigs baked their own cakes, smoked fish and made their own cooked meats from their factories behind thevWaterloo store. After the demise of the company, Robert Greig opened his own store in Footscray in Kent
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When I worked in Sainsbury’s Stamford Street Head Office in the late 1950s it was widely believed there was a distant family connection with David Greig’s. Don’t know if true. Rather ironic that under the informal arrangement between them not to compete in the same districts, David Greig living in The Red House, Beckenham (now a nursing home) he was unable to open up in Beckenham itself. Sainsbury’s was there ! Meanwhile, Sainsbury’s was kept out of adjacent Bromley – Greig’s name carved in stone may still be seen in Bromley Market Square.
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Hi Steve,
My late father, like your father also worked for David Greigs, he started to work for the company in 1950 about two years after leaving the army. The company was as you imply a very paternal company. David Greigs sold out to Wrensons Stores in 1972 which at that time included Redmans. Wrenson Stores was the first of the three to be taken over, Redman the second and David Greig the third and last, by two (former Manchester Grammar School pupils) brothers – Martin and Peter Green. These three separate food retail businesses were merged and a little later the name “David Greig” was chosen as the preferred trading name. David Greig having been a Private Limited Company, before the takeover was now a Public Limited Company and for the first time quoted on the stock market. In 1974 The Green brothers sold out David Greigs to Fitch Lovell, they in turn merged David Greig with their retail subsidiary Key Markets, thus the David Greig name was destined to disappear forever and go into history. The name Key Markets and not David Greig was the natural choice made by Fitch Lovell’s as the food retail trading name. Since then both the names Fitch Lovell and Key Markets have disappeared no longer exist.
Key Markets sold to Gateway/ Somerfield by Fitch Lovell in 1983. Fitch Lovell having been quoted on the stock exchange was merged into Bookers in 1991. I understand Somerfield was acquired by the Co Op in 2009. I don’t think too many people under 30 years of age would ever know of or have ever heard of David Greig Ltd.,
Regards
Jeff.
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My Saturday job was with DG around the time of the take over. From memory I think we were taken over by Wrenson, Redman and Sun Spot. I think the chairman at that time was Stuart Greig and the general manager Mr Rayner. I also remember being given a booklet, must have been 1970 to celebrate the 100 year anniversary.
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I managed various Greig’s shops at Tower Bridge Road, Camden Town and Harlesden. I was a trainee manager at the Maidstone house (village just outside Maidstone) which was then a training centre. The building in Webber Street (behind the head office) was used for smoking bacon. Never sold fish in my days.
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Hi William,
Whereabouts in Harlesden were you? There was a grocery shop in Craven Park, but it closed in the early 1960s, leaving a small butcher further up the road. There was also Branch 269 at 4, Park Parade.
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I worked for DG and RG I left RG in 1997 not long after that he sold up to two people from M&S who totally wrecked the company at that time he had 4 stores at Footscray, Andover, Basingstoke, and Blackwater where I was based. I don’t know what happened RG after that I do know that he was allowed to change the name back to DG but decided not to.
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All very interesting Thank you
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Are you a member of the David Greig family?
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My cousin has a book on the history of David Greig and would like to donate it to the family. Any suggestions?
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Please let me have the name of the book so that I may search the internet to see if it is possible to buy a second hand copy of it.
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Hi. If you would like to donate the book it would best be done by donating it to The Greig Trust whose address can be found on the internet
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I can always remember as a child, way back in 1971. Holding my mother’s hand and staring in to the window at the Scotch House, 145 Waterloo Road (Greig’s HQ store). The wide window on the left on the ground floor, was their butcher’s/provisions department and being mesmerised by the young men, carving the meat and serving customers. to this day it’s etched on my mind. Those days, they would hang up at the window large legs of lamb and large hams, along with the occasional rabbit, of course these days it wouldn’t be allowed of health and safety grounds. I was too young to remember the name of the store, but later found out it was David Greig’s. If memory serves me correctly the store was still open until circa 1975 and sadly thereafter it closed. The store really was the highlight of Waterloo Road back then. Now it’s just a dull facade for the Department of Health, but every time I pass it that cherished memory comes flooding back. Thank you who ever created and added David Greig stores to this website. I shall definitely place it in my bookmarks/favourites.
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I worked at the Orpington branch of David Greig when I left school at 15 around 1963.
A school pal of mine who was a little older and already worked at the shop got me an interview and I started as tea boy and provisions assistant and ended my time there as assistant prep room manager which is not quite the “plush” job it may sound.
I enjoyed my time there and during my working time at the shop it was completely re-furbished to become one of the earliest supermarkets I believe based on Cater Brothers example as they possibly had looked at the way things were in the USA with their super markets and the UK followed, along with messers Sainsbury of course.
The re-furb was a totally different setup and we actually had a two checkouts WOW!
I also did a training course at a small Berkshire town called Wargrave and whilst on that course we visited other David Greig shops in, and I think this is correct, Staines, and also definitely Reading which at the time Reading was the “flagship” shop taking a whole £10k a week!
The course I was on lasted two weeks but we could go home at the weekend and was held at the “Thistle College” which I believe had been a school and is now possibly a private home possibly called Thistle House.
I left the shop after about five years where I had been on a starting wage of £3 and ten shillings a week, which in those days was not that bad for a fifteen year old, and took up my first love, driving for a living.
Some good memories of days long gone now.
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As a schoolboy in the 60’s I used to work Friday evenings and Saturdays at DGs in Staines (Branch 33). The manager was James Gladwell. Jimmy (as we called him behind his back) became manager of Branch 33 on his 21st birthday and I am led to believe, was manager there until he died. The provisions manager was Chris Bacon (know as Major) and in the office we had Miss Tandy and Carol (can’t think of her surname). Jimmy ran a very tight ship and I learned a great deal from him. I can still picture him now strolling around the shop wearing a fresh white apron and grey jacket, hands behind his back making polite conversation with regular customers. A Saturday afternoon duty that his admiring customers adored.
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I remember Chris Bacon from the late 60s/ early 70s (if its the same one). He was a relief manager then.
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My great grandfather, William Green, was a butcher and worked with David Greig, in south London. A family story says they had a difference of opinion, their partnership dissolved and DG ended up in a horse trough in the street. This would have been before 1st World War. William died young in 1917. A few years later, DG gave a job as a delivery van driver to my Grandad, H. M. Green, who carried on delivering even through the General Strike (1926).
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My late mother worked for David Greig’s in Waterloo in the late 1950’s. They had a Provisions’ Shop on the Ground Floor of their Waterloo Head Office.(The building is now known as Wellington House.) My mother worked on the Cheese Counter and often spoke about the actors that came in for Provisions whilst appearing at The Old Vic Theatre, next door. The Waterloo Branch closed on Saturdays at 1pm and the girls who worked there on Saturdays were paid £1 for working four hours on a Saturday morning; very good for those days.
I was particularly struck by the references in this article to the Hitchin branch in Hertfordshire. As a child, my mother took me to Hitchin for hospital appointments. I remember passing the David Grieg’s shop in Hitchin with my mother in 1964 and her mentioning that she used to work for them. I remember that Sainsbury’s did not open a branch in Hitchin until around 1972; well after David Grieg’s had folded in the town. Against this background, it seems that the informal Gentlemen’s Agreement between David Grieg’s and J Sainsbury to not set up branches in the same district does ring true. Sainsbury’s had a supermarket in Stevenage New Town in the 1960’s, originally between Woolworth’s and Boots in Queensway, whereas the absence of David Greig’s in Stevenage was noticeable.
In the 1980’s I lived in Deptford in South East London and noticed an impressive mosaic on the floor outside the former Deptford branch of the former David Greig’s. i wonder if it is still there.
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I worked in the bakery at Waterloo Rd in the mid 1950’sand I remember them making their renowned ‘ Scotch cake and Madeira cake the bakery manager at the time was a guy called Bob Glaister , I was only 16/17 at the time but can well remember us blokes playing penny ‘ brag’ at lunch times lol
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How interesting these reminiscences are! I know that David Greig’s cakes were legendary. I know that my father used to buy their fruit cake which I believe, if memory serves me well, was cut at the counter sold by weight. I wonder how David Greig’s would shape up today if it had not gone out of business.
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I well remember getting through a ‘Scotch House’ round cherry cake for a quick lunch during busy periods.
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I worked at David Greigs in Orpington about 1965 .i was on the cheese and bacon counter .the people I remember are pat and Agnes and peter and reg .l really enjoyed my job only left because my parents moved to Suffolk . I Remember going a cross the roof to get to the staff room in all weathers great place to work I remember cutting the cheese to size for the customer David greig treated all its staff well also getting a birthday card great memories.
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Further to my contribution dated 14 May ’18 readers might be interested to know that Greig’s had two hostels in London back in the early ’60’s- over shops at Stroud Green Road, Finsbury Park (double frontage) and Ladbroke Grove in west London. I stayed at both. Several trainees, staying in the Finsbury Park one, had been recruited in Scotland.
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It is such a shame that a family business like David Greig’s folded owing to Inheritance Tax liability. I remember when Sainsbury’s went public around 1970 and look at what is now proposed with merger of Asda (Walmart) and Sainsbury’s.
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Around 1970 the hostel at Ladbroke Grove housed a number of staff from the west country.
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hi great stuff my Father was a Manager at Penge West Norwood East Dulwich some 50 years David Mead
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Did your day work for the company for fifty years?
Does any know if James David Grieg MD above is related to the family?
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Yes Dad Worked 50Years man& Boy last shop east Duwich first West Norwood
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Robert Greig had two shops after the closure of David Greig’s.
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I worked at the Penge store for a short while. Just before Key Market took over. I think that day was the worst day to happen to DG. I was the trainee Supervisor at the age of 16. The Key Market manager was a terrible man, hope that wasn’t you dad. Sorry can’t remember the managers name. I am so surprised there were not any complaints about food poisoning, I’ll leave it at that. I left because of him. The Supervisor who was training me Mrs Alcock begged me to come back, but I couldn’t.
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Hello my name is Peter Matthews, I started work at age 15 in 1957 with David Greig Ltd.
I was living in West Ham and the branch I started at was 400 Bethnal Green Rd E2 branch 88 it was a largish shop with double doors and very busy, on Saturdays I would be carving ham all day with someone wrapping and taking the money.
I was offerd and got my first managment roll at age 17 one of the youngest managers if not the youngest, albeit the branch at 293 Barking Rd Plaistow E13 branch 83 was quite small,
David Greig loaned me money to buy my first car a Ford 100e Prefect 5 years old it was £200 and I paid it back at £3 per week with zero interest.
My next management was Freemasons Rd Custom House E16 branch 31 this was right down close to the Victoria Docks.
I also helped out at Tower Bridge Rd, Upton Park, East Ham (relief manager) and also at Leather Lane, Plus back to Bethnal Green to mange it for holiday relief and also did a short stint at 145 Waterloo Rd H.O tel wat 6912, yes still stll remember the phone No.
I left David Greig late 1966 after 9 years going on 10.
Some of the names I remember were Mr Truckle, Mr Ward, Mr Short (Inspectors) and a Mr Foot.
I note that William Peabody (Bill) made a posting on here May 14 2018 I had the pleasure of meeting Bill and his wife when I was living in Beckenham Kent and he was nearby, we met in a Wetherspoons pub in Penge, Bill if you log and read this please say hello.
Peter.
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Wonderful memories. The world of work is not like that any more.
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I addition to my previous posting, when I had my interview in 1957 at H.O 145 Waterloo Rd the entrance to the offices were to the far right of the main building and the personell officer was a Mr Jennings.
Many years later must have been the late 80s I was back in 145 Waterloo Rd now a government building, I was a sales rep and a piece of equipment was purchased from me.
Greigs also did wedding cakes, when I was married in 1962 I did manage to get one from them free gratis it was square 3 tier but they did not have a square stand so a round one was suppied and it looked OK in the photo.
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Hi I worked at David Greig’s from 1963 until I got married in 1965.
Had A interview with the personal manager a Mr Pepper who stated me as a Trainee Manager at Head Office Waterloo Road.(There was a lady called Rose who was a great ham carver).I did relief work at Clapham High Street before attending Thistle College at Wargraves it was ran by a Mr Foot which was next door to the actor Robert Morley’s house.I think I was there for about 6 weeks during that time I work at Colbrooks fish shops at Reading that David Greigs had just taken over also David Greigs Wokingham shop.
After leaving the Thistle College I was sent to the Slough shop.
In 1965 I was made manager of the new large Part Self Service Store at Kingston.
Great days
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Hello Peter,
Can’t believe it’s over a year since I last looked on here.
We are still in the Crystal Palace area where one of the last DG shops (Westow Hill) carried on trading. When we met up you had become another one of those London ex-pats, having moved to beautiful Derbyshire. How is life up there?
I remember Mr Foot because he taught me to cut up, joint and rasher half-a-pig when he ran the training centre at Waterloo Road. Mr Short ran me, in his car, from Tower Bridge Road to Camden Town when I took over that branch.
Hope you see this.
Bill Peabody
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Hello Bill,
It’s good to hear from you and trust you are both keeping well in view of the Covid19, it’s not really ideal to use this site for personal messages I must have had your email address some time back, I did look up Facebook but don’t think you are on it.
Anyhow take good care of yourself and Carol.
Kind regards, Peter
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Hi Peter … Do you know of a list of Branch Numbers for the David Greig Stores or have you just remembered Branch Numbers of those that you Worked in ?
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Hi George
Really interested to read that you spent some time at the Wokingham shop. I an researching Wokingham Market Place and am looking at David Greig in the 1960s. When Greig opened they were between the corner and a tobacconists. They subsequently expanded into the tobacconists, doubling their frontage. Can you help me by identifying when this may have taken place? I think it was between 1963 and 1968.
Paul
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Hello Paul, they bought the tobacconist shop 1967 I believe I was working there at the time, Mr Greenway was store manager Mr Galloway butchery manager and George was the fishmonger can’t remember his surname, I do remember we stayed open during the conversation still had the old slaughterhouse out back and what a total pain carrying the deliveries upstairs, but was better after they put a conveyor belt in, great bunch of lads and ladies worked there l went all over for Greigs best job I’d ever had it was a sad day when the Key Market Cops bought us out, but ended up working for his grandson at Robert Greigs till 1997 who still done things the traditional way. Regards Henry
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Great images and enjoyed reading the history of the company and the family. My brother lives in East Dulwich around the corner from the old David Greig store and motif and it got us thinking and exploring the history. Must be a business culture in the ‘family’ (I don’t know if there’s any relation but who knows, maybe somewhere); my grandfather John Greig owned an estate agents (John Greig Estates) in South Africa, taken over by my dad Derek; unfortunately also going the way of DG’s above due to political and economic changes in South Africa and as sadly too often over there being defrauded and gotten into trouble by a host of shady characters…
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Greig’s was our local grocer’s in Knowle, Bristol, in the 1950s. How I loved going to this beautiful tiled emporium with my mother, with the staff fetching every item — no self-service! Their scotch eggs were a big seller, as I remember.
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I can remember the David Greig’s shop in Tooting in the 1950’s. As a young child I went there frequently with my mother. I can remember very well the black and white floor floor tiles and the lovely thistle tiles which used to fascinate me. I also remember that the shop had a wonderful smell. David Greig’s lemon Madeira cake was absolutely superb and I have never been able to find Madeira cake as good. Their fruit cake was lovely too. They also sold sliced jellied veal which was always on display in the front window on a tray lined with greaseproof paper. It was lovely but of course it wasn’t generally realised back then how wrong it was to eat veal. Yes, I have very fond memories of this shop and my mother being served from behind the big long counter which seemed especially big to me as a small child. If my memory serves me, I seem to remember the shop having double doors at the entrance which were in dark brown wood with glass panel centres. Nice memories from the lovely 1950’s.
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My first job out of school was at the Woolwich branch. 1961 and I was 15. I went onto the butchers counter. I remember the chicken on the rotisserie in the front shop window. It used to draw in the customers.
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If my memory serves me I think there were two branches in Woolwich, Hare St and Powis St I believe, there was also a small branch not far away in Plumstead.
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Yeah, I was intrigued by this. The Hare Street branch you’re talking about was opposite Woolworths, next to the back entrance to the COOP. You would have to push between the cars and lorries queueing in Hare Street for the Woolwich ferry to get across the road. But, I always thought that that was a Sainsbury’s. The shop had a different feel, much grander, and the staff, mostly men wore striped aprons. The only doubt I have in my mind now is the Hare Street store had the David Greigs tiles on the wall, I always thought they were dragons, lol.
If you look at the post you replied to you can see the photo of Powis Street and the Greigs store with a Sainsbury’s sign, If there was a Greigs and a Sainsburys in Woolwich, this was the late fifties / early sixties, I wonder if they changed stores with Sainsbury’s moving out of the newer Powis Street to the much older Hare Street building. There were no other food shops in Powis Street but lots in Hare Street. I certainly wouldn’t argue with anyone who said they were both definitely both Greigs though.
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Sorry, I’ve just read your other posts and your knowledge and memory of Greigs is or should be far better than mine. Thanks for your posts, brought back a few memories.
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Ahh, I remember the roasting chickens well, I would stand outside watching them go around. That was in Powis Street at the top of Hare Street. There is a photo on https://www.chrismansfieldphotos.com/RECORDS-of-WOOLWICH/Powis-St-Hare-st-/i-P7vTCNs/A showing Powis Street Woolwich, in the early 1900’s and the shop can be seen as being a J Sainsburys. I’ll also put a comment on another post about the store in Hare Street.
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Pingback: Heritage Building Profile – 27 Market Square, David Greig’s building | Bromley Civic Society
I was fresh out of school 1975 and got a job at David Greigs in Kingstanding, Birmingham 50p an hour – for that I worked on the Deli, Tobacco Kiosk (Only 16 at the time) filled shelves.
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I started at Branch 33, Staines on September 5th, 1960 aged 15 as a trainee butcher. The meat manager was Les Birch, head cutter was Cyril Jarvis. The branch manager was Jim Gladstone. I was a relief manager at the Slough, Windsor & Egham branch at the age of 17, A Mr Rainer was company meat executive who was replaced by Geof Bassett.
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I remember Mr Rainer and Mr Short. From the other posts here it looks as if DG made a number of people managers at an early age. I was a Saturday boy at Branch 269 (Park Parade, Harlesden) and also worked in the school holidays. I did shelf filling and (mainly) cutting room. I did relief manger at a range of branches from when I was 17.
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With work drying up because of the Corona virus I thought I might look into some family history, and found what looks like the David Greig history site. I know my grandfather Charles Doran worked for David Greig. I do have photos of him work. I will try to find. I was quite young when my grandfather died, so can’t remember his stories, butting a butcher, he was referred too, every time meat carving was required. My grandmother (who was never allowed to carve) alway’s reminded us of my grandfathers skills. She also told a stories of a young apprentice he was asked to teach. She said he was called Sainsbury, but I’m sure that must have been a mistake ora yarn. Anyway, I will look for the photos.
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alan wilson i first started working with David Greig in1959 as a trainee manager and did my training with Mr Foot at waterloo road head office,my first branch was Wood Green the manager was Henry Phipps.,during my time there i was called up for National Service returning to DG after my 2 years service ,becoming a manager in holloway road branch always remembering my time with David Greig fondly.
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We knew Henry Phipps well, he was a family friend. He went on to run a shop at Clapham I think, I cant remember for sure.
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Hi my father Wilfred Harold Mead worked 50 years with Greigs ending in East Dulwich They Loaned Him £4700.k to buy his House in West Norwood David Mead
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Hi, I have only just found this wonderful site.
I joined David Greigs in the late 1960’s. I worked in the computer department in Waterloo Road where Greigs had installed, way ahead of the times, a computer. I was extremely fortunate to have got into computing at an early stage and received a lot of training, courtesy of the firm. Mr Hawley was my boss and I worked with a small but great team.
I was in the canteen when, I think it was Dennis Greig, announced we had “merged” with Wrensons. Several of the older staff members could not believe it and started crying. I ended up helping to over the operations of computer systems to the “enemy”. Greigs were very good to me and I still have very fond memories.
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Good quality products like Scotch House cake, sausages, pies and of course, ham carved on the bone were lost for ever. Evidently, Plymouth shop accounted for vast sales of Scotch House Tea. Rumour was that this was down to the water quality in Plymouth area.
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Pingback: In photos: the welcome return of the historic David Greig shop sign, Loughborough Junction – Brixton Buzz
Does anyone know of how many stores they built up over the years and where they all were?
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I used to love going to the David Greigs during the late 60s in Petts Wood. Fabulous days.
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Watching the chicken on the rotisserie outside the front door while the hand carved breaded ham was collected from inside and bacon that didn’t sweat, yeah.
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Hi I worked at David Greggs when I left school at the age of 15 in July 1962 it was my first job, my brother John got me the job as he would put the chickens on the to rotisserie I used to serve on the cheese & egg counter then I went up to the head office from Hounslow to Waterloo to learn to carve the ham, which I mastered & got a bit extra in my wages which were £5 a week for working 08.30-5pm Monday- Saturday plus half day Wednesday
Manager was Ex Army Mr Phipps very strict he was with a Moustache loved working there, nice memories
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Hi, Great thread.
I worked for Wrenson’s as an errand boy from around 1960 then there was 144 shops in Greater Birmingham area and a Head office in Kent Street B’ham. I became a manager at Robin Hood stores Stratford road. The company was run by partners Mr Carlin and Mr Mendleson who had no surviving children and sold their business to Martin and Peter Green with a director Lesley Porter (Lord Cohen(tesco) son-in-law) they went onto acquire Greigs and Redman stores. shops were sold and companies asset stripped any owned became Laundrettes leased became Greigs or Redmans the Wrenson name was dropped. Wrensons was a high quality grocery and provisions merchants. Sad to see the demise of these family businesses
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Thanks for this interesting contribution Chris. Do you happen to know if Mindelsohn and/or Carlin actually founded Wrensons (around 1909 I believe) or if they took it over from original owners in the 20s? I know they were running it by mid-1920s. But was there ever a Mr Wrenson? Thanks!
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My Mother worked for David Greigs in the 1940s/ early 1950s …
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Hello, does anyone have any information about the David Greig store in Sittingbourne? If so does anyone know the managers name in 1924-1926?
I appreciate any info you may have.
thankyou.
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My late father (Bill Armstrong) worked in the Greenwich branch of DG from the mid 1950s to the early 1960s. I remember that in approximately 1959, my family were able to holiday in a large house overlooking the sea front of Westgate in Kent. The house was owned by DG and staff were able to book a holiday for one week at the house.
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A fine chapter in the long history of Greigs. We are still out here! Slàn leat.
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My dad is David Ian Greig it was his family run business he was manager at head office in Waterloo after my grandad passed away so lovely to read the comments and I will read them to my dad David Greig shops were amazing and so beautiful inside.
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Hi Sheryl,
Very nice to hear that your Dad, a member of the family, who actually worked in the business is still alive after all of these years. He must be a good age now! Hope your Dad enjoys these reminiscences.
I can still remember the very impressive mosaic floor in the door way of the former Deptford branch in the High Street and, I have not seen that for over thirty years.
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Hi to everyone interested in the history of David Greg’s I worked for this great company between 1968/1973 At the Chatham Branch 122 Also at Rochester/Dartford/Erith /Sidcup/Bromley/pettswood/Gravesend/Bexleyheath And St.leonards If anyone remembers working between those years please comment
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I am trying to find details of the DG store I used in Clacton in 1969, 70, 71, 72? What street was it on? Many thanks.
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