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Author Archives: buildingourpast
The Centenary of Britain’s First Self-Service Grocery Shop
One hundred years ago the very first self-service grocery shop in the British Isles was opened in North London by the multiple provision dealer David Greig (1866-1952), a rival of J. Sainsbury’s. This pioneering retail experiment was ignored by contemporary … Continue reading
Posted in David Greig
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Four Victorian Stornoway Shops
The receipts published here relate to purchases made between 1868 and 1880 by Christina Morrison (Mrs Charles Morrison), then living in Cromwell Street in Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, with her shopkeeper husband and growing brood of small children. With their … Continue reading
Posted in Stornoway History
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Irwin’s ‘Ruby Red Stores’
Irwin’s was a popular regional grocery chain from the 1880s until 1960, when it was taken over by Tesco and phased out. The shops spread from the company’s Liverpool heartland, along the North Wales coast. The founder, John Irwin (1839-1920), … Continue reading
McColl’s: A Scottish Confectionery Chain
McColl’s made headlines in May 2022 when it entered voluntary administration, seemingly the latest retail casualty of the Covid pandemic. It was swiftly rescued, however, by Morrisons and its 1100 shops continue to trade. R. S. McColl’s was founded in … Continue reading
Introducing Charles Morrison, A Stornoway Shopkeeper
The Stornoway shopkeeper Charles Morrison (1838-1920) came from a family of farmers and meal dealers living at Cyderhall near Dornoch, on the east coast of Scotland. Around 1855, aged 16, he set off for Stornoway, a fishing town on the … Continue reading
Posted in Charles Morrison, Stornoway History
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The Fifty Shilling Tailors and John Collier
The Fifty Shilling Tailors was one of the most successful ‘wholesale bespoke tailors’ on the British high street through the 1920s, 30s and 40s. In later years, when it became impossible to sell a made-to-measure suit of clothes for a … Continue reading
Posted in Fashion and Clothing, Spotter's Guides
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Queens and GEM: Building Asda, 1965-1970
When Asda (capitalised as ASDA from 1985) came into being in 1965 the grocery and provisions trade was undergoing a radical transformation throughout the British Isles. Small counter-service shops were gradually being superseded by self-service ‘supermarkets’, defined as having a … Continue reading
Posted in ASDA, Grocers, Provision Dealers and Dairies
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Building Our Past 