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Back in April 2004, Diana Suard wrote to us from her home in
Paris and enclosed this lovely old photo of a "clearance
sale" at Sayers & Smith in Whitstable High Street.
She also posed the question.... "Where was it taken?
Photo kindly supplied by
Diana Suard
It wasn't an easy question to answer.... unless you happened to
be a middle-aged Native
and spotted the shop name that is almost out of shot on the right
- "Freeman,
Hardy and Willis". This was a well known shoe retail chain
and it traded in the town until the 1960s or early 1970s.
The
building is now occupied by a Cancer Research Charity.
Armed with that vital snippet of information, it is possible to
locate the overall scene and reveal another household name that is
also destined to disappear from High Streets up and down the
country in January 2009. The picture below was taken at the same
location in 2004....
The Same High Street Location in 2004
(photo Dave Taylor)
Yes, its the site of Woolworths. Thus, the shop holding the clearance sale (ie
Sayers & Smith) and the neighbouring premises (Wastalls off-license) would
eventually house the well known store of modern times. However,
there was quite a bit of history and "shuffling
about" in between because that clearance sale wasn't
making way for Woolworths. Sayers and Smith were actually offloading
stock so that Diana's grandfather, Joseph Newell, could take over.
I'll let Diana provide the detail....
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Birth of Newell's....
and Woolworth
The photo was taken on 20th October 1906. My
grandfather, Joseph NEWELL, had met his future wife
Gertrude ROWDEN, a Whitstable Native, while they were both
living in the Twickenham area.
She wanted to get back to her home town. So, when Joseph
saw this shop sale advertised, he borrowed £100 from his
employer for a down payment, acquired the shop and
accommodation above it and moved in. The property
was then known as Waterloo House.
You can see him standing in front of his shop in the
photo below. Note the spelling of Hosiery!
Photo kindly supplied
by Diana Suard
He married Gertrude on 1st January 1907
and together they built up the business.
Over the years, Joseph bought the shops on
either side of him and, in 1932, sold the original shop
(formerly Sayers & Smith) and
the one next to Freeman, Hardy and Willis (previously
Wastall's) to Woolworths.
For the last few years before his retirement
in 1938, he carried on his business from the small
shop on the left of that 1906 scene. See the 1930s photo
below....
Above: Post-1932,
Woolworths occupied the old Sayer & Smith and Wastall
shops
That small shop is now Tea and Times cafe.
As a footnote, my father and his brother, like Mrs.
THATCHER, were born above the shop.
Diana Suard (nee
Newell)
Paris
France |
Just to complete the picture, I would like to add
a few snippets and memories. After selling their premises to Joseph
Newell, Wastalls recreated their familiar fascia some 50 yards further along the High Street (towards the Horsebridge).
Eventually the company ceased to trade in the
town and the "newer" Wastall premises have since become a
restaurant.
Woolworths may have been new to the town in 1932
but the company's beginnings were earlier and firmly rooted on the
other side of the Atlantic. Lawrence Bradley has commented on this
in our Visitors Book....
| As most readers probably know Woolworths had its origins
in the USA.
Lawrence Bradley
Tacoma
Washington, USA |
The UK Woolies continued for 76
years and became a British institution. In doing so, it
outlived its North American counterparts...
| The company has been out of business here for many
years; the Tacoma Woolworths was closed down shortly
before I moved here in 1983. The distinctive facade
still remains however.
Lawrence Bradley
Tacoma
Washington, USA |
Over the years, the Whitstable shop underwent many changes in terms of fascia and focus.
However, it always maintained its "Store of the
People" image.
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That image was created in the very early days when the
company deployed a key marketing phrase and inserted it high above the shop window. Diana's 1930s photo contains the
evidence (see the enlarged extract on the left).
Woolworth's claimed to be the "3d and 6d
Store" on the grounds that most items could be purchased for
an old "threepenny bit" or "tanner". This was
something that my parents often told me about... but
Diana's photo provides the first real evidence that I have seen! |
That slogan sounded very British but it too had
its origins in the USA....
| I was interested to see the picture showing the 3d and
6d. American Woolworths were "five and
dime" stores in their early days.
Lawrence Bradley
Tacoma
Washington, USA |
I am not sure what other traders made of their new
competitor back in '32 but I daresay that Woolies seemed like an Aladdin's
cave to local shoppers. Remember that this was the austere
inter-war years. The general strike had occurred in 1926, Wall
Street had crashed in 1929 and the 1930s were a time of deep
economic depression and unemployment. Suddenly, Woolies
were offering affordable products that ranged from food... to
clothing.... and on to toys.
For its day, Woolworths was also a bright and
cheerful place. The interior was laid out in hefty dark oblong
counters that lined the side walls. These were supplemented by
island counters set in the centre of a creaking wood floor.
Although "open plan", the counters were divided into
"departments" and each department had its own till.
There was no self service in those days!
The layout must have proved successful as it is
how I remember it in the 1950s! By then, it was selling some great
"favourites".... including cylindrical ice creams that
were unveiled from cardboard wrappers before being placed in wafer
cornets.... hot salted peanuts.... and a wide rage of plastic
beach toys including beach balls, "rubber" rings,
waterwings and "windmills on a stick". The combination
of vanilla, gently warming peanuts, plastic and polythene gave the
store a very distinctive aroma!
There were few fridges and cars in those days.
Thus, a walk to the shops was a daily occurrence. Invariably, it
involved a visit to Woolies followed by an hour on Reeves Beach
during which full use could be made of Woolies
swimming trunks and rubber rings.
In the decades that followed, Woolworths came
under pressure from new competitors... including the bright new
supermarkets. By then, the "3d an 6d store"
slogan had disappeared but the store's reputation for
cheap and simple products remained and, in some ways, this became
a millstone around the company's neck in a more sophisticated and decadent world. Woolies
quickly became the butt of many jokes.
Nevertheless, the company always managed to pull
something out of the hat to ensure its survival. It ditched
its food counters, modernised its fascia, improved its
product quality, introduced "self service" and created a
new slogan.... "The Wonder of Woolies". In latter
years, it even cashed in on the music, CD and DVD boom.
However, "time" has now finally been
called on the famous chain. It simply ran out of ideas and
customers in a world of "out of town" shops and
"internet sales". As a result, the Woolies company is
destined to disappear in January 2009. I do not know what the
future holds for the Whitstable shop. If it closes, I wonder if there will be a Closing Down sale like
that of Sayers & Smith in 1906. I wonder if
someone will take photos of crowds looking for a bargain. I wonder
if someone will discuss it all in 2106.
Amidst the sadness and nostalgia, I am left with a
feeling of real irony. After all, in 1932, Woolies
arrived to meet the needs of ordinary people during the desperate
days of economic recession... but, in 2008, it has failed to
survive both economic recession and people. The people's friend
has finally lost its pals
Oh, how times and
people have changed during the interim period of 76 years.
We would like to extend
our thanks to Diana for the fascinating photos and explanation.
What a lovely contribution to the site.
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