THE actor Dirk Bogarde was not the only person to succumb to the charms of the Woolworth's stores in Glasgow during the interwar period. While still young, Bogarde had been despatched by his parents from London to Scotland to live with relatives in Bishopbriggs. He spent three years here in the Thirties, and studied engineering drawing at Allan Glen’s Technical School.
Writing, years later, in one of his volumes of autobiography, he recalled wondering around the busy city in his school uniform: “Woolworths was my usual haven. Because it was warm and bright and filled with people. Here was Life. Pushing and shoving, smiling and laughing, talking and living. Music played all day. The record counter had a constant supply of melody. To the lingering refrains of ‘When the Poppies Bloom Again I would sit on a high stool eating a Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream and beam happily at the world around me. Guiltless. It was all heady stuff.”
Woolworth’s, an American import, was one of the biggest and most popular shops in Britain at the time. Customers admired the wide range of affordable products. In September 1956 (main image, far right) the company opened its tenth store in the city, at 412-418 Dumbarton Road, in Partick; it was their 944th store overall. “The ground sales floor,” said the Evening Times, “is of modern design with walnut-faced and ‘Formica’-topped counters. There are nine ‘island’ counters plus counters on two walls and a front service counter on the rear wall ... A staff of around 50 girls will be recruited from the district.” The store manager was Mr L.G.Clayton, a Yorkshireman.
“Tribute to the civilising influence of ‘Woolies’,” the paper added, “is best illustrated by the story of a small boy evacuated from Glasgow to a country village during the war. Asked how he liked living in the village, he replied, ‘Aw right - but there’s nae Woolworth’s.”
Read more:
Herald DiaryOne of the biggest Woolies’ stores in Glasgow, in Argyle Street, was left a ‘smouldering ruin’ in October 1960. A spectacular fire, said the Glasgow Herald, “showered embers on a large area of the city centre and closed the street to traffic for six hours.
Other stores included one in Union Street, pictured in 1970 (right, bottom). As with many big stores, Woolworth’s cosmetics counter was popular (right, top, in 1970). The latter photograph was used in a Herald feature on careers, which advised youthful readers that “selling behind a counter has lost the Cinderella image it held up to a few years ago, and employment conditions in shops are good ...entrants to this career can expect three weeks’ holiday with pay ...”
By the 1960s, Woolworth’s had some 1,140 branches across Britain, but it had been losing ground, and customers, to astute rivals. The company put various projects in motion to remain viable, but the company fell into administration in November 2008, with debts of £385 million. Analysts said it was the UK’s biggest retail administration for many years. The 807 outlets began to be closed. The last 200 shut their doors in early January 2009, leaving more than 27,000 people unemployed.
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