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More about Woolworths

Hi All,

My daughter Patsy worked as a Saturday girl at Woolworths in Northfield. A lad working there in the holiday period asked her out and they later got married. In my wedding speech I was able to refer to her as a Woolworths bargain. And so she was after 37 years they are still happily married.

Old Boy
 
Have heard the Woolworths at the Yew Tree is now going to be a Witherspoons, been rumoured for a while but think its now on the cards for sure
 
Woolworths in the 1960s. They developed innovative schemes in partnership with City Councils and development companies to transform some of the inner-city stores. Brand new, modern Woolworth stores were built that made better use of space. They sold any surplus land that was released for cash. An old-style store in New Street was replaced by a skyscraper which was named 'The Woolworth Building' and incorporated a tower of offices above the shop. The firm retained some of the office accommodation which they sublet as a commercial landlord, while selling the remainder to the developer.

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Woolworths New Street and the Woolworth Building

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Woolworths in the Bull Ring 1960s
 
Hi

Yes two Super stores within touching distance. Both were awesome sadly for one reason
and another only the New St Building survived.
Happy day's

Mike Jenks
 
I've been keeping a lookout for a photo of the Dudley Rd Branch for ages. My first job, around 1968/69, was in a TV shop next door but one to it, with a Cafe in between. But the worksohops were above the Cafe and probably part of Woolworths. Back then Woolies used to employ loads of young girls, heaven to us apprentices. Those girls earned about twice what we did iirc.

Not much chance of finding a picture of the TV shop - View Well - but with a bit of luck it might be on a picture of Woolies.
 
Vivienne14 said:
Woolworths in the 1960s. They developed innovative schemes in partnership with City Councils and development companies to transform some of the inner-city stores. Brand new, modern Woolworth stores were built that made better use of space. They sold any surplus land that was released for cash. An old-style store in New Street was replaced by a skyscraper which was named 'The Woolworth Building' and incorporated a tower of offices above the shop. The firm retained some of the office accommodation which they sublet as a commercial landlord, while selling the remainder to the developer.

View attachment 76491
Woolworths New Street and the Woolworth Building

View attachment 76492
Woolworths in the Bull Ring 1960s
Click to expand...

This was known as the Collisaide Site when built.I worked on it as an Electrical Apprentice 1962.
 
I thought this was an interesting photo of the old and new Woolworths (being built) alongside each other in the Bull Ring in 1962. Quite a contrast. Viv.

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The top left hand side looks like Birmingham’s best kept secret. A car park that was only in use for a short time, then left abandoned until it was demolished to make way for the new bullring.
 
I remember going into the new Woolworths, to the top floor cafe, where they had a never "seen before", iced water machine which was free, I thought it very posh.
paul
 
TOPSYTURVEY said:
The heiress who blew the Woolworth's billions on vodka breakfasts, seven husbands and jewels galore
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/articl...
Woolie's may be best-known for its pick 'n' mix, but the family was a byword for sex, drugs and profligacy. They went from rags to riches and back to rags in three generations.
Click to expand...

My word, what an interesting story. I have heard these rags to riches to rags stories before in businesses, but this is certainly an extreme case.
 
Morturn said:
The top left hand side looks like Birmingham’s best kept secret. A car park that was only in use for a short time, then left abandoned until it was demolished to make way for the new bullring.
Click to expand...

Are you talking about the carpark which led straight off St Martins Queensway roundabout? I used it only once when it was still fairly new. As I remember it, it was a jockey car park. You had to leave the keys in the car and they parked it for you but they did tell me where to find it and let me drive it out. I never used it again and I doubt if many others did.
 
They couldn't find my car when i went back, and it took them about half an hour to find it. they then tried to charge me for the half hour I was waiting !
 
Hi

The great picture taken by Phyliss Nicklen along side whats there today.
Its difficult to understand whats going on.
Im not sure its a terrible walk from the bottom of St Martins to the top
end at New st. Clearly the New Bull ring Centre is a world beater.
Another area is the interface of the New Newstreet station area with its new
interface with Moor St. It looks like the whole of the Centre is being re-built
from the New Library the removal of the Old Library its a vast undertaking.
Unfortunately im a bit of an old 60's fan but open to good re-construction.

Mike Jenkswoolies2.jpgpnicklin.jpg
 
When I was at school we had our annual Service of Nine Lesons and Carols in St Martins. To get from the Bull Ring to Paradise Street for my bus home I used to walk through Bell Lane (? or Passage) between Woolworths and the Market Hall, cross Worcester Street, along Queens Drive to the steps up to the footbridge over the station to Stephenson Street, then Pinfold Street which brought me out to the top of New Street and into Paradise Street. That was my route from St Martins to top of New Street.
 
HI ZILKY
My sister inlaw worked at the aston rd north branch she was a superviser for many a year until she met my younger brother dave
and he married her and then later she left ;on the subject of your expereinces at winson green branch ; you was lucky it was only once ;
i know the area very well in those days and beleive me ;i do beleive you in what you said on a early thread about more villains in your store
than down the rd at the prison ;i do beleive it must have been a hard place to run ;
also on the subject of another store you said you started . at bromscrove ;
it closed down about two years ago now and it changed to a mc donalds ; but it did not do any good after 12 months of trading ;the bromsgrove people did not agree with it because it got the youths gathering every night ;as it does in most places around ; so they moved on and now its a charity shop
but its not a very clean one i am afraid ;its the case of getting the rigt manager in i am afraid ; they have had a couple of managers to my knowledge
its like the licence trade ,the pub is only as good as the manager as they say in an epression ;but thats true ; best wishes astonian ;;
 
This part of B'ham certainly has gone through some changes. I've only just realised that the 1960s Woolworth's must have been on the old Market Hall site ..... doh! Viv.
 
I started work Sept 1962 as a Saturday girl in the old Bull Ring Woolies and we all had our photo taken for the Evening Mail as the team to move the next week into the new building. I met my husband whilst working there, he was a trainee floorman and I was then working in the cash office in the basement I left my Saturday job July 1965 and Pete left April 1966, we married 1968 in spite of being warned off by Miss Watkiss, staff supervisor, fraternisation was not allowed, and still remain so. I look fondly on those days and the records played in the basement bring the memouries flooding back when heard on radio or at parties.
 
Hi Persuasion,

My daughter, Patsy, was also a Saturday girl at Woolworths in Northfield. She met her future husband there. I was able to say in my wedding day speech that Patsy was another Woolworths bargain.

Old Boy
 
I worked at woolies in selly oak in 72' , i also have fond memories of that time, and being interested in music i remember a lot of good times there,especially when i hear the music from the early 70's .
 
Shops

I was looking at my Rationbook the other day, does anyone remember Stubbs on Soho Hill, it is where we shopped for our groceries. A picture would be nice if there is one out there. Remember the butter and cheese were cut from a large block, the sugar came in blue bags, weighed, we ordered what we wanted and it was put up for us, no shopping trollies then, but we could only have what our ration books allowed. Were they the good old days???
 
HI KATIE;
YES ; Thou,s were the days when you went with your different ration books if you asked me i think we may be heading back that way ; the ways things are heading with the world ecomony ; they may be brought back ;
i know the goverment are or should i say had kept the foodvouchers for some people of todays society
and i know the yankies still do it with there unemployed people and beleive me the goverment are doing the same here with some of them here
they do not get there dole money they getfood vouchers beleive it or not ; and it just aint for foreign vistors to our country ;
in the next few years to come it will be fully instrument to the whole of the unemployed ; no comuneual job share no vouchers ;
and the whole system of job offices are going to disapear ; the only way you can register will be by telephone to some agent ;
so hard times are on the way beleive it or not ; so i think it will be a case of the reintroduction of these books laugh you may ;
it certainly will not be in my time i hope ; but they are on the horizion
any way ; getting back to your thread i used to have to go to mr parkes an irish man whom kept the grocery provision
by our terrace on lichfield rd aston ; and yes i recall thedark blue bags of sugar and i used to like watching him cut the cheese with a wire cutter and by golly it as a hugeblock of cheese and got 2 ounces is all we had ; that was for the old man ;on a suday tea ,
and i used to w3atch him pat the butter with two paddles and then he would take our book and take out the coupons
and if you went into his shop with a bit of money he would put the money in a little box that ran over your head to the office part
and it would zoom over your head and the change wuld come racing back to him and he would reach up and undo the box and take out the change
and give it back to you ; yes the cheese used to come in a whopping huge roundbarrell and he had these lined up by the front of the counter ;
but it was great in thoses days as he was the first shop we would go to especialy bon fire nigjht for all is cheese barrells
my old friend ken gardner left school and went to wrensons and he done all te butter patting for customers we used to take the micky out of himfor doing such a job ; and more so when he came home on his bike with the basket on the front ;
like wise with my younger brother whom ws the deivery boy for timpsons shoes shop on aston cross when he came home on such a bike with the indian basket on the front he was so fed up with us his brothers take ing the mick he went and got a job at buttons the buton factory in portland street aston ;
best wishes astonian;
 
Hi this is Val I worked there around then with my sister Pearl do you remember us we were one of the naughty ones
 
Sorry I do'nt, which counters were you on, I was on furniture in the basement, Mary Murphy was my supervisor, then hardware, Kitty Buckle was supervisor , then I was in basement cash office till I left July 1965 I married floor walker Peter Dufficy, still together, thats a feat these days.
 
The Bullring Woolworth's cafeteria in 1936 could cater for 1,000 people. They provided Saturday night suppers too. Wonder what the food was like? Viv.

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