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Lewis's Department Store

the brains be hind this was due to husband and wife John Ridley Forster the best you could get they were hoteliers un fortunateley while I worked with him he was away then we found out he had a stress break down thats when I took over
 
The food hall we had the best delicatessen in Brum it was featured on ATV today 6pm news we were either side of the stairs in front the bread counter meats salamis on the right salads olives SMOked salmon on the left later we were moved to travel bureau Square area that made it better as it kept it self contained the girls were Greek Cypriot German Austrian Polish Russian Irish Brummie because we had to order from Germany and Poland had to learn a bit of each we had to cover for kosher the main customers were polish Jewish and German our Polish bread was baked up Broad street and used to be red hot by a Ploish jew German bread or brot came via S cotland English people used to think it was ordinary bread and used to direct them to the bread counter the only draw back being where were was the barrels of salt herrings barrels of sauer kraut had to be wheeled up the Minories along Bull st and into the door oppo to Greys to get into our dept it was a very enjoyable place to work and give you a good knowledge continental foods bearing in mind 1960s and as of today I still buy a lot of food when passing a Polish shop later we intrduced Indian foods and lovely Indian girl to help us there were more than 3500 lines on that dept
Oh Lento, this is a great post. How well you have remembered things. I have lots of memories of Lewis’s but the food hall, yes it was wonderful. So many different foods. I remember looking over the stairs at the delicatessen and all I remember seeing was the Russian salad and the herrings. Of course being very young these two things did not appeal. Fortunately, growing up and travelling I have learnt to love lots of different food and can honestly say there isn’t much I don’t like. Thanks for the memory., Regards Sue
 
The good news is some yes later John returned to good health he and his wife opened a nice deli under st Martin's house went to see them it was called delicatessen specialities and they took Wendy with them she used to. Be on frozen foods
 
Further to the deli some years later I went to look at the deli I can't remember when and was very sad to see it had Been put on a landing area between ggrond floor and basement not patch what it was does any body remember el sombrero coffee bar was on horse fair
 
Assistanf Hi Maria rack hams food hall started much later it wasn't much to start then they had a ScAre with mice and had to shut for awhile our assistant manager off the cheese went there as food hall manager after Lewis's did not treat him well which was a shame he was well liked by every body
 
From what I remember as a child, Lewis's food hall was so much better than Rackams's. Much better aroma too. I would always feel hungry every time I went into Lewis's, even after having something to eat before going in. That was how lovely the aroma was.
Hi Maria all in-store cakes specially the peach and strawberry slice were done on 6th floor bakery bread and fresh cream cakes also the hams were roasted on the 6th the biscuits were either side the escalator each dept was given number the deli and cheese was s16 tinned goods were another number as were cooked meats greens and fruit fresh meats fish frozen bacon sweets chocolate tea coffee so all together gives smells and aromas
 
I often wonder if that english electric 6 cylinder diesel standby generator is still in the sub basement in A block is still there in the generator room superb when running the exhaust went out to tall stack behind the stork hotel
 
Hi Just thought that I would share my memories of Lewis’s. I worked in the Food Hall around 1975-1976. I as Asst Manager on Cheese, Groceries and the Bread/cakes. We sold over 100 different varieties of breads and every Saturday there would be queues for the ring donuts that came fresh from Bradfords at West Brom. We would sell easily 2000 in a day. i remember that a we had fresh hot bread come in from Bradford’s on Sat p.m. bread that was actually made as Mondays bread buy we had it special. During that relay hot Summer of ‘76 we sold cold drinks in Minories, from bins and buckets filled with ice. We used to sell all sorts special offer groceries in the Minories to passers by..especially popular was tins of red Salmon..a real Sunday treat.

Lewis’s had a fabulous Deli counter staffed by a polish lady, it was far better than snooty Rackhams.

The food Hall used t have loose, self service, frozen foods - like pies and veg. This is coming into fashion 50 years to save on packaging!

Who remembers the loose biscuit counter with those wonderful Mrs. Kippax’s biscuits?

Ands who couldn’t forget the loose sweet counter where sold mountains of chocolate hazelnut whirls, Callard and Bowsers cream-line toffees and Mintoes too.

Happy days and a brilliant store to work in.
The Polish lady do know her name was it Bashir Mastarlecz in English Bashir is Barbara
 
The Polish lady do know her name was it Bashir Mastarlecz in English Bashir is Barbara
I certainly remember visiting most of the counters on a Saturday with my mum. It was certainly the best store to visit. How I miss those wonderful days of going into my favorite store. I know times have to change, but it would have been so lovely to have kept Lewis's as it was, just as a reminder as to how a store should be. Yes, from the outside, it still looks the same, but it is what was on the inside that made Lewis's so, so special. I can remember working in Woolworths in the old bull ring, but Lewis's was the place to go to.
 
I certainly remember visiting most of the counters on a Saturday with my mum. It was certainly the best store to visit. How I miss those wonderful days of going into my favorite store. I know times have to change, but it would have been so lovely to have kept Lewis's as it was, just as a reminder as to how a store should be. Yes, from the outside, it still looks the same, but it is what was on the inside that made Lewis's so, so special. I can remember working in Woolworths in the old bull ring, but Lewis's was the place to go to.
Yes another great place with its own atmospher Woolies
 
I certainly remember visiting most of the counters on a Saturday with my mum. It was certainly the best store to visit. How I miss those wonderful days of going into my favorite store. I know times have to change, but it would have been so lovely to have kept Lewis's as it was, just as a reminder as to how a store should be. Yes, from the outside, it still looks the same, but it is what was on the inside that made Lewis's so, so special. I can remember working in Woolworths in the old bull ring, but Lewis's was the place to go to.
My Mum and I were always visiting Lewis's to buy fabrics for dressmaking. A whole floor full of textile delights to wander through. Often followed by a visit to Kings Hall Market or Greys to see what fabrics they had to offer. Then there were the fashion shows at Lewis's which always ended with a bride and groom.

I had a temporary Sale job there one year on the vests and coms counter. My Mum would buy her corsets there!

We always laughed about being swept into the main doors of the store whether you wanted to or not because there were so many people on the crossings outside.
 
My Mum and I were always visiting Lewis's to buy fabrics for dressmaking. A whole floor full of textile delights to wander through. Often followed by a visit to Kings Hall Market or Greys to see what fabrics they had to offer. Then there were the fashion shows at Lewis's which always ended with a bride and groom.

I had a temporary Sale job there one year on the vests and coms counter. My Mum would buy her corsets there!

We always laughed about being swept into the main doors of the store whether you wanted to or not because there were so many people on the crossings

My Mum and I were always visiting Lewis's to buy fabrics for dressmaking. A whole floor full of textile delights to wander through. Often followed by a visit to Kings Hall Market or Greys to see what fabrics they had to offer. Then there were the fashion shows at Lewis's which always ended with a bride and groom.

I had a temporary Sale job there one year on the vests and coms counter. My Mum would buy her corsets there!

We always laughed about being swept into the main doors of the store whether you wanted to or not because there were so many people on the crossings outside.
I agree Tinpot. Lewis's was always busy & it was so easy to be taken into Lewis's by the crowd of people, but was always a pleasure to have this happen. Why we can not have our old Lewis's back a it was has often crossed my mind. Maybe one day, it will change back, but sadly, I will not be around to see it.
 
What a pity Brum has changed it was always better when it was a busy place instead of no character like now any body remember the big bomb money box in the bull ring market had no roof on due to the war going down from times furnishers was fairly steep with all the barrows at the bottom got the midland red to Stratford to our caravan
 
Michaelwicks born bred Aston what about smells when it was going to rain Ansell's HP sauce lovely that's when we new It was going to rain
I used to wag it from school just to go & work at both Ansells brewery & H.P sauce helping to load the lorries. Really loved the aroma coming from both together. These were my happiest school time memories as it was something I enjoyed. Sadly, both do not exist any more apart from in our memories.
 
I do wish I could remember the roof garden - and the lifts!

I remember the Corocraft (jewellery) counter, and the strange way you never quite knew what you were going to find around the next corner , or that's how it seemed to me. It was almost magical the way bits of the building linked up.
hi maria the lifts on the food hall were on the left side as you went down from the bread counter with a clock in the middle so you could see the time from either side tthe coloured lights on it were for signalling for managers and store detectives the gates were like a trellis the lifts in A block were enclosed there were 4 there and 5 in b block maybe the roof wasnt open in later years but it was lovely to look over brum on sunny day
 
I agree Tinpot. Lewis's was always busy & it was so easy to be taken into Lewis's by the crowd of people, but was always a pleasure to have this happen. Why we can not have our old Lewis's back a it was has often crossed my mind. Maybe one day, it will change back, but sadly, I will not be around to see it.
tinpot you stirred up some names as I trapsed round with my mother kings hall market ,behive bell nicholson ,other drapers but a few might have bumped into you with out knowing haha
 
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