Location: The Broadway
Showing posts sorted by date for query True Form. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query True Form. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Friday, 9 March 2012
Goodbye to True Form, Wimbledon
Not quite R.I.P. for the True Form ghost sign on Wimbledon Broadway but my guess is it won't reappear for some years. The brand new billboard that hides it is even larger than the one that covered it a few years ago. For the text of the ghost sign and some information about the True-Form Boot Company, please go to the original post.
March 2008
February 2009
March 2012
Location: The Broadway
Location: The Broadway
Friday, 25 March 2011
Dadds, boot & shoe warehouse, Acton
In earlier posts I mentioned shoemakers Freeman, Hardy & Willis from Leicester, and the True-Form Boot Company from Nottingham. Today we move further north to Kendal in Cumbria, where in 1842 21-year old Robert Somervell started his business as leather merchant. For several years he provided bespoke shoemakers in the area with uppers. Some time before 1851 though, Robert Somervell was joined by his brother and together they founded the company Somervell Brothers, which produced its own shoes. The K brand (chosen after the initial of their hometown Kendal) was adopted in 1865. It seems the name of the company was changed to K Shoes Ltd in 1949.
From the start the company acquired a reputation for good quality footwear and its products became extremely popular. Within a few years Robert Somervell became a reasonably wealthy man and he and his large family moved from the modest family home in Kendal to Hazelthwaite, a large house in Windermere (he had six sons and three daughters. The eldest son, also named Robert, became a master at Harrow. In My Early Life, Winston Churchill pays tribute to him for teaching him how "to write mere English") .
Little information about the company seems to be available beyond these early years. In 1981 K Shoes Ltd was taken over by Clarks. Shoes continued to be manufactured in Kendal but in 2003 Clarks announced it was closing down the factory with a loss of 170 jobs and moving production abroad.
I haven't found anything about Dadds, other than they stocked K Shoes, but that's written on the wall!
Dadds
Boot & Shoe
Warehouse
-------
Depot ...
Noted
For
K
Running Shoes
Location: High Street / Picture taken on: 22/05/2008
From the start the company acquired a reputation for good quality footwear and its products became extremely popular. Within a few years Robert Somervell became a reasonably wealthy man and he and his large family moved from the modest family home in Kendal to Hazelthwaite, a large house in Windermere (he had six sons and three daughters. The eldest son, also named Robert, became a master at Harrow. In My Early Life, Winston Churchill pays tribute to him for teaching him how "to write mere English") .
Little information about the company seems to be available beyond these early years. In 1981 K Shoes Ltd was taken over by Clarks. Shoes continued to be manufactured in Kendal but in 2003 Clarks announced it was closing down the factory with a loss of 170 jobs and moving production abroad.
I haven't found anything about Dadds, other than they stocked K Shoes, but that's written on the wall!
Boot & Shoe
Warehouse
-------
Depot ...
Noted
For
K
Running Shoes
Location: High Street / Picture taken on: 22/05/2008
Sunday, 11 July 2010
Clore, Spitalfields
The only word that is still more or less legible on this badly faded sign is 'Clore'. Could this sign be advertising one of the companies owned by Charles Clore, the man who took over several businesses after the war including True-Form in 1953 (see yesterday's post), or more likely the clothing company set up by his father in the East End?
Location: Old Nichol Street / Picture taken on: 02/04/2008
Location: Old Nichol Street / Picture taken on: 02/04/2008
Saturday, 10 July 2010
True-Form shoes, Wimbledon
The names Sears and True-Form have already appeared on this blog in a post about footwear retailers Freeman, Hardy & Willis.
The True-Form Boot Company was founded by John (known as Jack) Sears, from Nottigham in the late nineteenth century. In 1884, at the age of 14, Jack Sears left school to train as a cobbler. Once his apprenticeship was over, he decided to open his own business. He began by repairing shoes and soon after started making bespoke models with the help of his wife. At the time shoes were generally expensive and even though his were of good quality, customers often complained about the price they had to pay. This gave him the idea to produce lower quality shoes at low prices for the masses. Success was immediate and soon afterwards, Sears opened a small factory and then a larger one. The True-Form Boot Company, with its factory and network of own shops was born. Within a few years Jack Sears accumulated a fortune large enough to purchase Collingtree Grange, an impressive country house just outside Northampton. He died in 1916 at the age of 46, leaving his wife Caroline with the majority of shares in John Sears & Co. (True-Form Boot Co. Ltd). The company continued to expand and in 1927 it bought Freeman, Hardy & Willis and its 551 outlets to become the largest shoe retailer in Britain.
By the time of Caroline Sears's death in 1952, J. Sears & Co. controlled around 900 outlets, mostly through F, H & W. Caroline had remained the major shareholder in the company but the family and the board hadn't planned for her death. More specifically they hadn't made any provision to avoid the very high death duties that existed at the time. In order to pay the duties on Caroline's estate, her son Stanley (the father of racing driver 'Gentleman' Jack Sears) was forced to sell his family's shares in the company.
The news of Caroline's death and Stanley's financial problems sent the value of the shares down on the London stock market. This paved the way for Charles Clore to gain control of the company. Clore, the son of a clothing manufacturer from the East End, had made a fortune during the Second World War by investing in properties. He acquired them at low prices and after the war made money by selling the leasehold and buying back a long lease. By 1948 he had made enough money to be able to purchase several companies before stripping them of their valuable assets. These included Furness Shipbuilding in 1951 and Bentley Engineering in 1952. The same year he was made aware by an estate agent that the value of J. Sears & Co. on the stock market was much lower than its true worth. Through Investment Registry Ltd, of which he was director, Clore made a successful bid for the company in 1953, and immediately sold its properties to insurance and other leasing companies before buying the lease back. In the process Clore pocketed £4 million.
Following this take over, Charles Clore had Sears buy Furness and Bentley from him, netting an appreciable £11.760 million, and in 1955 brought all these companies together into Sears Holding Ltd, a company with no link to the Sears family whatsoever. In 1962 Clore reorganized his footwear interests into the British Shoe Corporation. All these shops and brands, except Dolcis, were sold in 1996 to Stylo plc, which decided to consolidate them into its Barratts and PriceLess Shoes brands. Therefore many familiar footwear names, including True-Form, were axed. As for Sears Holdings, it was acquired in 1999 by Philip Green's Arcadia Group.
J. Sears & Co.
True-Form [*]
Boot Co.
Ladies [*]
Gents & [*]
Childrens [*]
Footwear [*]
*: indicates parts painted twice, originally in red.
Until early 2009 part of this sign was hidden behind a modern billboard. The shop next door still obscures the last line, which can only be seen by standing next to the wall.
March 2012 update: this ghost sign is now once more hidden behind a billboard. See here.
Location: The Broadway / Picture taken in February 2009
The True-Form Boot Company was founded by John (known as Jack) Sears, from Nottigham in the late nineteenth century. In 1884, at the age of 14, Jack Sears left school to train as a cobbler. Once his apprenticeship was over, he decided to open his own business. He began by repairing shoes and soon after started making bespoke models with the help of his wife. At the time shoes were generally expensive and even though his were of good quality, customers often complained about the price they had to pay. This gave him the idea to produce lower quality shoes at low prices for the masses. Success was immediate and soon afterwards, Sears opened a small factory and then a larger one. The True-Form Boot Company, with its factory and network of own shops was born. Within a few years Jack Sears accumulated a fortune large enough to purchase Collingtree Grange, an impressive country house just outside Northampton. He died in 1916 at the age of 46, leaving his wife Caroline with the majority of shares in John Sears & Co. (True-Form Boot Co. Ltd). The company continued to expand and in 1927 it bought Freeman, Hardy & Willis and its 551 outlets to become the largest shoe retailer in Britain.
By the time of Caroline Sears's death in 1952, J. Sears & Co. controlled around 900 outlets, mostly through F, H & W. Caroline had remained the major shareholder in the company but the family and the board hadn't planned for her death. More specifically they hadn't made any provision to avoid the very high death duties that existed at the time. In order to pay the duties on Caroline's estate, her son Stanley (the father of racing driver 'Gentleman' Jack Sears) was forced to sell his family's shares in the company.
The news of Caroline's death and Stanley's financial problems sent the value of the shares down on the London stock market. This paved the way for Charles Clore to gain control of the company. Clore, the son of a clothing manufacturer from the East End, had made a fortune during the Second World War by investing in properties. He acquired them at low prices and after the war made money by selling the leasehold and buying back a long lease. By 1948 he had made enough money to be able to purchase several companies before stripping them of their valuable assets. These included Furness Shipbuilding in 1951 and Bentley Engineering in 1952. The same year he was made aware by an estate agent that the value of J. Sears & Co. on the stock market was much lower than its true worth. Through Investment Registry Ltd, of which he was director, Clore made a successful bid for the company in 1953, and immediately sold its properties to insurance and other leasing companies before buying the lease back. In the process Clore pocketed £4 million.
Following this take over, Charles Clore had Sears buy Furness and Bentley from him, netting an appreciable £11.760 million, and in 1955 brought all these companies together into Sears Holding Ltd, a company with no link to the Sears family whatsoever. In 1962 Clore reorganized his footwear interests into the British Shoe Corporation. All these shops and brands, except Dolcis, were sold in 1996 to Stylo plc, which decided to consolidate them into its Barratts and PriceLess Shoes brands. Therefore many familiar footwear names, including True-Form, were axed. As for Sears Holdings, it was acquired in 1999 by Philip Green's Arcadia Group.
True-Form [*]
Boot Co.
Ladies [*]
Gents & [*]
Childrens [*]
Footwear [*]
*: indicates parts painted twice, originally in red.
Until early 2009 part of this sign was hidden behind a modern billboard. The shop next door still obscures the last line, which can only be seen by standing next to the wall.
March 2012 update: this ghost sign is now once more hidden behind a billboard. See here.
Location: The Broadway / Picture taken in February 2009
Friday, 28 August 2009
Freeman, Hardy & Willis, Littlehampton and Wimbledon
Two weeks ago I was searching on my computer for a mosaic I could post on this blog, when I realized that I had two pictures, from Wimbledon and Littlehampton, with the same initials. The design was different but both displayed "FH & W." Surely this wasn't coincidence and I thought there could be more than just a local shop behind these initials. An internet search with just these three letters led to nothing. Then one day, on my way to do some shopping in Wimbledon I stopped at the local library to look at old pictures of Arthur Road, but the only ones they had didn't show its lower part. Still stuck! Then last week I passed through Peckham, and after taking a few pictures of the area, including some painted signs, headed towards the library. While looking for some information to legend my photos I came across an old picture of a high street with a Freeman, Hardy & Willis shoe shop! With a full name, it would now be easier to find some information about that chain and see if it was connected with the two mosaics. And indeeed, these mosaics were laid at the entrances of two branches of this once popular chain of footwear retailers, which disappeared in 1996, the very year I came to Britain. Maybe if I had asked the granny next door, my mystery would have been solved earlier...
Freeman, Hardy & Willis was set up in Leicester in the mid 1870s, when Edward Wood sold his boot and shoe manufacturing business, E. Wood & Co., to three of his associates (for more on footwear manufacture in Leicester, click here). Soon after the company changed its name, and Freeman, Hardy & Willis embarked on an ambitious expansion plan which saw its number of retail outlets increase dramatically. Actually, FH & W was one of the first firms, which in the last quarter of the 19th century, opened shops in many towns, thus selling directly to the public and cutting the middleman. By 1890 it owned more than 100 outlets (other companies with such high number of branches included the International Tea Company, the Home and Colonial Tea Company, Eastman's the butchers, and footwear retailers Stead & Simpson and George Oliver). By 1914 the number had increased to nearly 500. The opening of new outlets across the country explains only partially such an expansion. The increase in size of Freeman, Hardy & Willis (and of most other companies at the time, with the exception of W. H. Smith and Boots) was mainly the outcome of amalgations with competitors. At the turn of the century, Freeman, Hardy & Willis took control of Rabbits & Sons and Pocock Brothers. In 1927 though, FH & W and its 551 outlets were acquired by its competitor Sears, which traded under the name True Form. In 1953 after a sensational take-over, Charles Clore took control of Sears, and three years later added Manfield and Dolcis to his portfolio. Clore reorganized his footwear interests into the British Shoe Corporation in 1962 and the same year went on to buy Saxone, and Lilley & Skinners. In 1996 Sears' shoe shops, except Dolcis, were sold to Stylo plc, which decided to consolidate them into its Barratts and PriceLess Shoes brands. Therefore many of those familiar footwear name were axed.
As mentioned above, the two mosaics have different designs. While the one in Littlehampton appears at first sight more elaborate, it is actually quite crude. The letters are not even aligned with the pavement and, in any case, would have looked better if they had adopted the curve of the parchment. The one in Wimbledon on the contrary looks apparently more simple. Yet there is a nice gradation in the letters, from brown to red and grey and the three-tone fan background is quite attractive.
Location: High Street / Picture taken on: 11/04/2009
Location: Arthur Road / Picture taken on: 03/09/2008
Now that I know that Freeman, Hardy & Willis were present in most towns and cities across Britain, I'm hoping that I'll come across some more mosaics, or even a painted sign for them... Who knows?
Freeman, Hardy & Willis was set up in Leicester in the mid 1870s, when Edward Wood sold his boot and shoe manufacturing business, E. Wood & Co., to three of his associates (for more on footwear manufacture in Leicester, click here). Soon after the company changed its name, and Freeman, Hardy & Willis embarked on an ambitious expansion plan which saw its number of retail outlets increase dramatically. Actually, FH & W was one of the first firms, which in the last quarter of the 19th century, opened shops in many towns, thus selling directly to the public and cutting the middleman. By 1890 it owned more than 100 outlets (other companies with such high number of branches included the International Tea Company, the Home and Colonial Tea Company, Eastman's the butchers, and footwear retailers Stead & Simpson and George Oliver). By 1914 the number had increased to nearly 500. The opening of new outlets across the country explains only partially such an expansion. The increase in size of Freeman, Hardy & Willis (and of most other companies at the time, with the exception of W. H. Smith and Boots) was mainly the outcome of amalgations with competitors. At the turn of the century, Freeman, Hardy & Willis took control of Rabbits & Sons and Pocock Brothers. In 1927 though, FH & W and its 551 outlets were acquired by its competitor Sears, which traded under the name True Form. In 1953 after a sensational take-over, Charles Clore took control of Sears, and three years later added Manfield and Dolcis to his portfolio. Clore reorganized his footwear interests into the British Shoe Corporation in 1962 and the same year went on to buy Saxone, and Lilley & Skinners. In 1996 Sears' shoe shops, except Dolcis, were sold to Stylo plc, which decided to consolidate them into its Barratts and PriceLess Shoes brands. Therefore many of those familiar footwear name were axed.
As mentioned above, the two mosaics have different designs. While the one in Littlehampton appears at first sight more elaborate, it is actually quite crude. The letters are not even aligned with the pavement and, in any case, would have looked better if they had adopted the curve of the parchment. The one in Wimbledon on the contrary looks apparently more simple. Yet there is a nice gradation in the letters, from brown to red and grey and the three-tone fan background is quite attractive.
Location: High Street / Picture taken on: 11/04/2009
Location: Arthur Road / Picture taken on: 03/09/2008Now that I know that Freeman, Hardy & Willis were present in most towns and cities across Britain, I'm hoping that I'll come across some more mosaics, or even a painted sign for them... Who knows?
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