Lewis's
 |
|
| Department store | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Fate | Lease unable to be renewed, brand name bought, grotto re-opened |
| Successor | Lewis's Home Retail |
| Founded | Liverpool, 1856 |
| Founder | David Lewis |
| Defunct | 29 May 2010 |
| Headquarters | Liverpool, England |
|
Key people
|
David Thompson Sir Philip Green David Lewis Louis Cohen Rex Cohen Lord Woolton |
| Parent | Vergo Retail |
| Website | http://www.lewiss.co.uk |
Coordinates: 53°24′18.1″N 2°58′45.2″W / 53.405028°N 2.979222°W
Lewis's was a chain of British department stores that operated from 1856 to 2010. The parent companies of Lewis's have gone into administration many times over the years, including 1991. The first store, which opened in Liverpool city centre, became the flagship of the chain of stores operating under the Lewis's name. Several stores in the chain were bought in 1991 by the company Owen Owen and continued to operate under the Lewis's brand name for several years, but after the closure of the Manchester store in 2002, only the original Liverpool store continued to trade under the Lewis's name. This store was sold in 2007 to the Vergo Retail Ltd and closed in 2010.
The first Lewis's was opened in 1856 in Liverpool by entrepreneur David Lewis, as a mens and boys clothing store, mostly manufacturing his own stock. In 1864, Lewis's branched out into women's clothing. In the 1870s, the store expanded and added departments, including shoes in 1874, and tobacco in 1879. Also in 1879, Lewis's opened one of the world's first 'Christmas grottoes' in Lewis's Bon Marché, Church Street, Liverpool. It was named 'Christmas Fairyland'. His motto was Friends of the People, and he intended the shopping experience to be inclusive.
The first Lewis's outside Liverpool opened in nearby Manchester in 1877, and another, by personal suggestion from Joseph Chamberlain on his new Corporation Street in Birmingham in 1885. The Manchester store included a full scale ballroom on the fifth floor, which was also used for exhibitions. Buying offices were also located on the fifth floor until a takeover by Liverpool-based competitor Owen Owen (see below). A fourth store opened in Sheffield in 1884 but proved unprofitable and closed in 1888.
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Wikipedia