Author: Leigh Sparks
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March 2021 – Personal Biography redesigned and updated
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Category Archives: Heritage
The Buttercup Dairy Company
One of the most enjoyable things about social media is the ease of connectivity to people, their work and interesting (well, to me) things. It really is so much more simpler and easier than decades ago. A good example of … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Books, Buttercup Dairy Company, Corporate History, Creative Places, Edinburgh, Food Retailing, Grocery, Heritage, Historic Shops, History, Retail Change, Retail History, Retailing, Scotland, Scotland's Town and High Streets, Shopfronts, Signage, Town Centres, Uncategorized, Urban History
Tagged Architecture, Buttercup Dairy Company, Customer service, Grocery, Heritage, Retail History, Shop Fronts, Shops, Tiles
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Fading Glory: the Ghost Signs of London
Anyone following me on twitter will know of my enduring fascination with ghostsigns. It has also appeared on this blog a few times. These traces of the past are, in my view, something worth capturing and preserving (or at least … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Design, Ghost Signs, Heritage, London, Places, Retail Change, Retail History, Towns, Uncategorized, Urban History
Tagged Books, Ghost Signs, Ghostsigns, Heritage, London
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Of Cows and Elephants
During our recent weekend in London we somehow found ourselves at Conway Street having a coffee in the old Welsh dairy which has featured in this blog before. As my wife said, how did that happen? A weekend away and … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Buildings, Burtons, Heritage, Historic Shops, History, London, MIlk, Retail History, Uncategorized, Urban History
Tagged Art Deco, Burtons, Elephants, Foundation Stones, Historic Shops, Lpndon, Markets, Milk trade, Retail History, Wales
1 Comment
London’s Welsh Dairies: The Welsh Milk Trade
As a child I remember people mentioning the ‘milk train’ between London and South Wales, but was never sure if it was first up or last down or both. Before I married, my fiancée and I went to stay in … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Buildings, Consumer Change, Consumers, Customer Service, distribution, Food, Food Retailing, Heritage, High Streets, Historic Shops, History, Independents, London, MIlk, Retail Change, Retail History, Sanders Bros, Shopfronts, Signage, Uncategorized, Urban History, Wales
Tagged Book, Consumer change, Dairy, Distribution and Supply, Drovers, Heritage, History, London Welsh, MIlk, Retail History, Retailing, Sanders Bros, Shopfronts, Wales
11 Comments
Shopfronts – some recent sightings
Some people have been a bad influence on me: @historicshops @KA_Morrison (see Building Our Past) and @ghostsigns spring to mind. Their encyclopaedic knowledge – and delight in and willingness to share – means that I am forever on the search … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Buildings, Corporate branding, Corporate History, Design, Heritage, High Streets, Historic Shops, History, Places, Public Realm, Retail History, Shopfronts, Signage, Small Towns, Spaces, Streetscapes, Town Centres, Towns, Uncategorized, Urban History
Tagged Buildings, Ghostsigns, Heritage, History, Retail, Shopfronts, Signs, Streets, Tiles
2 Comments
Halifax – with Elephants
When I was 10 months old my father ‘forsake the amateur code’ (copyright Welsh Rugby Union) and ‘went north’, joining the Halifax professional rugby league team. This was a life changing decision in many ways for his family; not least … Continue reading
Posted in Buildings, Burtons, Corporate History, Design, Ghost Signs, Halifax, Heritage, Historic Shops, Markets, Places, Public Realm, Regeneration, Retail History, Rugby League, Streetscapes, Town Centres, Towns, Uncategorized, Urban History
Tagged Buildings, Burtons, Culture, Elephants, Halifax, Heritage, Markets, Piece Hall, Rugby League, Town Centres, Woolworths
1 Comment
Food and Retailing Cultures: Zaragoza
On a few occasions before, I have come back from somewhere and commented on the quality of food and/or retail culture that I have observed. I have then contrasted it with our own paucity of offer. I know this can … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Consumer Lifestyle, Food, Food Retailing, Heritage, Lisbon, Local Retailers, Markets, Places, Retail History, Retail Planning, Shopfronts, Signage, Spaces, Streetscapes, Town Centres, Uncategorized, Urban History
Tagged Food, Food Culture, Heritage, Historical shops, Markets, Place, Retail History, Signs, Zaragoza
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#Woolies10
I was out at the country on the tenth ‘anniversary’ of the closure of the last Woolworths store in the UK – 6th January to be exact. I had already contributed to an element of the ‘celebration’/‘remembrance’, so didn’t feel … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Buildings, Churn, Closure, Consumers, Corporate History, Ghost Signs, Heritage, High Streets, Historic Shops, History, Pound Shops, Poundland, Retail Failure, Shopfronts, Store Closures, Streetscapes, Towns, Uncategorized, Urban History, Woolworths
Tagged Churn, closures, Employees, failure, Heritage, High Streets, History, Pound shops, Retail Change, Retail Nostalgia, South Africa, stores, Streetscape, Woolworths
1 Comment
Twin Towns
To anyone with a Welsh background and an interest in films, Twin Town conjures up a film of 20+ years ago which was described as a Welsh Trainspotting, though less successful. Lock up your sheep and pretty much anything else, … Continue reading
Posted in Carnegie UK Trust, Collaboration, Community, Heritage, High Streets, History, Markets, Places, Regeneration, Small Towns, Town Centres, Towns, Uncategorized
Tagged Carnegie UK Trust, Collaboration, Community, Development, Digital, Heritage, High Streets, Identity, Markets, Places, Small Towns, towns, Twin Towns, Twinning
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Ghosts in the Rockies
In one of the many ironies of destroying my knee in May, we were left with a race against time to see if I was fit enough to go on a booked holiday in late August and early September. Would … Continue reading
Posted in Advertising, Architecture, Buildings, Canada, Corporate branding, Downtown, Ghost Signs, Heritage, High Streets, Historic Shops, Places, Retail History, Signage, Small Towns, Streetscapes, Urban History, USA
Tagged Canada, Coca-Cola, Ghost Towns, Ghostsigns, Heritage, High Streets, Historic Shops, Museums, Retail History, Retail Marketing, Signs, USA
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