Edgware Road Woolworths – Store 30 / 2031 – Woolies Buildings

168-176 Edgware Road, London, W2 2DX

Woolworths opened on Edgware Road on 21st March 1914, the 30th store to be opened in the UK.

Source: 100thbirthday.co.uk

The above photo is from 100thbirthday.co.uk and is a “photo taken on a colleagues Woolworths sixpenny camera. It shows the funeral cortege of the late H.M. King George V passing the store front in 1935.”

The store was extended in 1936 to quite a large size, which was when an Art Deco facade was added.

Source: Woolworths 100 Years on the High Street, Morrison K.

In June 1986 it was one of the first ‘Operation Focus’ comparison stores, where a peppermint blue colour scheme was rolled out. Possibly this was when they extended into the shop next door on the right. As it was the closest store to Head Office, it often had trials taking place here.

In 2000 it became a Woolworths General Store, being one of the early pilots for this scheme, and was re-numbered to 2031.

Source: Barras, Jamie

Somewhere between 2007 and 2008, the powers that be decided to change the fascia back to the traditional red Woolworths one – a bit late as it stopped being a General Store long before 2008.

Source: bowroaduk

Then they decided to close the store anyway! This was in July 2008 when 4 London stores were chosen to stop trading, before the whole chain went bust at the end of the year. Here’s a picture I took just before it closed down.

Quite soon afterwards, Waitrose took over the building, so it wasn’t empty for long. Here it is last week when I was on my way to Oxford Street. Still got the Woolworths flagpole up, minus flag 😛